Dispatches
Stories
The people, places, and unexpected afterlives of Switzerland’s bunkers. From cheese caves carved out of ammunition stores to luxury hotels 100 metres below the Alps.
The Second Life
Repurposed Bunkers
Hotels, cheese caves, mushroom farms, data centres, wine cellars, and rave venues — the extraordinary transformations of decommissioned military installations.
Hidden in Plain Sight
Camouflage & Deception
Painted-on windows, fake boulders, barns that conceal artillery — how the Swiss military turned camouflage into an architectural art form.
Unfinished Business
Dangers & Legacies
The ongoing risks, from the 3,500 tons of unexploded ordnance beneath Mitholz to shelters with doors that won’t close and ventilation systems past their expiry.
All Stories
Latest Dispatches
Stories coming soon. First up: the Mitholz time bomb, bunker cheese caves, Swiss Fort Knox data centres, and the La Claustra hotel experience.
