Some like to actually earn their boozy lunch, and for those people, we recommend this epicurean hike, which will take you 5km up hill and down dale along the Bisse de Clavau and through Sion's noble vineyards, on a one-and-a-half-hour march that takes in the area's 2,000-year-old grape-growing history. Your prize? A three-course meal with six accompanying wines to taste at one of the region's charming guérites.

You'll want your camera for the famed Riffelsee Lake, which performs (on calm weather days) as a perfect mirror for the pyramidal Matterhorn that looms above it. Our suggestion: take the iconic Gornergrat Railway from Zermatt to Rotenboden and combine your visit to the glassy lake with a one-hour hike from there. Plough on a little further to witness a second, smaller (quieter) lake, which is just as photogenic.

Don't just admire the largest glacier in the Alps from a distance - get to grips with it on a thrilling guided hike. Welcome to the Great Aletsch Glacier, a 20km-long, 800m-thick, 10-billion-tonne hunk of ice that's the undisputed jewel in the crown of the Aletsch Arena. A variety of tours through this Unesco-listed spectacle led by experienced mountaineers are available every day from June to October, from Fiesch, and from Riederalp, every Wednesday.

Strap on your best boots for a rewarding voyage through the panoramic Nendaz region - a slice of the Alps overlooking the Rhone Valley that's as sunny as the French Riviera. Best for moderately experienced hikers, three and four-day treks can be taken at a leisurely pace, with vistas galore along marked paths by day, and overnight stops at cosy cabins, under skies peppered with countless constellations of twinkling stars. What better way to spend a long weekend getting back to nature?