39 Best Sights in Eastern Switzerland, Switzerland

Modern cheese-making methods are demonstrated at the Schaukäserei, a combination of a factory and a museum. Cheese is made until 3. A self-guided tour (free with the Appenzell Card) reveals the history of the local cheese, and a movie about the region is a surefire way to whet your appetite. The attached restaurant is one of the best places to sample some traditional dishes made with Appenzeller cheese, including a silky cheese soup, gooey fondues and raclettes (melted cheese served with small potatoes in their skins, pickled pearl onions, and gherkins), and a savory Chääsflade (cheese pie). A playground keeps children happy, too.

Native-born artist Pipilotti Rist's Stadtlounge, created with artist Carlos Martinez, is a public artwork project that has bathed an entire chunk of the city center under a coat of red paint, creating what they call a "red-carpet effect." It has transformed the neighborhood into a sultry "public living room" and has been so successful, it has been enlarged.

Fourteen kilometers (9 miles) east of Stein am Rhein, the town of Steckborn has some fine old houses, including the Baronenhaus and the Gerichtshaus. It's also home to Turmhof Steckborn, a half-timber waterfront castle built in 1320 that currently houses a small local museum containing artifacts from prehistoric times through the Roman and Alemannic settlements.

This rococo duplex dates from 1738; since they are now private residences, you can see them only from the outside. Across the street are the Tellenbrunnen, a fountain-statue of Wilhelm Tell copied from the 1522 original, and the St. Johannkirche (St. John's Church), whose Gothic exterior dates from 1248.