Switzerland - travel advice kindly requested

[Man of Harveys]

I quite fancy going to Switzerland for a bit of decidedly non serious mountain walking, scenic drives up hairpins, fondues etc etc. Anyone been there? Which region is best to head for? I don't know much about the place other than that it seems ace so any guidance would be mucho appreciato.

 

[Uncle Buck]

Been to Zurich, got tear gased.

 

[Lokki 7]

The train journey from Geneva to Zurich is stunning.

 

[aftershavedave]

get yourself a fondu maker, a big bag of gruyere, one of those cute little cuckoo clocks and have a night in with the good lady. ask her for a "swiss roll" and you're as good as there!

 

[Jim in the West]

Went there with the family at half term. Stayed in a lovely village called Kandersteg - loads of great walking all around, plus easy train access to loads of other mountainous delights. If you can get a cheap flight to Geneva, you can forget about the need to use the car, as the railway system is fabulous. I'd recommend getting hold of the Rough Guide to Switzerland.

 

[London Calling]

Alternatively I did a great 5 day tour of Austrian mts, whilst we went over peaks topping 8,000 ft plus. Staying at mountain cabins every night. Absolutely fantastic.

It was not too hard.

In fact me and Ms LC had literally never done any off road walking b4

 

[Schrödinger's Toad]

I quite fancy going to Switzerland for a bit of decidedly non serious mountain walking, scenic drives up hairpins, fondues etc etc. Anyone been there? Which region is best to head for? I don't know much about the place other than that it seems ace so any guidance would be mucho appreciato.

Interlaken's the one for a bit of walking; you've got endless mountains all around, the Jungfrau and the Eiger not far off, but for something a little easier, you can hike to the top of Harder Kulm, the ridge overlooking the town; about two hours at a gentle enough pace, and you can always take the funicular railway back down if you're knackered - the views from the top are well worth the climb.

I went to Geneva, Zurich and Bern as well - all interesting enough places, but there's not really enough to divert you for more than a couple of days. Bern's probably the best for museums (closed on Mondays), Geneva for scenery etc.

Great country - although it seems you're driving, the train network's superb, and not too expensive. Well worth taking the train from Spiez, near Interlaken, to Montreux ... fantastic scenery, if you fancy a leisurely journey.

Easyjet fly to Geneva for very little; the airport's ten or fifteen minutes from the centre.

 

[Man of Harveys]

Thanks for the advice chaps, much appreciated.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

I quite fancy going to Switzerland for a bit of decidedly non serious mountain walking, scenic drives up hairpins, fondues etc etc. Anyone been there? Which region is best to head for? I don't know much about the place other than that it seems ace so any guidance would be mucho appreciato.

Take out a second mortgage?

Very pretty, but expensive (although if you live in London, it'll probably seem cheap).

 

[Vlad the Impala]

In fact me and Ms LC had literally never done any off road walking b4

You're bloody lucky you've not been killed then.

 

[London Calling]

 

[Tooting Gull]

Bit biased as I have family there, but it's a great country if very expensive. You may be heading elsewhere, but if you're in the Luzern area (and that's a top town) give the views from the top of here a try.

http://www.pilatus.ch/default-n7-sE.html

 

[Cian]

Re: Re: Switzerland - travel advice kindly requested

Take out a second mortgage?

Very pretty, but expensive (although if you live in London, it'll probably seem cheap).

I found Switzerland cheap compared to Dublin, particularly Lucerne - 2.5% VAT!

 

[Man of Harveys]

I've never seen men with such big ones before:

 

[Marc]

Been there 4 times as a kid, Interlaken was my fave, plenty of stuff to do there including a lower league football team to watch!

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

According to my old swiss housemate:

the german speaking population have a horrible accent.

they all hate the french.

they have some miltary defence thing in the mountains that sounded a little like Helm's Deep.

They're going to have a pretty decent side for Euro 2008.

Not sure that any of that will help, but you never know...

 

[Cian]

The German speaking ones will speak English to you quite willingly (their TV stations even carry an English track!), and generally can speak it quite well; but the French ones won't.

Don't be surprised to be in some small town up in the mountains, hear a noise, look up and see some very impressive fighter jets above you.

And don't buy anything in the "Kiosk" shops if you want your wallet to be intact, look for the Co-ops, they're way cheaper even than Tesco here.

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

According to my old swiss housemate:

the german speaking population have a horrible accent.(edit: a horrible german accent)

they all hate the french.(edit: the nation not the french speaking swiss)

they have some miltary defence thing in the mountains that sounded a little like Helm's Deep.

They're going to have a pretty decent side for Euro 2008.

Not sure that any of that will help, but you never know...

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

If you ARE going to drive it, have some cash (Swiss Francs) handy at the border. you need to buy a permit to drive on the motorways -- and they surcharge you like buggery if you have to pay with a credit card.

 

[Loft23]

Went to Interlaken a few years ago and it is a really nice place. It's great for outdoor sports such as walking, or like myself if you like heights theres hangliding and paragliding which is not too expensive (and certainly worth the money).