"There is a specific high that comes with outrunning your own limiting beliefs - a chase that has previously landed me in an Austrian fasting clinic, on a half-marathon start line in Madrid, and sitting ten days of silent meditation in the English countryside. But even I, a glutton for punishingly offbeat wellness trends, would have laughed you out of the juice bar had you told me a year ago that I'd soon be yodelling my way to self-improvement."
"Before now, my exposure to the ancient art form was limited to Domino's adverts and Julie Andrews' vocal aerobics in The Sound of Music. But sparked by the UNESCO decision to grant yodelling Intangible Cultural Heritage status back in December 2025, I checked into Gstaad grand dame, Le Grand Bellevue Hotel, to discover if this whimsical Swiss warbling could be Europe's most slept-on biohack."
Yodelling originates from 1500s Alpine cattle-calling and was formalised with the Federal Yodelling Association in 1910. By the mid-20th century it served as part of Switzerland's "spiritual national defence" against rising fascism. The tradition has re-emerged with about 17,000 active yodellers and over 700 clubs. Practitioners report benefits including stress relief, cognitive stimulation and improved lung capacity. Le Grand Bellevue hotel in Gstaad offers guided yodelling sessions at St. Niklaus Chapel led by seasoned instructor Anita Hefti. UNESCO granted yodelling Intangible Cultural Heritage status in December 2025.
Read at CN Traveller
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