Switzerland. Thinking of going for ...

F

fcblackpool

Well-known member
... a week or so May/June.

Where to go, what to see etc etc.

I genuinely know nothing about the place.

Any thoughts or advice?

Always appreciated.

TIA
 
I went in June 2017 and really enjoyed it.
Cheap flight to Geneva and then an 8 day rail pass which included Glacier and Bernini express.
Stayed in Lussane Chur, Zermitt and Lucerne.
Expensive to eat out but you can still budget. Local supermarkets like Coop ( like Spar) usually have reduced foods around 7 pm. Salad boxes etc. Went to several eating places too and avoided Steak and red meat as prices were sky high.
Will go back and cover the parts I missed.
 
I've been over for two short trips over the summer. I really like Bern and Zurich, and would definitely suggest visiting Thun/Interlaken as the scenery is stunning! Was less fussed about Basel but then again I didn't have much time to explore and I have friends who rave about it.

Can echo the sentiments about how expensive it is to eat out - I largely lived off homemade sandwiches and the occasional takeaway schnitzel.

Having fallen foul of it before, ensure you book all trains (tickets/rail passes) in advance before you travel as it is very very expensive to buy on the day. However, second time of asking I was able to buy much cheaper, print at home, tickets between the major cities before I left the UK.

Probably won't suit the time you're travelling, but would recommend taking in a football game while you're there. Considering how expensive Switzerland is in general, the football is surprisingly cheap. Once more, you can drink (and smoke if you're that way inclined) on standing terraces and most teams have a vibrant ultra following which is good entertainment value in itself. I've had good days out watching BSC YB at Wankdorf and FC Thun at the Stockhorn Arena which I would both throughly recommend.
 
Stayed a weekend in Zurich. That was nice.

Very different country with German, French (mainly in the west) and Italian (in the south) being official languages along with Romansh but that's only spoken by a tiny minority.
 
Don’t forget to download your stazi papers. Even Switzerland can’t be Neutral on this one.
 
Been 4 times beautiful country. Would like to go again but not during the pandemic etc. The times I visited I would eat in department store cafeterias ( Jelmoli or Denner) as you could get a decent meal a lot cheaper than in a restaurant. Zurich, Bern, Luzern, Lugano are great cities. Avoid Basel as there is not much to see except barges going down the Rhine.🇨🇭
 
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fcblackpool said:
... a week or so May/June.

Where to go, what to see etc etc.

I genuinely know nothing about the place.

Any thoughts or advice?

Always appreciated.

TIA
Click to expand...
I was in berne 7yrs ago for a mates wedding lovely clean place and great views
Schite for pubs and the beer was cack could not wait to get back to holland
 
MrsTSS has been out lecturing twice in Zurich but got to see a few other places.

Her take on it.

Stunningly beautiful country, good people, eye wateringly expensive.
 
Fantastic trains. Geneva airport to Aigle around the lake or up on the glass roof train to Zermatt wonderful scenery. Like many have already stated it’s expensive to eat out.
Train from Wengen up the Eiger is also breathtaking as it stops half way up and there are windows in the mountainside looking out on where the climbers scale up.
 
Go to Austria instead. The Tyrolean half looks just as good and it's a lot cheaper. Slovenia, cheaper again but doesn't have quite the same mountainous look as Swiss and Aus, beautiful though it still is.
 
Visited Zurich some years ago, expensive to the point of most shops not displaying the price of their goods in windows. Lovely to cruise on the lake, then take in the historic trend setting places such as The Pavilion Le Corbusier, and Cabaret Voltaire (not that Sheffield band😉) the birthplace of Dadaism. Overall a cool city.
 
I was planning a trip there for this year but covid and all that 💁‍♀️
The train element suited me as I fancy a couple of days in Milan then a 3 hour rail trip to Zurich and a couple of days there. Can’t really comment anymore as haven’t actually been.
But go for it , sure it will be ace 👍
 
emmykoistangerine said:
I've been over for two short trips over the summer. I really like Bern and Zurich, and would definitely suggest visiting Thun/Interlaken as the scenery is stunning! Was less fussed about Basel but then again I didn't have much time to explore and I have friends who rave about it.

Can echo the sentiments about how expensive it is to eat out - I largely lived off homemade sandwiches and the occasional takeaway schnitzel.

Having fallen foul of it before, ensure you book all trains (tickets/rail passes) in advance before you travel as it is very very expensive to buy on the day. However, second time of asking I was able to buy much cheaper, print at home, tickets between the major cities before I left the UK.

Probably won't suit the time you're travelling, but would recommend taking in a football game while you're there. Considering how expensive Switzerland is in general, the football is surprisingly cheap. Once more, you can drink (and smoke if you're that way inclined) on standing terraces and most teams have a vibrant ultra following which is good entertainment value in itself. I've had good days out watching BSC YB at Wankdorf and FC Thun at the Stockhorn Arena which I would both throughly recommend.
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When I went to see FC Zurich people were openly smoking dope ! I even got offered some. Very friendly
 
I’ve had holidays there 6 or seven times. We have stayed in Interlaken by Lake Thune and also Lautetbrunen both are beautiful. Interlaken is on the edge of the Bernese Oberland and has beautiful views toward the Eiger, Minch and Jungfrau and you can catch a train from interlaken to Lauterbruneb where you can then get a train or cable car to Grindelwald, Wengen and Murren.
Lauterbrunen is a be lovely place and is in what has been described as ‘the most perfect valley in the world’. There are also waterfalls that fall down about 200 feet or more in to the valley. The only down side is with it being in a valley it is in shadow from about 3:00pm and the temperature does drop quite a bit.
I have also stayed in the next valley to the south and that is ideal for Zermatt and the Matterhorn also for a village named Luckerbad that has a wonderful natural springs which heated the water, a great swimming baths and water jets where you can relax.
If you haven’t been before you can buy a travel pass and get a free day’s travel on trains, buses, boats, cable cars, etc. on a chosen day or you can pay more and get two free days of travel. On the other days you get half price travel.
If you want a cheaper holiday go with Eurocamp outside school holidays. We tend to go so our first night is on 1st September and the cost can drop by £600 that if our first night was on 31st August.
I have also been to Iceland and that is very, very expensive. Switzerland is expensive but no where near as Iceland.
We are going again in September 2023 depending on COVID
 
Went quite a few years ago. Loved it.
We went up one of the mountains and whilst we there there was a broadcast that the train had broken down and was blocking the railway.
They told us to stand by for helicopters. fortunately they resolved the situation so all was well.
 
I spent a week in Davos for work, they were paying so I obviously wasn't bothered about prices, but a cheese fondue was 80 Euro per person, melted bloody cheese and bread 80 Euro!
 
If you are travelling about hop over the border into France and have a look at the Chapel at Ronchamp . . . the finest building in the world IMO.

Ask Missy FCB about it :)
 
L’étranger said:
What are the beaches like?
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Just Google
You can't underestimate the power of a lakeside beach. Switzerlandmay be a landlocked country, but its lakes provide some gorgeous beaches for everything from soaking in the views of the Alps to the warm rays of the sun. Work some beach visits into your Switzerland travels to experience everything this little European treasure has to offer.

I bet you wasn’t expecting a reply like that !
 
If driving on their roads, you'll need a vignette, it costs a bit and they give you a green sticker for your windscreen to prove you've paid for use of the roads. Great driving over the mountains for the views but the tunnels do the job.
 
Codofthenorth said:
If driving on their roads, you'll need a vignette, it costs a bit and they give you a green sticker for your windscreen to prove you've paid for use of the roads. Great driving over the mountains for the views but the tunnels do the job.
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If I remember correctly the last time I went about 3 years ago the vignette cost about 25 euros and the colour of it changes every year. You can buy them at the boarder crossing in to Switzerland.

Also, before the first trime I went back in 1989 I wrote to the Swiss Tourist office and they sent me a load of stuff back for free including a map, guides for different cantons (counties), etc. They were very good.
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