Crans-Montana
Valais

Crans-Montana

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Crans-Montana is one of the prettiest places in Valais. So the Bella Lui building, converted into a youth hostel, really lives up to its name!

Crans-Montana

Valais

Bella Lui means «beautiful light» in the old Valais dialect – and it couldn't be a more fitting name. The former sanatorium is situated on a sun-drenched plateau and rewards guests with a unique view of the Valais Alps. Here you can choose from three sun terraces and enjoy a lot of daylight thanks to the tall windows. The large glass doors open outwards, effectively extending the living area onto the balcony. Guests can use the restored original furniture and take the lift with its mirror and wooden bench. Every day, the variety of outdoor activities delights bikers, hikers, skiers, as well as water and mountain enthusiasts.

  • Crans-Montana Youth Hostel
    «Bella Lui»
    Route du Zotzet 8
    3963 Crans-Montana
    Switzerland
  • Check-in: 17:00 - 21:30 Check-out: 07:30 - 10:00
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Opening times

Types Winter 2023/2024 Summer 2024 Winter 2024/2025 Summer 2025 Winter 2025/2026
Opening dates          
Opening dates 15.12.2023 - 01.04.2024 08.05.2024 - 20.10.2024 20.12.2024 - 20.04.2025 16.05.2025 - 19.10.2025 19.12.2025 - 05.04.2026
Check In/Out          
Check-in 17:00 - 21:30 17:00 - 21:30 17:00 - 21:30 17:00 - 21:30 17:00 - 21:30
Check-out 07:30 - 10:00 07:30 - 10:00 07:30 - 10:00 07:30 - 10:00 07:30 - 00:00
Reception times          
Mon to Fri: 07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
Sat and Sun: 07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
07:30 - 10:00
17:00 - 21:30
Meal times          
Breakfast buffet 07:30 - 09:30 07:30 - 09:30 07:30 - 09:30 07:30 - 09:30 07:30 - 09:30
Dinner 18:00 - 19:30 18:00 - 19:30 18:00 - 19:30

How to find us

By train:

By train from Visp or Lausanne to Sierre/Siders. From there, it’s around 10 mins on the funicular to Montana. Continue from the funicular mountain station on bus No. 421 or 422 to the «Lac Grenon» stop which is almost outside the front door of the youth hostel. In winter, another bus which also stops just 100 metres from the youth hostel, takes you to the valley stations.

By car:

The youth hostel has a limited number of chargeable car parking spaces, for which advance reservation is recommended.

If you are arriving using the Lötschberg car transporter train, please take note of the information at www.bls.ch. BLS is replacing the tracks in the Lötschberg Summit Tunnel between Kandersteg and Goppenstein. Construction work will take place during normal operations and will last until 2022. You can find all the information on the current departure times here: www.bls.ch/neue-fahrbahn

Barrier-free journey:

By train / on foot

By train from Visp or Lausanne to Sierre/Siders. Then by bus no. 421 or 422 to the «Lac Grenon» stop, which will take you almost to the youth hostel entrance. From the bus stop you only have to walk 100 meters uphill on a paved street (slope of approximately 8%–10%). Please contact the bus company one day in advance by calling: Tel. +41 27 481 33 55

By car

The youth hostel has fee-paying, wheelchair-accessible parking. We would ask you to book in advance. For persons with a disability who hold the official blue parking card, we will gladly provide a disabled parking space free of charge.

Room categories

  • Number of beds
  • Single room
  • Double rooms
  • Family rooms
  • Shared rooms
  • Barrier-free rooms

Infrastructure

Prices (in CHF) and availability

  • Breakfast buffet   incl.
    Lunch on request CHF 19.50
    Dinner CHF 19.50
    Dinner for children ages 2 to 5 years CHF 8.50
    Dinner for children ages 6 to 12 years CHF 14.50
    Packed lunch on request CHF 10.00

    Yoummi – the catering option from Swiss Youth Hostels 

    • All prices exclusive of taxes CHF 3.00 per person/night, including VAT.
    • The Hostel Card Standard is included in the price of accommodation and is valid from the day of arrival to the day of departure.
    • You have the option of purchasing a Hostel Card Premium and benefit from cheaper accommodation prices in all Swiss youth Hostels. More information about the Hostel Card Premium
    • Groups (minimum of 10 people) are advised to buy a Hostel Card Premium (personal: CHF 55.– / non-personal: CHF 99.–)
    • Find our children's prices on the family page
    • Group rates for children ages 2 to 5 years, a flat rate of CHF 15.–; from ages 6 to 12 years, accommodation prices / group prices apply
    • Accommodation of dogs on request CHF 15.- per dog and night, without food
    • Car park per night CHF 10.–
    • Voluntary climate protection contribution CHF 0.30
    • Rates are subject to change
    • All rates in CHF
  • Barrier-free stay

    12 rooms at the Crans-Montana youth hostel are accessible for guests with restricted mobility.

    Disability-friendly accommodation

    Rooms Disability-friendly beds in every room
    4 double rooms with accessible shower/WC 2 beds
    5 4-bed rooms with washbasin 2 beds
    3 6-bed rooms with washbasin 3 beds

    The ramps have a maximum slope of 6%.

    All rooms are easily accessible to wheelchairs and can be reached unassisted. The building has a lift.

    Disability-friendly washroom

    The youth hostel is equipped with 3 disability-friendly toilets on the floors and an accessible shower on the first and the second floor.

    Disability-friendly arrival

    By train / on foot

    By train from Visp or Lausanne to Sierre/Siders. Then by bus no. 421 or 422 to the “Pavillon” stop, which will take you almost to the youth hostel entrance. From the bus stop you only have to walk 100 meters uphill on a paved street (slope of approximately 8% - 10%). Please contact the bus company one day in advance by calling: Tel. +41 27 481 33 55

    By car

    The youth hostel has fee-paying, wheelchair-accessible parking. We would ask you to book in advance. For persons with a disability who hold the official blue parking card, we will gladly provide a disabled parking space free of charge.

    Useful information

    Links to public transport

    Taxi

    • Wheelchair taxi
      Association Transport Handicap
      Rue de la Dixence 57
      1950 Sion
      Tel.: +41 27 323 90 00 (opening hours: weekdays 8:00 - 11:45 a.m., 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.)

    Closest pharmacy

    260 m, approximately 4 minutes:

    • Pharmacie Bagnoud
      Route du Rawyl 32, CP 42,
      3963 Crans Montana 2
      Tel.: +41 58 851 30 50 (Opening hours: Weekdays 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., 2:30 – 6:30 p.m.)

    Offers

    Supporting the OK:GO initiative

    Swiss Youth Hostels is part of the OK:GO initiative. This initiative aims to ensure that every tourism provider in Switzerland offers information about the accessibility of its services to the public. Learn more about the initiative here.

    ginto profile of Crans-Montana Youth Hostel

    Visit our ginto page for Crans-Montana Youth Hostel now and find out all about barrier-free accommodation at this hostel.

  • From a sanatorium to a monument of today’s modern architecture

    The Bella Lui has changed its function several times over the course of its history. It was originally built as a sanatorium and was then temporarily used as a sports hotel during the 1930s. During the Second World War, it served as a home for young Jewish refugees and during the middle of the twentieth century it was again used as a convalescent home for patients with lung diseases. In 1951 the building was acquired by an association that was specially founded for this purpose and which initially continued to run the establishment as a convalescent home. It was reconverted into a health spa and hotel in 1965 and in 2016 the hotel was passed over to Swiss Youth Hostels which converted the building into a youth hostel.

    Montana Health Resort

    The high plateau of Montana boasts an exceptionally good climate thanks to its position approximately 1,500 metres above sea level. During the summer, the south facing plateau enjoys up to 14 hours of sunshine. These conditions make Montana a perfect location for a health resort. The population grew rapidly at the end of the 19th century which brought with it a significant deterioration in hygiene conditions. This created an ideal breeding ground for infectious diseases such as tuberculosis. To promote the healing of patients suffering from lung diseases, numerous sanatoriums were opened in Switzerland at the beginning of the 20th century, including Montana which soon earned a reputation as a high-quality health resort.

    Supporting Convalescence at Bella Lui

    The most important prerequisites for a sanatorium were a location that was protected from the wind and surrounded by lots of greenery, a good water supply, a south or south-south-east aspect, light and partitioned rooms and individual opportunities for sunbathing. Dr Haller Stähelin commissioned the architect couple Rudolf and Flora Steiger-Crawford to build the Bella Lui sanatorium in 1928 and they created a health resort that met all these requirements to perfection. Rudolf and Flora Crawford Steiger made excellent use of modern technology and created a building that perfectly satisfied the requirements for light, air and sunlight. Switzerland also became all the richer with the completion of a building that was to become a unique testimony of modern architecture.

    Conservation of a Unique Architectural Monument

    The building is now considered to be an outstanding monument of modern architecture. The clean, horizontal lines on the facade that are further accentuated by the balconies, the strong emphasis on functionality and the simple language of form using elements that are integrated within each other are typical characteristics of architecture from this era.  Art historian and architecture critic Sigfried Giedion praised the building and considered that it was one of the few buildings that made a positive contribution to the ‘furtherance of the sanatorium issue in real terms’ and pointed out that it was the first residential building in Switzerland to use a welded iron framework construction. In 2002 the building was classified as a historic monument and a protected building by the canton of Valais. Following many different conversions and improvement measures, the building underwent a renovation by architects Actescollectifs from Sierre in 2016/2017 which resulted in the restoration of the historical components of the building and which made the new elements more prominent.

  • Fair and socially sustainable tourism!

    To ensure that our planet remains a beautiful home for future generations, the Swiss Youth Hostels association is committed to economic, ecological and social sustainability.

    We are therefore happy to announce that since March 2018, we have additional funds available for socially sustainable tourism. Thanks to the Bella Lui support fund, we are able to give large low-income Swiss families the chance to make happy memories at the Bella Lui youth hostel in Crans-Montana.

    The financial support comes from the social welfare funds of the building’s former proprietor (the Bella Lui Association in Aarau). After it reopened as a youth hostel, the association decided to give part of the fund assets to Swiss Youth Hostels (SYH). SYH can now grant financial aid to Switzerland based families or to individuals who are in need of recovery. Parents (including single parents) who stay three or more days in Bella Lui together with two or more of their children are reimbursed 50% of the accommodation costs. The support fund is also available to individuals who are experiencing a life crisis or who are refocusing their life and are in desperate need of recreation. They have the right to submit their grant application to the SYH management.

    • Loterie Romande
    • Bundesamt für Kultur
    • Commune de Crans-Montana
    • Denk an mich
    • Commune de Lens
    • Kanton Wallis
    • Partner Logo Crans-Montana Fondation du Casino de Crans-Montana

Current experiences

Your benefits as a member

  • Save CHF 7.– per adult per night on every overnight stay (does not apply to children’s prices)
  • Discounted admission to museums and leisure facilities in Switzerland
  • Benefit from our national partner offers
  • Support us in the promotion of family-friendly, ecological and social tourism in Switzerland
  • Benefit from a approx. 10% discount on overnight stays abroad

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