Switzerland has four official languages including German which is spoken in North, Central and Eastern Switzerland, French spoken in Western Switzerland, Italian spoken in Southern Switzerland and Romansh which is spoken in South Eastern Switzerland. Plurilingualism is an important value in Switzerland and the Swiss school system provides a solid multi-lingual education reflective of the country’s...
Hiking is one of the most popular sporting and recreational activities in Switzerland with statistics showing that 44% of the population enjoy an average of 20 excursions per year. The Covid pandemic has strengthened the trend with more people enjoying Switzerland’s hiking trails than ever before and more than 50,000 yellow signs are excellently maintained across mountains and valleys providing...
The Châtel St-Denis Les Paccots area is in the region of the Veveyse and has 150km of marked trails for all levels which range from very easy to challenging. The paths and summits are surrounded by beautiful nature and welcome hikers and trail runners through the Summer months where the only other people on the mountains are the farmers and their cattle. Each year there is the ‘Trail des Paccots’ race...
Thun lies at the north western end of Lake Thun in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland and is the eleventh largest city in Switzerland with 44,000 inhabitants. The city’s most famous landmark is the castle built between 1180 and 1190 and towering majestically over the town below. The town has cobblestone streets to stroll around with traditional rows of houses and the Alpine views by the lake are of...
Verbier has plenty of restaurants and cafés to enjoy, but sometimes a ‘cook-out’ on the mountain with a group of friends is a lot of fun too. For a small fee, you can rent Le Hatay Shelter from Verbier tourism which is equipped with tables and benches, 4 barbecues a cold water fountain and parking spaces. This shelter can accommodate up to 80 people so is ideal for family & friend trips and...
The lakes in Switzerland offer lots of Summer activities from swimming, paddle boarding, sailing and wakeboarding. There is no current to speak of and no speed limit on the lake, so anything you try is very straight forward, relaxing and sociable. You can hire or charter boats and we booked an afternoon of fun on the lake with Watersports Montreux (WSM). The lake is full of fresh water and in Summer the...
Swiss National Day is celebrated on August 1st and commemorates the date in 1291 when the 3 cantons of Schwyz, Uri and Unterwald joined together as the Swiss Confederacy. You will see the Swiss flag everywhere, flying outside homes and businesses and on bunting through the streets, as well as decorating the federal buildings and specialty foods such as the Auguestweggli bread buns. As with all Swiss...