MALOJA
„Being so close to nature is the true luxury.“
Anyone who stays or dines at Camping Curtinac in Maloja experiences a very special kind of hospitality. Flurina, Max, Malvina and Claudio Pittin have turned this site close to nature into a meeting place for those who enjoy the simple things in life.
“The first time Max caught my attention was at Restaurant Longhin,” Flurina Pittin recalls. “He talked all evening. But I liked him.” Max Pittin had come to the Engadin from Zürich in 1981 to work as a surf instructor. After a few weeks, he left again—but the following summer he was back. “I worked at the small surf school in the bay by the Maloja campsite,” Max recalls. “Back then, everything was still very simple, and the campsite was a bit run-down.” Flurina and Max became a couple, and in 1984, when they were asked whether they would like to take over the site, they said yes
Categories:
Summer
Campingplatz Curtinac in Maloja
Maloja’s Camping Curtinac dates back to the 1950s. Located along the unpaved road leading to Isola, it stretches across a wide forest clearing. Sitting right by the lake, it is a favourite spot for anglers and watersports enthusiasts, and equally popular with hikers and bikers, who value its immediate closeness to nature. A gravel path leads up to the 50 or so campervan and caravan pitches. In the surrounding meadows, stretching up to the forest edge, there is ample space for tents of all sizes. At the heart of the site stands a wooden main building, where guests will find showers, washbasins and toilets. On the side overlooking the lake, a small, welcoming restaurant with a terrace invites guests to linger.
Max and Flurina soon became a family: their daughter Malvina was born in 1986, followed by their son Claudio in 1987. “Growing up here was wonderful. The forest, the streams and the lake were a child’s dream playground,” recalls Malvina, who trained in tourism. Her younger brother Claudio also explored every inch of the site, and still does: “For many of our guests—as for me—it’s simply a place to recharge.
Our guests enjoy the simplicity of the place
Among the guests are several who stay for the summer, while others come for weekends or holidays. Most are Swiss, German or Dutch. “Our guests enjoy the simplicity of the place. Those travelling in a twelve-metre motorhome in search of luxury are better off elsewhere,” says Flurina. The food at the restaurant is simple yet excellent. Max, a trained mason, built the pizza oven himself and went on to become one of the valley’s finest ‘pizzaiolos’. In recent years, his son Claudio (39) has increasingly taken over at the wood-fired oven, while his daughter Malvina (40) works her magic in the kitchen.
“In the early years, business at the restaurant was slow,” Flurina recalls. “Some weeks, we were glad if we earned enough to pay for the wood for the pizza oven.” “That may also have had something to do with the food,” Malvina laughs. “We reheated ready-made dishes and didn’t pay enough attention to the details.” Things are very different today. “Our menu is simple, but the quality has to be first-rate—without exception,” says Claudio. The pizzas baked by him and his father Max, along with Malvina’s pasta, capuns and beautifully presented salads, are drawing an increasing number of visitors from across the Engadin.
