1st time in Switzerland
Sep 13th, 2003, 12:42 PM
#1
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1st time in Switzerland
My friend and i will be backpacking next summer through europe and were looking to visit Switzerland. We were looking for a great place to hike for a day or two. Could anyone help us? Also what is Zurich like? Should we go there. I speak French and a little Italian so their shouldnt be any language problems.
Sep 13th, 2003, 06:20 PM
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Hi there
Are you going to Geneva, if so stay at the City Hostel? It is close to the railway station and was really great, I stayed there last october. Stayed at only two hostels in Europe the rest hotels but if I could find others as good as this one and the Sleepwell hostel in Brussels, I would give the hotels away for good.
Are you going to Geneva, if so stay at the City Hostel? It is close to the railway station and was really great, I stayed there last october. Stayed at only two hostels in Europe the rest hotels but if I could find others as good as this one and the Sleepwell hostel in Brussels, I would give the hotels away for good.
Sep 16th, 2003, 04:11 AM
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Hi yesmar,
Well I'm reluctant to reply to vague posts such as this -- but maybe I can help you nail down your preferences.
To start with, Zurich is a great city, if you like cities. It is beautiful along the lakeshore, and it has interesting narrow streets in the old town. It has major shopping along the Bahnhofstr, if that's what you're looking for. For more information on the city and its sights, go to www.zuerich.ch.
But if you want hiking, I don't think Zurich will be what you want. If you'll be in the neighborhood, head instead to one of the towns in the hills above Lake Zurich; there you'll find miles and miles of hikes and paths and cozy inns.
If you're willing to go elsewhere in Switzerland, the most jaw-dropping scenic hiking is found in the mountains, say around the Berner Oberland. Do a search here on "hiking" and Switzerland, and you'll find loads and loads of stuff from Grindelwald, Muerren, Lauterbrunnen, etc.
Another option would be to hike in the Engadin Valley, an area I just discovered in June. You can settle in one of the towns like Scuol, Zuoz, or Zernez, or in nearby Pontresina, and hike endless trails into the mountains or even into the Bernina Valley. Do a text search here for "Engadin" and Switzerland to see all of those possiblilites; look especially for posts from Ingo.
Another great option would be to head for Luzern, about an hour from Zurich. Sitting on a large lake, Luzern offers you mountain hiking on Titlis, Rigi, and Pilatus, as well as hiking all around the lake. A special treat is visiting all of the lakeside villages along your way; the extra-special treat is taking the ferry part way and enjoying the views while you save your feet! See Luzern at www.luzern.org.
Finally, I'm not sure that your language skills will be especially handy for you on this trip. The areas I mention above all use German as the first language (except parts of the Bernina Valley), and after that most folks default to English. The French section is the western part of the country, around Lake Geneva (Canton of Vaud) and Fribourg (Canton of Fribourg) and south almost to Zermatt (the Valais); the Italian is in the extreme southern part of the country around Lakes Maggiore and Lugano (the Ticino).
Of course, there is great hiking there too. In the French part, you can hike the vineyards around Lake Geneva or the mountain trails of the Vaud alps around Leysin, Villars, Les Diablerets, etc. You can also use French in the Pays d'en Haut villages of Chateau d'Oex, Rossiniere, and Rougemont, an area I'm just now researching. Sorry, I don't know much about hiking in the Valais or the Ticino.
You can get detailed information on these areas by doing a text search here, or, of course, at google, etc.
Let me know if I can help further.
s
Well I'm reluctant to reply to vague posts such as this -- but maybe I can help you nail down your preferences.
To start with, Zurich is a great city, if you like cities. It is beautiful along the lakeshore, and it has interesting narrow streets in the old town. It has major shopping along the Bahnhofstr, if that's what you're looking for. For more information on the city and its sights, go to www.zuerich.ch.
But if you want hiking, I don't think Zurich will be what you want. If you'll be in the neighborhood, head instead to one of the towns in the hills above Lake Zurich; there you'll find miles and miles of hikes and paths and cozy inns.
If you're willing to go elsewhere in Switzerland, the most jaw-dropping scenic hiking is found in the mountains, say around the Berner Oberland. Do a search here on "hiking" and Switzerland, and you'll find loads and loads of stuff from Grindelwald, Muerren, Lauterbrunnen, etc.
Another option would be to hike in the Engadin Valley, an area I just discovered in June. You can settle in one of the towns like Scuol, Zuoz, or Zernez, or in nearby Pontresina, and hike endless trails into the mountains or even into the Bernina Valley. Do a text search here for "Engadin" and Switzerland to see all of those possiblilites; look especially for posts from Ingo.
Another great option would be to head for Luzern, about an hour from Zurich. Sitting on a large lake, Luzern offers you mountain hiking on Titlis, Rigi, and Pilatus, as well as hiking all around the lake. A special treat is visiting all of the lakeside villages along your way; the extra-special treat is taking the ferry part way and enjoying the views while you save your feet! See Luzern at www.luzern.org.
Finally, I'm not sure that your language skills will be especially handy for you on this trip. The areas I mention above all use German as the first language (except parts of the Bernina Valley), and after that most folks default to English. The French section is the western part of the country, around Lake Geneva (Canton of Vaud) and Fribourg (Canton of Fribourg) and south almost to Zermatt (the Valais); the Italian is in the extreme southern part of the country around Lakes Maggiore and Lugano (the Ticino).
Of course, there is great hiking there too. In the French part, you can hike the vineyards around Lake Geneva or the mountain trails of the Vaud alps around Leysin, Villars, Les Diablerets, etc. You can also use French in the Pays d'en Haut villages of Chateau d'Oex, Rossiniere, and Rougemont, an area I'm just now researching. Sorry, I don't know much about hiking in the Valais or the Ticino.
You can get detailed information on these areas by doing a text search here, or, of course, at google, etc.
Let me know if I can help further.
s
Sep 17th, 2003, 01:43 PM
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WOW, thanks very much for the help!! But where do you think the absolute best place in Switzerland is to hike. And when I say best I mean most jaw droppingly beautiful. I love mountains and hiking in them haha so i'll look for all the info i can get.
Sep 18th, 2003, 09:27 AM
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The Berner Oberland (Grindelwald) with the Eiger/Monch/Jungfrau and the Zermatt/Valais region with the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa peaks win hands-down for best hikes in all of Switzerland. Right behind is the Engelberg/Niedwald/Obwald area with Mt. Titlis and the Stanserhorn.
For a nice small-to-mid-sized navigable city, try Lucerne or Berne. Zuerich is okay, but it is a very large city.
For a nice small-to-mid-sized navigable city, try Lucerne or Berne. Zuerich is okay, but it is a very large city.
Sep 18th, 2003, 01:07 PM
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yesmar82787
I am surprised about some of the answers your are having.
Of course your French speaking ability will be useful in the German speaking part of the country, every swiss speaks at least two of the four national languages( French ,Italian, German or Swiss german and Romance)they are obliged to this by their educational system. In the german part of switzerland, French in well understood.
Hiking in switzerland; this is the natonal sport, you can hike everywhere and the whole country is marked with small yellow signs which will tell you how far away you are in walking time to the next sign , village or whatever, sometimes they even have fast pace and
slow pace apreciations.
Zurich: someone mentioned that it is a great city. well it is not. It is a lovely city, during summertime, Bars, terrace, fun in the streets. and small enough to walk around.
Your Budget: 50 €, this is the hard part of your trip, switzerland is known to be the must expensive country in europe, well apart from norway, but this does not matter as very few people go there. 50 € is tight, is this per pax ? or of the two of you. If this is for two, then is double tight.
A good place to hike is around the Vierwaldsee, this is the german name for the Lake of four cantons in Luzern.
Transportation should be by bus and train there are very good offers from the railway and post(this ones take care of the bus system)for visitors in switzerland.
I am surprised about some of the answers your are having.
Of course your French speaking ability will be useful in the German speaking part of the country, every swiss speaks at least two of the four national languages( French ,Italian, German or Swiss german and Romance)they are obliged to this by their educational system. In the german part of switzerland, French in well understood.
Hiking in switzerland; this is the natonal sport, you can hike everywhere and the whole country is marked with small yellow signs which will tell you how far away you are in walking time to the next sign , village or whatever, sometimes they even have fast pace and
slow pace apreciations.
Zurich: someone mentioned that it is a great city. well it is not. It is a lovely city, during summertime, Bars, terrace, fun in the streets. and small enough to walk around.
Your Budget: 50 €, this is the hard part of your trip, switzerland is known to be the must expensive country in europe, well apart from norway, but this does not matter as very few people go there. 50 € is tight, is this per pax ? or of the two of you. If this is for two, then is double tight.
A good place to hike is around the Vierwaldsee, this is the german name for the Lake of four cantons in Luzern.
Transportation should be by bus and train there are very good offers from the railway and post(this ones take care of the bus system)for visitors in switzerland.
Sep 21st, 2003, 03:45 PM
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I'm another fan of Zurich! I, too, think it is a wonderful city to visit. But for hiking, I can't give any opinions. I was in Interlaken in the spring and I thought it was lovely, with hiking trails nearby. I also like Lucerne for absolute beauty.
