Switzerland in 10 days
 

My fiance and myself are heading to Switzerland for our honeymoon on Sunday, May 20, 2012 and returning Friday, June 1st. We love outdoor recreation and would like to fit in some great hikes, paragliding, possible bungee jumping, canyoneering, whitewater rafting, etc (no particular order). I'm not sure how many days would be required to fit the recreational activities in, but I've estimated 4-5 days. Then we would like to experience one or two more places for the remaining trip that offer up great traditional Swiss food, rich Swiss culture/history, and some sort of spa/massage clinic. I haven't decided where to fly into and our mode of transportation during the trip, so any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks.

Hi msparks09,

Unfortunaely, you haven't really helped to narrow down the choices so we can make relevant recommendations to you --

You can find great Swiss food throughout most of the country. Actually, Swiss cuisine has four distinct influences -- French in the west, German in the center, Italian in the south, and Romansch in the southeast. If you have some idea of some dishes you'd like to try (veal Zürich style, Rösti, Raclette, Fondue, Vaudois sausages . . .) we may be able to help you more.

Swiss culture and history is best found in the central part of the country, I think -- maybe a big square from Basel to Zürich to Luzern to Bern. Or you may want to also include Montreux to see castle Chillon on Lake Geneva, which has an interesting history and appears in some notable poems and stories.

As for hiking and outdoor activities, you can probably find that in any mountain destination -- but know that May isn't a great time to see/experience the mountains. May is called "Mud Month" by some residents because it's when all the melting snow turns the landscape into mud. It's also a bit too early for flowers in the mountains. For those reasons, you may want to base yourselves in the flatlands somewhere nearby the mountains, where you can take some day-trips to see the peaks and to do the hiking, etc.

For all those reasons, I would recommend a plan something like this:

Lake Geneva, 3-4 nights (cuisine, hiking, history)
Thun or Bern, 4-5 nights (outdoor activities, history)
Zürich/Luzern 1-2 nights (cuisine, history)

Have fun as you plan!

s

you need to narrow this down a bit to get any real help-- but a couple of quick thoughts are that Murren is one of our favorite places to visit in Switzerland. you really feel away from the rest of the world when you are there-- the mountains are gorgeous-- the hiking is great-- and the tram ride up is amazing. also, you go through interlocken on the way-- and many people love that town.

also-- if you happen to fly in to zurich-- just a half hour by train away is the town of baden. (not baden-baden, which is in germany.) this is a town with thermal waters that i found to be simply amazing. i felt drugged the whole time i was there-- don't know what's in the water but let's just say that it would be perfect for a honeymoon!!! it is a mostly modern/somewhat sterile spa area (as so many are) but on a nice river and the town around the spa area is really quite cute.

just two thoughts to start with. pretty much anywhere you go in switzerland, it's going to be beautiful and/or charming.

oh-- if you are completely open, annecy is actually in france-- but very close to geneva and just so darn cute and romantic. also-- great lake for hiking around and such. easy to get to by train...
-kawh

Thanks to both for the responses. They were very helpful! I forgot how diverse the regions of Switzerland can be, offering up Italian, French, and German cuisine depending on where you are. I pretty familiar with Italian cuisine due to my family being from around that area and having been to Italy before, so I would probably go for the German or French food.

Hi again,

With that in mind, I guess I would recommend a trip like --

Montreux on Lake Geneva, 3 or 4 nights (French cuisine, history, walks by the lake or in the Prealps)

Gstaad, 3 or 4 nights (French cuisine, mountain walks, or excursions to Thun & Bern for history)

Luzern 2 or 3 nights (German cuisine, history)

Have fun!

s