Müstair – Taufers im Münstertal border crossing

Müstair is a village in the Val Müstair municipality in the district of Inn in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. It is also the most eastern village in Switzerland. The easternmost point of Switzerland, at Piz Chavalatsch, is located in the municipality but unfortunately we did not have time to visit this point. Taufers im Münstertal is a commune (municipality) in South Tyrol in northern Italy, located about 70 kilometres west of the city of Bolzano, on the border with Switzerland.

The whole area is characterised by beautiful alpine scenery and is a national park. The nearby Benedictine Convent of Saint John is both listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is a German speaking area, with many on the Austrian side also speaking Romansh. As with most western European border crossings, there were local and national signs, old and disused custom and passport controls. Both Italy and Switzerland are part of the Schengen Area, which means there are generally no permanent passport controls for people crossing the border. Switzerland is not in the EU Customs Union, so customs checks still apply. Travellers must declare all goods carried if their total value exceeds CHF 150 or if they exceed duty-free allowances for items like alcohol and tobacco. Customs officers are authorized to perform random checks. There were several border markers also to explore. We visited this point as part of the IBRG LIVCO-25 expedition.