Visitor information - Somaskanda Ashram

Visitor information & travel directions

Anyone can visit the temple and join our daily worship. You are also welcome to come for a retreat and spend a few days at the Ashram and become part of the daily routine. Please read the following information carefully to make the most out of your pilgrimage:

Day visits

Join us for a puja or come and spend a day at the Ashram! If possible please register your visit before you come, but spontaneous visitors are also welcome.

Please note that the weather up on the mountain can be unpredictable and cold even in summer. The last few hundred meters of the path to the Ashram have to be walked on foot, so please bring sensible footwear and consider this when packing your bag (backpack recommended).

Money & temple offerings

Everything at Somaskanda Ashram is provided totally free of charge including pujas (temple services), satsang (conversations and discourses about God), as well as meals and accommodation. It is funded solely through voluntary donations. Everyone working for the temple and the retreats does so without being paid.

If you would like to donate money, food or any other items then you are very welcome, but it should be done so anonymously. In keeping our vows of poverty, we never make suggestions regarding what you should offer to God in the temples.

Temple rules

In preparation for your pilgrimage, we ask you to be vegetarian and to keep away from illegal drugs for at least three days before you come here.
If you have eaten meat in the last three days, then please sit at the back of the temple. We ask ladies having a menstrual period to do the same – please feel free to ask a member of the Community if you would like to know more about this.

Your temple clothing should be clean and modest. Please do not bring leather jackets, belts or handbags into the temple.

No recording or photography is allowed inside the temple.

Please remember that no smoking or alcohol is permitted anywhere in Somaskanda Ashram.

Staying at the Ashram

There is simple accommodation available at the Ashram for pilgrims wishing to take part in the daily routine of the temple. All activities and utilities of the ashram are offered free of charge and run entirely on voluntary donations. All meals are vegetarian and prepared with the food that has been offered in the temple.

What to bring

For overnight stays at the Ashram, please bring the following:

sleeping bag and pillowcase
towel
torch and slippers
warm clothes (it can be very cold in the mountains even in summer)
sensible shoes and a waterproof jacket
Volunteers please bring working clothes.

It’s better to bring a backpack than a suitcase, because the last few hundred meters to the ashram have to be walked on foot.

Local hotels and B&B's

Since there is only a limited number of beds available, there may be times when you have to organise your own accommodation locally. Please try these friendly local hotels and guest rooms:

Hotel Arflina: +41 81 300 30 70 (45 min walk from the Ashram)
B&B Türmlihus in Fideris village: +41 79 914 95 81 (20 min by car)
Guest rooms Gujan in Fideris village: +41 81 332 21 13, e-mail: jmgujan@sunrise.ch (20 min by car)
Hotel Terminus in Küblis: +41 81 330 53 30 (30 min by car)
Airbnb in Fideris with Margreth (20 min by car)
Airbnb in Jenaz with Chris (30 min by car)

Location of the Ashram:

The Ashram is located at 1800 meters above sea level. From the village of Fideris in the canton Graubünden, a mountain road winds up to the Ashram for about 10 kilometers (‘Heuberge road’).

Geographical coordinates: 46.88248, 9.73591 (N, E, decimal degrees).
Address: Püschenweg 3, 7235 Fideris
Contact for emergencies: +41 79 133 54 88

How to get to the Ashram:

The village of Fideris located at the bottom of the mountain can be reached by car or public transport. View the videoclip to find out how to get from Fideris to the Ashram and check the webcams of Heuberge AG for the road conditions.

Today, the Heuberge road up the mountain is open for private traffic.

There may be snow and ice on the road. Please only drive up if the winter tyres are mounted and the snow chains at hand ❄️

Summer (April – November)

By car

Important: You must get a temporary driving authorisation to drive up this road. Buy a permit at the sales station of the Heuberge company (at Sägerei, just before you enter the village on the left) and place it behind the screen so it is clearly visible.
It is also possible to Costs per vehicle: 3 days CHF 10, 1 week CHF 20.

After purchasing your permit, drive in the direction of “Fideriser Heuberge”. Stop at the start of the access track to the Ashram (‘Höhi’ bus stop, 46.88304, 9.73800). You will see a sign here pointing out the direction of the Ashram.
Please note there is no broadly available parking around the Ashram or at the start of the access track.
Unload your luggage at the bottom of the access track and leave it on the side of the road. Continue driving up the Heuberge road to the main junction (signposts: Hotel Heuberge, Hotel Arflina, 46.86944, 9.73005). There is a public parking area here.
Leave your car here and walk back to your luggage (20 minutes). Carry your luggage up to the Ashram (300m, 10 minutes).
The small parking area around the Ashram is filled according to availability and needs (requirement: 4×4 gear). At the bottom of the access track the general parking prohibition of the Heuberge road applies. Thank you for your understanding and your cooperation.

Lift sharing

Please join our Telegram group by contacting +41 79 133 54 88 to coordinate lifts with other devotees.

By bus or taxi

During the summer season, there is a bus service from Fideris village (Sägerei) to Fideriser Heuberge on Saturdays and Sundays provided by the Heuberge AG (tell the driver you need to get off the bus at “Höhi“). You can check the bus timetable online. Please make an arrangement in advance by phoning +41 81 300 30 70, or emailing: info@heuberge.ch.

During weekdays you can hire a cab at Gotschna Taxi from Klosters (+41 81 420 20 20).

For groups of 4-6 people there is a taxi service available from Landquart or from the Zürich area to the temple returning on the same day: Perpa Transport (+4176 297 54 82, Landquart-temple return CHF 100 for the group, Zürich-temple return CHF 240 for the group)

Winter (November – April)

By bus

During the winter, the Heuberge road is closed (mid November until mid April). Cars must be left at the public parking areas provided in the village of Fideris.
Make use of the transport offered by the Heuberge company. During the high season (about mid December until end March) there are daily bus drives. Fee for single journey CHF 23.
Drives up to the mountain/ to the Ashram should be arranged between 9 and 11 am to make it possible to join the lunchtime Abishekam. Inform the driver you will be getting off the bus at “Höhi”.
Drives back down to the village of Fideris can be arranged in the morning until 12:30 am or in the afternoon after 4 pm. Drives down the mountain at 4 pm and thereafter have to be requested and reserved.
You will find more information in their bus time table. Please book your bus drive directly with them. Contact: +41 81 300 30 70.
During winter, the Heuberge company maintain a sledge run on the Heuberge road, so you can also sledge back down instead.

Walk the last few hundred meters

Summer (April – November):

Due to the nature of the access track and the parking situation at the Ashram the path from the Höhi bus stop to the Ashram has to be walked on foot. Follow the dirt road for about 10 minutes leading 300 meters up along woods and fields. Carry your luggage with you.

If you are elderly or have a serious medical condition and cannot walk up to the temple, please get in touch. We will try to help you working out a way to get there.

Winter (November – April):

During the winter months the track is covered in snow. Walking the final 300 meters by foot is the only possible way to reach the Ashram. Walking on snow is challenging, so wear solid and warm shoes and, if required, take your walking sticks with you. During times of fresh and deep snow it is helpful to use snow shoes. All luggage has to be carried so it is best to bring a rucksack.