SWITZERLAND TRAVEL TIPS FOR 1ST TIMERS | 30+ Must-Knows Before Visiting Switzerland + What NOT to Do

if you're visiting Switzerland this year don't miss this video because in it I'll be sharing tons of tips and must notes for first timers hi I'm Christina from happytoonder.com and Switzerland is honestly one of my favorite countries in the world I visited a ton of times over the past few years so through trial and error I've picked up a lot of different tips and must knows and I'm going to share them all with you today in this video let's start with some Switzerland travel planning tips the first thing that you need to know is that yes the rumors are all true Switzerland is a super expensive country so make sure you save up and budget accordingly now one of the best ways to save money is by booking accommodation that has a kitchen whether that's a hostel an apartment or a chalet this is definitely one of the best ways to save money because dining out in Switzerland is super super expensive and if you're able to just go to supermarkets and get groceries then you can save a ton of money another option for saving money is you can opt to stay in villages or small towns which are close to Major Zords and attractions now this is obviously a really great option if you don't like crowds and you kind of want to get a bit more off the beaten path not only will you save a lot of cash you're also going to get a more peaceful experience so in my opinion that's quite a win-win and speaking of cash make sure that cash is in Swiss Francs yes Switzerland is not in the EU so they don't use the euro here and they have their own currency which is really colorful and beautiful just like the rest of the country in addition to the currency being different the outlets are also different so in Switzerland they tend to use type J Outlets which look like this usually the type f Euro plugs that you use in most other European countries can fit into these Outlets but one thing to be mindful of is a lot of the time the outlets in Switzerland are going to look like this they kind of have like a weird rectangular frame and so if you have one of those circular adapters they're not going to properly fit in there I've learned that the hard way so if you're bringing an adapter make sure it's one that's slim and can actually fit into this kind of frame because you see them a lot in Switzerland now because Switzerland isn't in the EU another thing that you have to be mindful of is your data plan so a very great thing for travelers in Europe is that across the EU roaming is actually free so if you buy a data plan in France you can use it in Germany you can use it in Italy and it's not a big deal the only trouble is as we know Switzerland is not part of the EU so they're not included in this free roaming package and so oftentimes you have to make sure that you're buying a data package that also includes Switzerland luckily these days oftentimes it isn't inclusion but just make sure you read the fine print print because one time I was on a train that wasn't even stopping in Switzerland it was just passing through and I loaded like an Instagram photo and instantly I got a text message from my phone company saying oh you're using data roaming and so this has just cost you x amount and it was quite a shock now in terms of airports and major international airports in Switzerland can be found in Geneva Zurich and basil and a fun fact about the basil airport it's one of the few airports in the world that actually is jointly operated by two different countries so when you're in there there's actually an exit for France and an exit for Switzerland I don't think it's a big deal if you accidentally get out in the wrong exit but I just think it's really fun anyways if you plan to cover a lot of ground when you're in Switzerland actually what I would recommend if the cost difference isn't too much is to fly into one airport and then fly out of another or go by train into another country and the reason for that is just in terms of all the touristy sites in Switzerland there's not really a super easy route that takes you around a loop and brings you back to the same airport in my opinion if you're covering a lot of ground it makes more sense to kind of go from one end of the country to the other because Switzerland is small but still to get from one city and one end to the other it still takes quite a few hours so it just makes more sense if you're able to fly into an airport and out the other then you kind of don't have to double back alternatively if you're not planning on covering a lot of ground when you're in Switzerland one thing I really recommend is just picking one area and exploring it really thoroughly and the reason I recommend that is because transportation in Switzerland is super expensive so really one of the best ways to save money is to just not really travel too far and I've done this on a few trips I've picked one destination and I've explored all the different areas around and this is actually a really fun way to discover more hidden gems and more off the beaten path places because you're forced to kind of stay within one area so I really prefer that but at the same time I understand if it's your first time in Switzerland and you want to see a lot of the different sites that you've seen on social media you're going to want to cover a lot of ground so just know that those are two different options that you can pursue in terms of when to go I honestly don't think there's a bad season to visit Switzerland I've been to Switzerland in all seasons and it's beautiful every single time in the summer obviously you have the hikes and everything but if I have a tip for you it's honestly to go during the Christmas season when they have their Christmas markets I know that Germany is a lot more well known for their Christmas markets but I did a Switzerland Christmas Market trip once and honestly the markets there were so diverse and varied and it was just a really fun and unique experience because you have the traditional markets in basil and Zurich and then you can go over to lausanne where there's all these beautiful modern lights and installations and then there's the Mantra Christmas Market which is right along the lake and just such a special location I really can't price Swiss Miss markets enough and I think that a lot of international visitors don't realize that these Swiss Christmas markets are truly amazing so be sure to look out for those now let's move on to some Switzerland travel tips for getting around now if you want to visit some of the beautiful nature spots that you've probably seen on social media one thing to keep in mind is you probably need to rent a car for that and the reason is because train travel across Switzerland is indeed super amazing but the bus services don't tend to drop you off in more remote areas especially hiking areas so if you plan on doing a lot of nature you're probably going to need to rent a car if you do rent a car though you do need to purchase something known as vignette this is pretty much non-negotiable because it's a sticker that you pay for that essentially gives you the right to use Swiss motorways unfortunately the vignette is only available in annual form so you're not able to buy one just for a day or for a few days which is really annoying if you're not spending a lot of time in Switzerland and the price of this sticker is 40 Swiss Francs again it covers you for the whole year but if you're only there for a few days that is quite a steep additional cost on that note I do think that Swiss trains are some of the best in the world so I would advise trying to travel by train as much as possible especially if you're doing a lot of Intercity travel trains are perfect for that and if you like train travel I highly recommend looking into some of the scenic Swiss train rides that they have because there are some truly incredible rides some of the prettiest and most scenic in the entire world here in Switzerland and I have a full article about those but generally speaking if you're looking to save money you can actually do a lot of these scenic train rides just on Regional trains they have the expensive ones that are geared towards tourists that have like the really big glass Dome cars and stuff but if you're interested in just having the experience and seeing the scenery then most of the time there are trains that are just regular local trains that go along the same routes so you can appreciate the same landscapes for a fraction of the cost if you do plan on taking trains in Switzerland I would heavily consider getting a real pass of some kind because trains there are so expensive there are a few different popular ones and which one is more ideal for your situation of course depends on where you're planning to go and how often you plan to take the train but here are some of the top options first off there's the Swiss half fare card which costs 120 Swiss Francs for the month but it gives you discounts of up to 50 on all Journeys by train bus boat and most Mountain Railways as well as public transport in over 90 cities of course it's quite easy to do the math and figure out if this is going to be worth it for you there's also the Swiss travel pass which you can buy for different time periods but this one includes unlimited transport and discounts on attractions so this one would make more sense if you are doing a very fast paced trip and you plan on traveling a lot maybe doing a lot of day trips and you know you're going to be taking a lot of different trains then this one would definitely make more sense and of course some regions will have their own special pass as well and this is why I kind of recommended earlier to pick a specific region and get to know it really well because the regional passes obviously are a lot cheaper than the ones that cover you Nationwide and oftentimes these ones also include entry to different attractions in the area as well which can save you a lot of money and of course if you're traveling to multiple countries during your trip it might be worthwhile to get a URL pass which is essentially a rail pass that covers you for travel all all across Europe I do have a full review on that so be sure to give that a watch I've personally used the URL pass in Switzerland and found it to be amazing value so be sure to look into that as an option as well now last but not least if you're traveling to Switzerland in the summer look out for free bike programs so Switzerland as we've covered already is super expensive but actually a lot of cities will offer free bike rentals if you provide a deposit and usually some form of ID now this is something that's available for locals and visitors alike so you're definitely eligible even if you're not from Switzerland and off the top of my head Zurich and Geneva are both cities that offer this program so be sure to look into them alright now it's time to discuss a few culture and etiquette tips for Switzerland so the first one is to know that they do speak different languages in different parts of Switzerland depending on where you are in the country you may hear French you might hear German you might hear Italian you might hear romance which is like a very small percentage of the population but you still might hear it so be prepared when you do your trip be sure to research Which languages are spoken in the destinations that you're visiting and plan accordingly even though a lot of Swiss people will speak excellent English it's always a good idea to learn how to say hello and thank you in the local language another tip is to not take Swiss directness personally so the thing is culturally Swiss people can come across from a North American perspective as quite cold because they're not as outwardly friendly they're a lot more direct than we're used to and so I think a lot of first-time visitors will maybe get the perception that Swiss people are cold and rude but honestly that's not the case it's just a cultural difference like for instance if you walk into a bakery and the person there asks you oh what do you want instead of hey how are you how's your mom how's your life don't take it personally because it's just they're very direct that's just a difference in culture and don't let it ruin your trip now speaking of cultural differences Swiss people tend to get up really early and so that means that shops open earlier and also close earlier it's actually the norm in Switzerland especially in smaller towns for supermarkets to close at 6 30 or 7 which to me is super early so just be sure to keep that in mind and plan around it on the note of opening hours it's actually very interesting sometimes in smaller towns they'll have a really long break for lunch so just be sure to look up the opening hours for different places before you go because you shouldn't assume that they're going to be open continuously and speaking of time punctuality in Switzerland is incredibly important important so whether you're meeting a friend or you're joining a tour or you're grabbing a train make sure you get there well in advance otherwise it will probably leave without you or your friend will get mad lastly tipping is definitely not expected in Switzerland to the same extent as North America often rounding up is considered enough and usually it's under 10 all right now let's move on to Switzerland tips for attractions now the first tip is to wherever possible look into buying sightseeing passes there are a lot of different passes across the country that bundle up entry for a bunch of different attractions for one set price and so this can be really good if you're looking into visiting a lot of paid attractions during your stay from my experience I've bought a City pass for Lucerne that really saved me a lot of money because there's a lot of really cool attractions in that City that I'd recommend visiting and in addition to city-wide ones there tend to be Regional ones as well that include lots of different attractions in that region so what I'd recommend is looking at which attractions you're interested in and then crunching the numbers and seeing if you'd save money with a pass oftentimes if you're visiting a lot of places in a few days it is really really worth it that said Beware that some attractions and cable cars specifically are owned by private companies so sometimes these passes that you you buy aren't actually good for all the different attractions and cable cars and trains in that one region I know it can get really confusing so be sure to read the fine print and see which companies are included and which attractions are included because sometimes if they're privately owned they won't be part of the bundle another great money saving tip is to book accommodation where they give you a free guest card this is one of my favorite things about Switzerland there's a lot of different areas where if you book an overnight stay of even just one night they'll give you something called a guest card which gives you discounts on accommodation and most of the time free local public transport as well so this is definitely something to take advantage of another important tip is to use webcams when you can to check on weather conditions on top of mountains if you're planning on visiting Mountain attractions and the reason for that is even if visibility is fine on the ground level it might not necessarily be fine 2 000 meters above ground and so the biggest most disappointing thing is if you were to get all the way to the top of this mountain and you're not able to see a thing because it's too cloudy so what a lot of people don't realize is there's actually webcams set up on the top of most Swiss mountains like the touristy ones I mean so what you can do is you can search up the attraction that you trying to visit plus webcam and odds are you might be able to find a webcam that shows you the weather conditions from up there so that way you can kind of plan around it if you see there's no visibility then maybe give it a few hours or wait until another day to do it now this is why I'd advise against booking set date tours for Mountain attractions until you get closer to the date so it's really hard to predict the weather in Switzerland especially if you're visiting in shoulder Seasons like spring and Autumn and so I would honestly just wait until the few days before or even book a flexible ticket so that you can go up when the conditions are actually good because there's no point in paying all that money just to see nothing all right now let's tackle some tips for when you actually arrive in Switzerland so the first tip is to be mindful of the fact that there's actually an additional tourist tax that you have to pay when you arrive so yes I know it's more money and it's quite annoying but it's not a huge amount depending on where you are it's usually two to seven francs per person per night so just factor that into your budget you will have to pay this in person once you arrive and in terms of safety I do have to say Switzerland is genuinely one of the safest countries I've ever been to the biggest Menace is honestly the prices and also hiking so a lot of visitors tend to come to Switzerland expecting to hike and fair enough it's a great country to hike in there's so many beautiful Trails but at the same time you have to remember a lot of Swiss people grow up hiking and are super used to these trails and so in my opinion they're not super tourist friendly because the signage is kind of confusing and it doesn't usually tell you everything you need to know and so just be prepared for Swiss hikes don't assume you can just show up and know instinctively where to go you should definitely do a lot of research beforehand download some apps like all Trails so that you know where you're going and also wear proper Footwear these hikes are no joke they're not super easy and swiss mountains can be quite tough for beginners if you're not used to hiking mountains like that so yeah don't worry though if you're not into hiking usually there's gondolas that can bring you up to the most scenic viewpoints anyway so no pressure but if you plan to hike just make sure you do a lot of research now let's talk about food as I mentioned before food is probably going to be one of your biggest costs when it comes to Switzerland and the biggest budget hack that I can really recommend is to do as much shopping as possible in Swiss supermarkets because even though they're still kind of expensive compared to supermarkets elsewhere you do save a lot of money compared to dining out the cheapest super markets in Switzerland are actually budget German chains so they're known as Lidl and ALDI you've probably encountered them before if you've ever been in Germany these tend to be the cheapest places to grab groceries in Switzerland there's also dinner which is another discounted retailer that said if you're not able to find these budget-friendly ones there can be good deals found at migros which is probably the second largest supermarket in Switzerland and they actually have their own store brand as well which is really handy all their store brand stuff is called M budget and it's in like green so it's really easy to identify so if you're looking for the cheapest ones at migros look up for this brand lastly we have to talk about the largest supermarket chain in Switzerland which is known as Co-op and it does have the best selection but it is the most expensive so keep that in mind if you do shop there know that they have their own store brand as well so look out for that if you're looking for some budget friendly finds at Co-op now another cheap place to grab food is I can't say it here we've hit this place okay it's actually pronounced S Bar and so I know this name seems really questionable but actually the mission is really Noble now this is a chain of cafes that you can find in some Swiss cities now and basically their mission is to sell day old food so they have Bakery items like sandwiches and salads and things that use like day old bread and honestly I've had some other stuff before it's really cheap and really good in filling so if you're looking for a budget-friendly Bakery to visit while in Switzerland look out for this and lastly if you're doing takeout definitely look on ubereats I find that ubereats often has really great specials so if you want to do some takeout or delivery sometimes places will give you like a buy one get one free deal so my friend and I we did this in basil and we actually got two Margarita pizzas for 15 Swiss Francs which is super super cheap of course I don't think that you should starve yourself the entire time that you're there there are some Swiss Specialties that in my mind are definitely worth the Splurge so some Swiss must tries include fondue you've probably heard of it before it's a delicious pot of melted cheese that you dip you know different things in sometimes they have a chocolate version as well there's also Raclette which is an amazing cheese where you melt the top layer and scrape it over top like a bed of potatoes and vegetables there's also roasty which is like a crispy potato pancake so good and of course chocolate which requires your introduction now in regards to souvenirs I can actually recommend shopping for souvenirs Supermarket I know that sounds lame but a lot of the things that you'll find in the typical touristy shops can be available at supermarkets for a fraction of the price so not just things like chocolate but even things like postcards and magnets you can usually find in supermarkets and it's usually way cheaper so be sure to look out for that all right I hope you found that list of Switzerland travel tips helpful be sure to let me know in the comments if you have any more questions and if you want more practical travel videos just like this one be sure to like And subscribe I'll see you guys next week bye

Channel: Happy to Wander

Views: 393,016

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Length: 15min 24sec (924 seconds)

Published: Wed Jun 14 2023