Switzerland

After living one year in Switzerland I want to sum up my time within this article. Overall I can say I had a blast. The alps and lakes offer so many activities and new places to discover. This can be overwhelming in the beginning. So a little top 10 guide should help. Starting out with number 10 I will give you a glimpse of my amazing time in the Confoederatio Helvetia.

Top 10: The city of Zurich

I lived in Zurich so the biggest city of Switzerland cannot miss on this list. With about 400.000 inhabitants Zurich is still a smaller metropole. This is one of the reasons why I loved it here so much. It allows to meet friends within less than 20 minutes. Also with the great Zurich lake the city offers many activities in the leisure time.

Besides rowing on the lake I really enjoyed climbing on the local mountain Uetliberg. Here it is possible to follow the grade of the mountain straight into the alps.

Then again from the water the city offers a different perspective on its beauty. Like this little boathouse close to Rüschlikon.

Top 9: Skiing in Davos

Davos is a town far east of Switzerland in the canton of Graubünden. Due to its location within the alps it is one of the most renown Ski resorts in Europe. Together with my co-worker Lukas and his roommates I had the chance to check it out beginning of the year for a ski weekend.

After skiing the whole day the little cabins on the top of the mountain offer food and drinks to the people. The best experience of the day is the ride down into Davos Switzerland with the setting sun over the Swiss alps.

Top 8: Hiking through Graubünden

In September I joined my roommate Prince and his buddies on a hiking trip to Graubünden which became one of my biggest adventures in the alps. We left early in the morning at 6 am. After 5 hours of driving from Zurich we finally arrived at the foot of the mountain. Further hard 7 hours of hiking and we finally made to this cabin. We enjoyed a beer wearing just t-shirts in the late summer of 2019.

The next morning we couldn’t believe our eyes: It had snowed the whole night and we woke up to 20 cm of fresh powder. Even the owner of the cabin, Heidi, didn’t recommend going down again. We thought we would have to stay up there for a week. Luckily the snow melted far enough that we were able to leave. If you feel like getting into an adventure like that, the rural nature of Graubünden Switzerland is your place to be.

Top 7: The Romandie

The west of Switzerland offers its own kind of flair. Even though most of Switzerland is speaking Swiss German, there are 4 official languages in Switzerland. The second most spoken language is french. Furthermore the french speaking part is called Romandie. It offers a completely different culture within the same country.

Lausanne is a young and a little bit more alternative city. Still you can find medieval architecture here like at the cathedral or have crepe in the park.

Finally at the far end of the country and the lake you will find the city of Geneva. Its nice to have a stroll through the historic city which is not only home to the United Nations but also to some of the most renown watch brands.

Top 6: Canton of Ticino

Far south of Switzerland is the canton of Ticino. Here people speak Italian. Like in the Romandie the culture and even the climate is most different from the rest of the country.

Check out the cities like Locarno, Bellinzona and Lugano. Have a coffee next to the beautiful lakes and a stroll through the city. If you fell like being active check out the small villages up the mountains like Lavertezzo with its famous historic bridge. Or hike up Monte San Salvadore like we did to get a beautiful view of the area.

Top 5: The canton of Wallis

On the top 5 I want to generally recommend visiting the canton of Wallis. Its situated south of Switzerland in the middle of the Alps with a high amount of 4km tall mountains in the area. It is also home of the Matterhorn the most renown sight of the country. When my best buddy Hendrik came to visit last year we went out here to hike up to another famous sight the Aletsch Glacier.

Unfortunately by the time we got to the top of the mountain one day later the weather changed. We had ice cold snow storms and the glacier was barely visible. Snowboot hiking was probably also the most exhausting sport I have ever tried. One wrong step lets you sink through the snow into indefinite depths. Still it was great fun. If you have a chance to visit this part of the country, go for it!

Top 4: Grindelwald, Switzerland

Another beautiful area of Switzerland the Bernese Oberland with places like Interlaken, Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald. Grindelwald offers the longest sledge slope in Europe with nearly 30 km. We went here early winter last year to check it out and we didn’t get disappointed, but check the video for yourself.

Top 3: The 5 lakes of Pizol

I really enjoyed hiking the 5 lakes trail of Pizol, St. Gallen in Switzerland. Even though the price 44 CHF is fairly high if you want to take the short cut by using the lift. The views are definitely worth it. Like the one of the Wildsee. When we were visiting the lake, Greenpeace activists were mourning the official death of the glacier which used to be here. This is probably the reason for the special color of this lake.

The trail doesn’t only offer nice views on the lakes but also the alps all around it are stunning. But see for yourself on my drone video:

Top 2: Seealpsee, Appenzell

Not without reason the brewery Quöllfrisch one of the most famous Swiss Beer brands chose the Seealpsee for their branding. The view on the lake with the first snow of the year was truly humbling. Also I was amazed that my roommate Simon and I were nearly the only visitors on this Sunday early winter 2019.

From the lake it is possible to hike up to this little cabin close to the side of the mountain. Here you can enjoy a Quöllfrisch for yourself and enjoy the view.

Top 1: Rigi, Queen of the mountains

Finally I am happy to announce my favorite sight of Switzerland: the mountain Rigi. Just 30 minutes away from Zurich close to the city of Lucern is the location of this beauty. Due to the fact that it is so close it is an easy destination for quick city escapes. Summer or winter; hiking here was always a blast.

Last winter I was lucky to host my friends from my time in the US, Petr and Anna as well as Henning from Hamburg. Together we hiked for 4 hours through the snow and clouds to be finally gifted by one of the most beautiful sunsets I had so far.

Since pictures say more than 1000 words here are two last videos from the top of the Rigi:

Thanks a lot for reading and to all the people who made my time in Switzerland so special. Even though I was able to see a lot, this is only a personal selection and there is still so much more to discover.

I hope I get to see more of this beautiful country soon.