The bucolic tenderness of the Vaud countryside belies a rough past documented by and at the Château de Chillon.

This severe fortress is located to the east of Montreux just off the Léman shores. (more…)

It’s been said that the biggest problem facing the Swiss tourism industry this winter is the high value of the franc.

Many people from the U.S. and the Euro zone are going to have to exclude Switzerland from their vacation plans this season based on financial reasons. (more…)

Last week a good friend of mine asked me if I’d like to join her to see the new exhibit at the art museum in Bern. Of course I agreed and we scheduled our visit for this Friday. Now I am all excited and looking forward to our afternoon at the museum with great anticipation. My excitement is easy to explain, because, as a kid, going to the museum, any museum, was always something very special.

I grew up in a small farming town, far away (a 3-hour car ride) from the next big city. We had a small museum in our town, which highlighted the history of the area and the town’s beginnings, but that museum was mainly filled with things that could have been found at my grandma’s house – a few patchwork quilts, a collection of chipped pottery (probably lead-based) and some old photographs showing the town’s main street before it was paved. Sure, these things were all interesting and each item had its own story to tell, but as a kid, I needed and wanted more.

That is why school trips to “the big city” were always so exciting. For a short time, I got to lose myself in the halls of the natural history museum or wonder at the paintings in the art museum. There was a whole world out there waiting to be discovered.

Now, you are probably asking yourself what all this reminiscing about my childhood excitement for museums has to do with Switzerland. Well, let me say that Switzerland is a virtual paradise for museum lovers. First of all, this country has so many museums, from A for art museum to Z for zoological museum and everything in between, that there is bound to be a museum catering to your interests. 

The city of Bern alone is home to nearly 25 different museums. Secondly, the museums in Switzerland are some of the best in the world, housing quality collections that are on par with any renowned international institution. And lastly, Switzerland’s many museums are concentrated in such a small area, that there is very likely a collection full of Monets and Picassos located just down the street. Upon arriving in Switzerland, I immediately bought myself a “Museumspass” and I haven’t regretted it one bit.

Yes, the museum lover will never grow tired of Switzerland’s vast array of museum choices. Although I do wonder sometimes if I would have grown sick of going to museums had I spent my childhood here.

Geneva is the exception to the Swiss rule. While here, one doesn’t hear cowbells ringing in the distance nor are there chocolate shops around every corner.

swiss-image.ch/Marek Vogel © Switzerland Tourism

Swiss flags aren’t hanging off the sides of buildings and mountains can only be found from the tops of certain hills in the city - on really clear days. This is why I’ve found myself venturing out of the city in search of many of those Swiss stereotypes I’ve come to know and love. (more…)

This week sees the launch of the latest upgrade to a long-serving product we know only too well. Critics hated the old version and there have been years of development work to get the new one just right.

(Click on the picture to watch the video!)

So what do we think of Bern’s new Bear Park?

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For me, one of the best bits of living in Switzerland is walking in the mountains.

On my hikes, I have two golden rules: (more…)