P
erhaps most well-known as the host city
of the World Economic Forum, Davos,
Switzerland regularly welcomes some of the
world’s most powerful people from politics
and business. But before Davos became the
epicenter for the world’s economic affairs, people
made the pilgrimage to the Graubünden Alps for its
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healing effects. Since the middle of the 19th
century, Davos was best known as a summer spa
town, thanks to German, Alexander Spengler, who
discovered the healing properties of its climate. As
the highest Alpine town at 1,560m above sea level,
Davo s was filled with sanatoriums, treating those
afflicted with allergies and respiratory issues.