What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear Switzerland? Mountains, watches, banks, fine chocolate, independence and neutrality....
This is a country which can be a marvellous breathtaking trip, whether you want to go hiking, snowboarding, skiing, or you have just decided to get a nice book and a pair of sunglasses. Switzerland may attract your attention with its size, as it looks on the map like it can easily fit into a National Park, but the treasures it hides behind that deceptive outlook are not to be passed by - all the natural wonders and a culture and history rich enough to provide five museums for every rainy day of the year.
Switzerland is rich in attractive for tourists cities and places, but some of them should be at the top of your "to visit" list if you happen to be in Switzerland.
Be sure you visit the Muenster in Basel as well as the tower. You have a fantastic view over the city and the tower climb is quite adventurous. It is just amazing how far up you can go there and you need to be free from giddiness.
Do you like swimming? If so, you should pay attention to St. Gallen. There is a wonderful place to swim in St Gallen, at the three lakes on the hill above the city. How to get up there? Well, you can walk the way up the hill or if you want to go quicker or walking is not the thing for you, then take the muhleggbahn there, the tiny cable car which runs from just behind the cathedral to the top of the hill. What is important is that you can actually swim for free in one of the lakes which have changing facilities and a little kiosk open in summer. If you prefer to get into the more maintained and well organised family pool further on you should pay a fixed tax. There's also a cheap restaurant up there with great views over the city and towards Lake Constance.
Zurich is probably one of the most visited cities in Switzerland, and is also the biggest in size, but it is not the capital of the country, although many believe it is. Zurich is famous with its location at first place - at the mouth of the Limmat River which divides the city in two Zurich has been known for quite a long time as a city, proud with its clean streets and efficiency, but additionally it has been quite fascinating not only to the citizens, but also to the tourists for the last ten years. This has a lot to do with the liberalization of the culture, party and gastronomy sector and a much more cosmopolitan and hybrid population. Zurich is also known for its banking.
Bern is the capital of Switzerland. It is not as big as Zurich, but is also very attractive for tourists. The reason? Well, Berne is chock full of history and thus museums. It also has quite a bit of public art, all of which is marked on a walking map which is available from the tourist office in the train station.
So, if you are planning to visit Switzerland you can be sure that you will catch a glimpse of one of the most picturesque countries in Eurpoe. Only one thing you should keep in mind. Switzerland is not a part of the Eurpean Union and thus, euro cannot be used. Do not make the mistake of taking only euros with yourself…you will not be able to use them.
