eeyann

In August, my family (of 4 this time) will be traveling to Switzerland from Paris. We're hoping to visit the Lake Neuchatel and the Emmental Valley area to see the birthplace of my great-grandparents who immigrated to Oregon in the 1870's. We'd also like to see the most interesting towns and sights in this northwestern area of Switzerland.

I've been reading about Murten and Bern, but I'm having trouble finding much more.

We'll be there for 4 days and I'd like to find a single hotel and do day trips form that base (we're planning to rent a car). We're considering staying in Bern, but I would love to hear any recommendations you might have for a lovely place to stay. We're not on a tight budget this time.

We're also interested in short train trips that we might make in a day.

We'll be flying out of Zurich at the end of our stay - maybe we should devote more time to Zurich?

I've never been to Switzerland, so I'd really appreciate your thoughts and recommendations.

Thanks as always!
Eeyann's husband

kleeblatt

Goodness, I know some Swiss from Oregon. Maybe I know you?

Emmental is wonderful but not a tourist center. For some, it's the heart of Switzerland, where time has stood still.

With only 4 days, you'll nade a day for Neuchatel and a day for Emmental.

When are you in Switzerland? There also might some festivals you could visit to really get a feeling of your Swiss roots.

swandav2000

Hi eeyan & husband,

Any reason why you're planning to use a car? Trains go practically everywhere, run frequently, and are a lot of fun. Many folks don't get the opportunity to use a world-class rail system, so if you're one of those, this might be your chance. It's a great idea, and it'll help keep that Swiss air Swiss-clean.

I visited Neuchatel once, mainly for the Latenium museum of Celtic settlements there. The museum is great, well worth a visit, but the city itself didn't charm me. It's ok, as cities go, but nothing special.

Other areas that might be interesting are the vineyards at Lake Biel and the Roman ruins at Avenches.

Most folks go to Switzerland to see the Alps, which are some distance from this part of the country. Would you be interested in expanding your trip to take them in?

Have fun with your planning!

s

kleeblatt

Swandav, usually I agree with you but when someone wants to go see their roots and the home place, which is usually off the beaten path, a car would be much more appropriate.

swandav2000

Hey schuler! Still hoping to buy you some wine or coffee-and-cake someday in gorgeous CH!

But -- if the op would tell us which towns/villages/hometowns s/he is visiting, then we could make this determination. In the absence of that information, I added my usual note about the trains!

s

eeyann

Great advice! Here's a little more detail: We'll be in Switzerland on August 6th though the 10th. We're hoping to visit the towns of Burgdorf, Langnau, Sumiswald and Neuchatel. If that area is not full of interesting sights, we're interested in expanding our travel in Switzerland.

My ancestors are from the Siegenthaler and Guerber families and they were dairy farmers in Switzerland and then Hillsboro (New Helvetia), Oregon.

Thanks so much for your thoughts!

Eeyann's husband

altamiro

>We're hoping to visit the towns of Burgdorf, Langnau, Sumiswald and Neuchatel.

Burgdorf and Langnau are midsized towns with good mainline train access - Burgdorf is a popular place to live for people who commute to Bern (by train). Sumiswald has a good post bus access. Neuchatel is on THE main trunk line from Zürich to Geneva.

Just enter the base (Bern or...) and your destinations on www.sbb.ch and see whether it makes sense to rent a car or not.

eeyann

Thanks altamiro! Great information about the trains. I'll start by looking at the website link you sent.

Thanks again everyone!
Eeyann's husband

kleeblatt

Emmental is very scenic. It's not just one sight but the whole atmosphere. The rolling hills, the beautiful houses, the serenity of it all. A bit like hobbitville.