Explore Zürich

A beautiful city, set astride a river and turned towards a crystal-clear lake and distant snowy peaks, Zürich has plenty to recommend it. A historic city center, lakes and parks, vibrant bars and restaurants, a big ex-pat population, and a bustling nightlife, Zürich has it all. Explore the street art and have a beer on the waterfront and you’ll soon see why this city is so appealing. Whether wandering the streets of the Old Town, window shopping in Bahnhofstrasse, or day-tripping to the Rhine Falls, you may end up spending longer here than originally planned.

To help you make the most of your time, have a look at a few of our recommended activities and tours.

• Mount Titlis Day Tour from Zurich – This day tour will take you up a scenic Mount Titlis where you can admire the beauty of the Swiss Alps in a revolving cable car. The tour also includes a city tour of Lucerne as well as the Ice Grotto.

• Lucerne & Mount Pilatus Day Tour – This tour takes you on a bus, cable car, funicular, and even on a boat, showing you the best of Mt. Pilatus. We love this tour because it takes you to all the best sights, but also allows you to explore Lucerne at your own pace. Plus, the boat ride back to Zurich is stunning.

• Day Trip to Jungfraujoch – If you want to see the top of Europe, this day tour from Zurich to Jungfraujoch is incredible. You can ride the cog-wheeled train for views of the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau as well as walk the tunnels in the ice palace.

• Day Trip to Grindelwald and Interlaken – Having explored the region of Grindelwald, I can honestly say that it is nothing short of beautiful so if you have the time, I highly suggest this tour!

Discover Bern

Although a small city, Bern earns its right to be called the capital of Switzerland and one which you will immediately find charming. Crammed onto a steep-sided peninsula in a crook of the River Aare, the city’s quiet, cobbled lanes, have changed little in five hundred years. From ancient clock towers and churches, cobblestone streets, and important buildings such as the Neo-Renaissance Bundeshaus (Federal Palace) all in its historic town center, you can spend hours walking around in awe, admiring the city in all its glory. The heart of Bern’s compact old town is Spitalgasse. Heading east from the Bahnhofplatz, this becomes Marktgasse, Kramgasse, and then Gerechtigkeitsgasse, before crossing the river to the Bärengraben (bear pits). The main museums are on Helvetiaplatz, on the south bank of the river, across the Kirchenfeldbrücke. If you're looking for some adventures follow the local tradition and participate in the Aareswimming which is considered as one of the best summer activities in Bern.

Lake Geneva & French Switzerland

Lake Geneva, in the southwest and French-speaking corner of the country, is the Swiss Riviera. Separating France and Switzerland, the lake is surrounded by the Alps and lined with an assortment of castles, museums, spas, resort towns, and vineyards. Explore the romantic Château de Chillon, fun, breezy Lausanne, and stylishly syncopated Montreux. Delve into the nearby French-Swiss countryside, which offers up picturesque towns tucked into the folds of rolling green foothills, miles of vineyards, a high-mountain excursion at the Diablerets summit, and Gruyère cheese galore. Geneva itself joined the Swiss Confederation only in 1815, with a reputation for joylessness which it still struggles to shake off. Luckily today, there is plenty for budget travellers, with its beautiful Old Town and many galleries.

Visit Lucerne

Located on the beautiful Lucerne Lake, the city offers a wonderful combination of urban life and nature. It's a touristy yet worthwhile town of historic wooden bridges, picturesque streets, and vintage steamships that ply the lovely Lake Luzern, ringed by mountains with stunning vistas accessible by high-altitude lifts. Spend some time in the old town, especially Weinmarkt, surrounded by medieval guildhalls and decorative buildings. Cross Chapel Bridge, the world’s oldest surviving truss bridge, and pay attention to the 17th-century ceiling paintings showing events from Lucerne’s history. You won’t find much more of a typical Swiss destination than Lucerne.

Zermatt

The imposing Matterhorn (4478m) is the most famous of Switzerland’s mountains; for most people, the Matterhorn stands for Switzerland as the Eiffel Tower stands for France. There's just something about the Matterhorn, the most recognizable mountain on the planet and it seems to possess a near-mystical draw for people. Zermatt itself has some pockets of traditional charm but is a mostly tourist town. You will find its streets thronged year-round with a mix of professional climbers, glacier skiers, tour groups, backpackers, and fur-clad socialites. No cars are allowed in the town and electric buses ferry people between the train station at the town’s northern end and the cable-car terminus 1km south. From the town centre, it's an easy ride (or even a walk) up out of the valley to lost-in-time villages and scenic hikes that are made all the more magical with that iconic triangular mountain nodding its head at you in the background.

The Jungfrau Region

The spectacular Jungfrau Region is named after a grand triple-peaked ridge – the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau – which crests 4000m. Switzerland’s most popular mountain railway, celebrating its centenary in 2012, trundles south from Interlaken before coiling up across mountain pastures, and tunneling clean through the Eiger to emerge at the Jungfraujoch (3454m), an icy, windswept col just beneath the Jungfrau summit. It’s a very scenic, but very long journey (2hr 20min from Interlaken, with two changes to progressively smaller trains) and also extremely pricey; probably only worthwhile on a clear day. Interlaken is not only the region’s transport hub but also the unofficial adventure capital of Switzerland and offers non-stop choices of adrenaline-filled activities like skydiving, canyon swing, paragliding, and turbojet boating; everything and more for adrenaline-seekers and anyone who loves the outdoors. However, the sheer volume of tourists passing through Interlaken can make it a less than restful place to stay.

Rhine Falls

Grab a picnic and hike to Europe’s largest waterfall. If you hop on a boat tour you can get extra close to the giant rock in the middle of the falls, and you’ll also experience the Rhine Falls Basin. Nearby in the town of Schaffhausen, you’ll find a medieval castle which also houses a hostel for cheap but interesting accommodations. If you’re coming from Zurich, we recommend this scenic tour which takes you to the majestic Rhine Falls!

Tours

If you prefer travelling with a group tour, we highly recommend G Adventures. They are a super reputable company and have been running tours around the world offering loads of different tour types that cater to all travellers such as well as wellness tours, tours for 18-30-year-olds. If you like the idea of travelling in a group and make new friends, check out the variety of tours that G Adventures has and the details and dates of each trip. We suggest using the filters in the sidebar to help you find a tour that fits your travel dates and travel style.