SWITZERLAND. Welcome to Switzerland TOP SIGHTS, AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCES. The perfect counterpoint to Switzerland s rural beauty is its urban edge.

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1 Welcome to SWITZERND TOP SIHTS, UTHENTIC EXPERIENCES ook beyond the chocolate, cuckoo clocks and yodelling contemporary, land of four languages, is all about once-in-a-lifetime journeys, heart-racing alpine pursuits, spectacular natural beauty and vibrant urban culture. s ravishing landscapes demand immediate action grab boots, leap on board, ring bike bell and let spirits rip. In summer, hiking and biking trails invite exploration of s glacier-encrusted mountains and deep green valleys, glittering lakeshores and terraced vineyards. View the grandeur from a hot-air balloon, parachute, or white-water raft, or seek out close-up encounters with Eiger s chiselled north face and Jungfraujoch s crevassed icy expanses (extraordinarily, you don t need to be a mountaineer to do it). Come winter, skiing and snowboarding in raubünden, Valais, Bernese Oberland and Central take centre stage. The perfect counterpoint to s rural beauty is its urban edge. host of great cities awaits you here: Bern with its medieval old town and worldclass modern art; chic astride Europe s largest lake; and ubercool Zürich with its riverside bars and reborn industrial districts. Ever innovative, the Swiss have always embraced the new and the experimental. Capturing the zeitgeist throughout the country even in back-of-beyond corners of the lps are cutting-edge cultural venues, avant-garde galleries, attention-grabbing architecture and fresh-faced design. nd then there s Swiss cuisine: a hearty and flavoursome celebration of gooey cheese desperate to be dipped in, comfort food favourites such as rösti and Spätzli (egg noodles), air-dried meats and autumnal game and, of course, velvety Swiss chocolate. The perfect counterpoint to s rural beauty is its urban edge. regor Clark, Kerr y Christiani, C r a i g M c a c h l a n, B e n e d i c t Wa l k e r View towards the Fraumünster (p165), from immat riverbank MRIND/SHUTTERSTOCK 00-welcome-to-bo-swi1.indd 1 13-pr-18 2:18:37 PM

2 Federsee Colmar Remiremont 0 N 0 Freiburgim-Breisgau 2 Tuttlingen ERMNY Memmingen 50 km 25 miles Belfort FRNCE Waldshut Rh i 5 Euroirport Basel Montbéliard Schaffhausen H Rheinfall ne Ri ver Baden Jura Olten a Chauxake Biel (Bieler See) Fribourg Yverdonles-Bains ausanne Châteaud Œx Montana Crans igle r der ndermatt otthard St Brig Rhône Va ll St Mortiz & raubünden p85 San Bernardino Sion Martigny Verbier Cluses Matterhorn Zermatt Zermatt (4478m) Chamonix e p69 (4634m) FRN CE Bormio Bellinzona ocarno Maggiore Verbania ugano Varenna di ugano ITY ecco d'orta Tirano Sondrio ravedona di Como Mont Courmayeur Blanc (4807m) osta ocal ife...18 Month by Month...20 et Inspired overe Como St-Vincent lberville Bergamo Zermatt Old Town lfresco Sights Shopping Entertainment...47 Eating Nightlife The Matterhorn...72 lacier Express...74 letsch lacier...76 Sights...78 ctivities...79 Eating...79 Nightlife ake St Moritz & raubünden Brusio Ticino's ake Towns p189 Dufourspitze Müstair rand St Bernard Domodossola Saas Fee Täsch! Swiss National Park Chiavenna a gi ag M Scuol Davos Bernina Visp p33 nnecy Vo r Martina Klosters rosa n h ei eukerbad International irport Bernese Oberland p125 Oberalp letsch lacier Montreux Chur (3239m) Jungfraujoch (3471m) staad 5 ltdorf Engelberg ake (ac éman) Vevey Mürren andquart Morez ruyères larus Schwyz Mt Titlis ake Thun (Thunersee) Interlaken Spiez rindelwald Wengen ra Ju ake p53 Brienz Thun at a lance Bludenz Buchs VDUZ _ ake ucerne (Vierwaldstättersee) Central p103 USTRI IECHTENSTEIN ucerne Bern p173 _ Champagnole St allen Feldkirch Zug Biel-Bienne ac de Neuchâtel Zürich p149 ake Zürich (Zürichsee) Rapperswil Neuchâtel Pontarlier s Top Need to Know...14 Hot Spots For Bregenz Winterthur Itineraries Family Travel...30 Solothurn de-fonds ppenzell Moutier Besançon ake Constance (Bodensee) irport Delémont Friedrichshafen Konstanz (Constance) Frauenfeld 5Zürich arau Kempten Meersburg ne Vesoul ake Constance En ga di Contents Ravensburg Mulhouse Edolo Château de Chillon Museums of ake avaux & igle Wineries ausanne Nyon Vevey Cully...67 utry Hiking & Wildlife in the Swiss National Park Winter & Summer in St Moritz Davos & Klosters Valleys & akes St Moritz Pontresina Davos Klosters Central ucerne ake ucerne Engelberg & Mt Titlis Bürgenstock Felsenweg ucerne Weggis Brunnen Engelberg Bernese Oberland Jungfraujoch Train Skiing the Jungfrau Region d'iseo Monza Moûtiers Ivrea 00-welcome-to-bo-swi1.indd 2 Novara Milan 13-pr-18 2:18:47 PM

3 CONTENTS PN YOUR TRIP 3 * Hiking in the Bernese Oberland Interlaken Outdoors Faulhornweg Interlaken rindelwald auterbrunnen Wengen Mürren Zurich astronomic Zürich Zürich Shopping Rheinfall Day in Schaffhausen St allen Sights ctivities Tours Shopping Entertainment Eating Nightlife Bern Berner ltstadt Day Trip to Basel Sights ctivities Eating Nightlife Entertainment Ticino s ake Towns Castles of Bellinzona Day on the Water Bellinzona ugano andria ocarno In Focus Today History ctivities Swiss Way of ife The rts The Swiss Table Swiss Wine Survival uide Directory Z Transport anguage Index Symbols & Map Key Cow in the Bernese Oberland (p125) STEVEN VN ERSCHOT/SHUTTERSTOCK

4 4 s Top Nine NYOSI BET/SHUTTERSTOCK s international city by the lake More than 150 nationalities jostle for a stool at the bar in this Frenchspeaking cosmopolitan city (p32), where luxury watchmakers, chocolate gods, diplomats and artists come together around lovely ake. Canary-yellow mouettes ( seagulls ) ferry locals across the water and Mont Blanc looks over the action. Strolling Old Town streets, savouring the vibrant cafe and museum scene, paddleboarding on the lake and dashing beneath the iconic Jet d Eau fountain is what life s about here. 01-top-9-bo-swi1.indd pr-18 11:33:56 M

5 14 Need to Know When to o Basel O Jul & ug, Dec O ny time, Jun Sep High Season (Jul, ug & Dec pr) In July and ugust walkers and cyclists hit high-altitude trails. Christmas and New Year see serious snow-sports action. ate December to early pril is high season for skiing. Shoulder (pr Jun & Sep) et accommodation deals in ski resorts and hot spots. Spring is warm and idyllic, with flowers and local produce. Watch the grape harvest in autumn. ow Season (Oct Mar) Bern O Jul & ug, Nov Mountain resorts hibernate until early December. Prices are up to 50% lower than in high season. Sights and restaurants open for fewer days and shorter hours. Swiss lps O late Dec early pr, May ug Warm to hot summers, mild winters Warm to hot summers, cold winters Mild summers, cold winters Cold climate Polar climate, below zero year round Zürich O pr ug C Currency Swiss franc (officially CHF, also Sfr) anguage erman, French, Italian, Romansch Visas enerally not required for stays of up to 90 days. Some non- European citizens require a Schengen Visa. Money TMs are at every airport, most train stations and on every second street corner in towns and cities; Visa, MasterCard and mex widely accepted. Mobile Phones Most mobile (cell) phones brought from overseas will function in ; check with your provider about costs. Prepaid local SIM cards are widely available. Time MT/UTC plus one hour. Daylight-saving time starts on the last Saturday in March; clocks go back again on the last Saturday in October. Note that, in erman, halb is used to indicate the half-hour before the hour, hence halb acht (half eight) means 7.30, not 8.30.