Switzerland's oldest city — gateway to the Graubünden Alps
Chur (Cuira in Romansh, Coira in Italian) is Switzerland's oldest city — settled since at least 3000 BCE — and the capital of Graubünden, the country's largest but least-populated canton. Wedged at the entrance to the Rhine Gorge (the 'Swiss Grand Canyon') and surrounded by peaks, it is the gateway to the ski resorts of Arosa, Lenzerheide, and Davos, and the starting point of the Glacier Express train. The compact medieval old town, built around a 5th-century bishop's palace and a Carolingian cathedral, is almost traffic-free and excellently preserved.
Chur's episcopal seat was established in the late 4th century CE, making it one of the oldest bishoprics north of the Alps. The city was a key node on the route from Italy over the Alpine passes (the Via Mala and Splügen Pass) since Roman times. Graubünden joined the Swiss Confederation in 1803; it is the only officially trilingual Swiss canton (German, Romansh, and Italian), and Chur's identity reflects this Alpine crossroads heritage. The cathedral of the Bishop of Chur dates in part to the 8th century.