Chasa
Noth

The Location

Scuol lies at 1,250 metres in the Lower Engadine, ringed by the peaks of the Silvretta and the jagged forms of the Engadine Dolomites. The village is known for its mineral springs, its mountain scenery and, in recent years, a growing arts scene. Chasa Noth stands in the old village centre, prominent on the square, whitewashed, its massive walls carrying intricate sgraffito. The façade was restored true to the original; anyone standing before it sees a house that never stopped belonging to the village skyline.

Backstory

Chasa Noth is a former farmhouse dating from the eighteenth century, owned by the Noth family, who still use it themselves as a holiday home today – letting and private use alternate. An earlier renovation had done the old fabric more harm than good: the lime walls were sealed with insulation, the sgraffito flaked away in large pieces.

For the fundamental restoration, the family engaged Sent-based architect Duri Vital, who specialises in Engadine farmhouses and has by now rescued more than fifty of them – his first project, in Tschlin in 1997, was undertaken with his brother, the artist Not Vital. His principle: show the old and preserve it where possible; where nothing remains, let the new be recognisable as such.

Interior & Architecture

Through the great round gate – once the passage for farmers’ hay wagons – one enters the Sulèr, the house’s convivial centre: bright, spacious, with a black kitchen of raw iron and a table for ten. A small staircase to the right climbs to the Stüva, panelled in stone pine, with a masonry stove and a bench before it.

Its one note of colour: a royal blue, laid by interior designer Karin Briefer as a rug – an echo of the blue-painted stove in the house of Not Vital, Duri Vital’s brother and an artist, in Ardez. Original beams and walls stayed where they were; beneath insulation panels the original stone-pine panelling resurfaced. Heating comes from a ground-source probe; the façade was restored by Ivano Rampa, recommended by the heritage authority.

A Look Inside

Four bedrooms are spread across the first and top floors, sleeping nine. On the ground floor lie a cloakroom and one bathroom, plus a room kept closed to guests as the family’s private retreat.

Upstairs follow three bedrooms, two with exposed stone-pine panelling, one kept modern – one room holds the Bural, a historic trapdoor leading straight down into the Stüva.

At the top, under the roof, a bright 73-square-metre room with a stone-pine floor, old beams and two dormer windows overlooking the peaks. The house also has a wine cellar, planned and executed by Duri Vital and lined with stones from the Inn rather than concrete, helping it retain the humidity needed for storing wine. The garden and parking space are directly outside. As the Noth family also uses the house themselves, early booking is advisable.

Culinary

Chasa Noth has no restaurant, but the Sulèr holds a well-equipped kitchen in raw iron, with fridge, dishwasher and the table for ten, designed from the outset for cooking together. A short walk into the village covers shopping, with a bakery, small supermarket and butcher. For those who don’t want to cook, Café Ajüz stands right on the square of Scuol Sot, open in summer, serving vegetarian food from regional ingredients with weekly cultural evenings – an insider tip not found in every guidebook.

More classic, with stone-pine parlours and Engadine cooking, are the restaurants of the larger hotels in the village, for fondue or capuns. Those after something earthier drive ten minutes to neighbouring Tschlin, to the Ustaria Tschlin, with its changing culinary theme nights.

Wellness & Relaxation

In Scuol, wellness means one thing above all: the Bogn Engiadina, one of the largest thermal baths in the Alps, fed by more than twenty springs, just a few minutes’ walk from Chasa Noth.

Those wanting it quieter find relaxation right in the house, in the Stüva with its masonry stove and the bench where the day is best closed out with a book. In winter the cross-country trail is ten minutes on foot; in summer the hiking paths start practically at the door. None of it is staged – relaxation here comes more from the slowness of the place itself than from any programme.

Surrounding Area

Scuol is one of the livelier villages of the Lower Engadine, its historic centre circling the square where Chasa Noth stands. Just a few steps away, mineral water has bubbled for centuries from the fountain at Bügl Grond. Culturally, the region has become a hub known well beyond the Engadine in recent years: the Nairs Centre for the Arts, with its Kunsthalle and art lab, shows contemporary art in changing exhibitions. Muzeum Susch, a good half-hour’s drive away, has made an international name for itself as a museum of contemporary art, housed in a former convent.

Above the Inn rises Schloss Tarasp, which Not Vital – Duri Vital’s brother and an internationally celebrated artist – bought in 2016 and has since turned into a total work of art combining historic halls with contemporary works, including pieces by Andy Warhol; in the park stands his monumental House to Watch the Sunset. At the edge of Scuol begins the Swiss National Park, the only one of its kind in the country – a wilderness of ibex, golden eagles and stone pines left to itself for over a hundred years. Those inclined toward the past will find, in Sent, a short drive away, a private collection of graphic works by Alberto Giacometti.

Activities

To explore the area beyond the house, here is a first sorting by interest.

Culture

• Nairs Centre for the Arts, with Kunsthalle and art lab
• Muzeum Susch, contemporary art in a former convent
• Schloss Tarasp, Not Vital’s art collection within the historic castle
• Alberto Giacometti collection in Sent

Thermal & Relaxation

• Bogn Engiadina, thermal baths fed by more than twenty springs
• Bügl Grond, historic mineral-water fountain on the square

Active & Nature

• Swiss National Park, the only one of its kind in the country
• Hiking trails starting right from the village centre
• Cross-country ski trail, ten minutes on foot
• Motta Naluns ski area, reachable by postbus or car

Food & Drink

• Café Ajüz on the square in Scuol Sot, vegetarian and regional
• Ustaria Tschlin, theme evenings in a stone-pine parlour
• Weekly market and small bakeries in the village centre

Details

• Four bedrooms for up to nine guests (first and top floors), two bathrooms
• Sulèr with a raw-iron kitchen and table for ten; Stüva with stone-pine panelling, stove and a royal-blue rug accent
• Restored under the direction of Duri Vital (architecture), Ivano Rampa (façade/sgraffito) and Karin Briefer (interiors)
• Wine cellar lined with stones from the Inn; garden and private parking at the house
• Fully equipped kitchen, fridge, dishwasher
• WiFi
• Bus stop 20 metres away, cross-country trail 10 minutes on foot
• Owner: the Noth family, who also use the house themselves – early booking recommended
• www.chasanoth.ch