Planning Your Time

This is the lazy part of Switzerland; a great place to enjoy the scenery while tooling down back roads or gazing out the train window at the greenery on the way to the next quiet town. Take along a stack of books to read on the hotel balcony or a picnic lunch for your stop in a meadow en route. In winter, pick a ski resort or a large town such as Schaffhausen or St. Gallen as your home base—unless you're looking for complete, peaceful seclusion, in other words, inescapable boredom. In summer, think of the many swimming opportunities offered by the Rhine and the Bodensee, pack at least one bathing suit, your cycling shorts, and take a leisurely lunch-boat ride. St. Gallen is the best place from which to take day trips to the region's highlights if you have a car.