Zurich

capital of the canton of Zürich, Switzerland

Saint Gallen

Saint Gallen (St. Gallen, German: Sankt Gallen) is the main city of eastern Switzerland. For travellers, its main draw is the centuries old Abbey of Saint Gall, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with a world famous historic library. It's a place packed with listed heritage buildings and well-maintained museums. And if you are tired of all the urban highlights, Saint Gallen also serves as a gateway to the Appenzell Alps.

Davos

Swiss municipality in the Grisons

Berne

capital of Switzerland

Grindelwald

village and municipality in the canton of Bern, Switzerland

Geneva

city in Switzerland and capital of its canton

Lausanne

capital city of the Swiss Canton of Vaud

Zermatt

municipality in Visp district, canton of Valais, Switzerland

Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch

World Heritage site in the Switzerland

St. Moritz

resort town in the Engadine valley in Switzerland

Lavaux

region of terraced vineyards in Switzerland

Lucerne

city on Lake Lucerne, in central Switzerland

Interlaken

resort town in the Swiss canton of Bern

Basel

city on the Rhine, in Switzerland

Lugano

city in Ticino, Switzerland

Lake Constance

Chur

capital of the Swiss canton of Graubünden and lies in the northern part of the canton

Montreux

municipality in Switzerland

Sion, Switzerland

Capital of the canton of Valais, Switzerland

Bellinzona

capital city of the canton of Ticino, Switzerland

Lake Geneva

lake in Switzerland and France

Carouge

municipality in Switzerland

Swiss National Museum

This is the place to go if you want to learn more about the history of Switzerland. There are permanent exhibitions on history, archaeology and art. Changing temporary exhibitions usually also turn around Swiss topics.

Engelberg

municipality in Switzerland

Lake Lucerne

Zuoz

Kunsthaus Zürich

Zurich's most famous art museum. The collection includes works from many Swiss artists, such as the sculptures of Alberto Giacometti or the paintings of Ferdinand Hodler. There are also major works from international artists on display. The museum is building a new extension, scheduled to open in 2020 and thus parts of the museum might be closed at any given time.

Abbey of Saint Gall

Church in St. Gallen, Switzerland

Kandersteg

municipality in Switzerland

Lauterbrunnen

village and municipality in the canton of Bern, Switzerland

Matterhorn

mountain in the Pennine Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy

Unterseen

town in the canton of Bern, Switzerland

Abbey library of Saint Gall

Musée d'Art et d'Histoire (Geneva)

museum in Geneva (Switzerland)

Zürich Opera House

The Zurich Opera shows frequently changing productions of world famous operas with top artists. As with the Schauspielhaus, students get a big last-minute discount. The best seats costs Fr. 45 for students.

Silvaplana

The lake is well known for its predictable winds and is therefore a popular venue for water-sailsports including particularly windsurfing, kitesurfing and dinghy-sailing. There is a major watersports centre on the SW shore.

Eiger

mountain in the Bernese Alps, Switzerland

Aletsch Glacier

The largest glacier of the Alps, it is more than 22 kilometres long and up to more than 900 metres thick, but is receding by as much as 100 metres every year.

Riederalp

municipality in Switzerland

Chillon Castle

Federal Palace of Switzerland

Inaugurated in 1902, the Swiss Parliament building is a great dome separating the two chambers: the National Council and the Council of States. Free guided tour when Parliament is not in session (German Tu-Sa, English only Sa 14:00, book online). In session there are 25 spaces in the spectators' gallery, no advance booking. For either, you need your passport.

Kapellbrücke

The Chapel Bridge, a landmark of Lucerne, is said to be the oldest wooden bridge of all Europe, built in 14th century as a protection for the city. It's amusing walking over it as you can see about 100 pictures of 12th-century city life and Swiss history. Join one of the walking tours going around! Parts of the bridge burned down on 18 August 1993, but within a few months it was rebuilt. The tower used as oubliette is still in original condition.

Grande Dixence Dam

Bettmeralp

place in Valais, Switzerland

Wengen

village in the canton of Bern, Switzerland

Titlis

Swiss mountain of the Urner Alps

Rhine Falls

Zürich Zoologischer Garten

With the new Masoala Rainforest Hall, the Zoo is really worth a visit!

Lausanne Cathedral

At the summit of the mountain that the old town is built on. The cathedral is architecturally quite interesting with a lot of small towers and windows. There is a fantastic look over the city and the surroundings from the tower, but as the cathedral is situated at the top of the city, already the view from the small square outside it worth taking a picture of.

Landwasser Viaduct

Jet d'Eau

fountain in Geneva, Switzerland

Schauspielhaus Zürich

Zurich's Schauspielhaus is one of the most important theatres in the German speaking part of Europe. The Schauspielhaus has several locations, the most important one being the Pfauen. Students can get really cheap last minute tickets (10 minutes before the show) if they show their student ID. The best seats, if available, cost Fr. 20 that way.

Lion Monument

Also known as the Lion of Lucerne, it is a sculpture in Lucerne, Switzerland, designed by Bertel Thorvaldsen. It commemorates the Swiss Guards who were massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution, when revolutionaries stormed the Tuileries Palace in Paris, France. The American writer Mark Twain (1835–1910) praised the sculpture of a mortally-wounded lion as "the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world."

Uetliberg

mountain in the Swiss plateau

St. Pierre Cathedral

The new Espace Saint Pierre pass includes entrance to all three sites of Cour Saint-Pierre, a worthy space of unique spiritual and cultural importance. The Cathedral and its towers, originally Catholic, both embody the high point of the Reformed tradition and explore the origins of Christianity with an extensive archaeological site and they are now complemented by the International Museum of the Reformation on the ground floor of the Maison Mallet. An underground passage, reopened when the Museum was created, connects the two buildings. The archeological tour beneath the cathedral is excellent for archeology fans it explains the origins not only of the cathedral but the reason for Geneva's location back to pre-Roman times. Those willing to climb the steps of the Cathedral's towers will be rewarded with magnificent views of Geneva and the lake. Nearby, the Auditoire, where Calvin taught, completes a complex that is both representative of the past and open to current questions. The new Espace Saint-Pierre thus aims to contribute to our understanding of today’s world – between tradition and modernity, cultural experimentation and spiritual practice. These three buildings invite the visitor to explore the city’s history. Religious denominations aside, Espace Saint Pierre represents a spirit that continues to guide the city and citizens of Geneva today. For schedules and information about free live organ performances in the cathedral, go to the website Concerts cathédrale.

Jungfrau-Aletsch protected area

World Heritage site in the Switzerland

Tonhalle Orchester Zürich

Swiss symphony orchestra based in Zürich

Zytglogge

It has been a guard tower, and a prison for women convicted of having sex with priests, but since the 15th century, it's been a clock tower with an elaborate astronomical clock. Hourly throughout the day, it puts on a great display of early animatronics. The show starts a few minutes before the hour with a little song and some drumming by a jester on top. On the hour, bears and an old bearded king get into the act. As well as the time, the clock shows the month, day, sign of the zodiac and phase of the moon. There are guided tours inside the tower that will let you have a look at the clockwork while the show is displayed outside. It can be booked at the tourist office and is definitely worth it if you love mechanics.

Tierpark Dählhölzli

Public zoo in Bern, Switzerland

Lugano Cathedral

Roman Catholic cathedral in Lugano, Ticino, Switzerland

Spengler Cup

annual invitational ice hockey tournament held in Davos, Switzerland

Monte Brè

There are numerous rustic trails that lead up from towns surrounding Mount Brè to its summit and the Funicolare Monte Brè. A trail map is available from the local tourist information.

Palais de Rumine

palace

Piz Corvatsch

Bahnhofstrasse

One of the busiest and best-known shopping streets in the world. Highly refined. Certainly a must-see for every tourist in Zurich!

Castles of Bellinzona

complex of multiple built objects

Faulhorn

A not too hard hike up a valley and small mountain, with a pleasant small restaurant and hotel at the top.

Altstadt (Zürich)

district in the city of Zürich, Switzerland

Jungfraujoch

mountain pass

Oeschinen Lake

Lindenhof

The hill in the heart of the old town. A beautiful view of the city and one time location of a Roman fort.

Muottas Muragl

Vaillant Arena

ice rink in Davos, Switzerland

Gurten (mountain)

The Gurten is a lovely hill just outside the city. It features a park and great view over the city on one side and a nice panorama of the Bernese alps on the other. The park is visited heavily by locals to play ball, to barbecue or to just lie in the sun. Tourists are not an unusual sight, though this little attraction is missed by most of the many that visit the city. Hiking paths lead in all directions and you will almost certainly stumble across some cows when walking around. A wooden look-out tower allows an even better panorama than that you would already have. If you get hungry or thirsty, a good budget restaurant service and self-service provides you with all you need. Families with children should not miss the cool playground. The Gurten can be easily reached with tram number 9 from the railway station in Berne in direction Wabern. Exit the tram at station Gurtenbahn and walk a few steps up the hill. Then take the Gurtenbahn , a panorama train that will bring you on top in just 5 minutes, round-trip tickets are Fr. 9 for adults or Fr. 4.50 for children (BernCard is valid), departure usually every 20 minutes depending on daytime. A club called up-town features various cultural events on weekends and once a year in summer national, European and a few international music stars (among others Alanis Morissette, Skin, Moloko and Jimmy Cliff in 2003) visit it for the Gurtenfestival, an open-air music festival . Gurten is a must see for everybody visiting the city for longer than a day.

Sechseläuten

Gornergrat

mountain

Diavolezza

Badrutt's Palace Hotel

Dating from 1658, it is one of the oldest farmhouses in St. Moritz. Now it houses three restaurants and two bars. The grill Chadafö provides the perfect setting for elegant dining with classic French cuisine. The two bars – the Polo Bar and Carigiet – are the perfect places to enjoy pre- and after-dinner drinks and are ideally suited for a get-together.

Cresta Run

Cresta run is the only natural skeleton downhill course. The first race was held in 1884/85. Spectacular races or training runs take place every day from the end of December to the beginning of March.

Île Rousseau

Tonhalle, Zürich

During the renovation of the Tonhalle concert house the internationally reknown classical orchestra, the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, plays at the intermediately built Tonhalle Maag concert hall. From season 2019/20, Paavo Järvi leads the orchestra.

Frauenbad Stadthausquai

public bath

Irchel

elevation in the Canton of Zürich

Langstrasse

quarter of the city of Zurich, Switzerland

Schynige Platte

The hike can be further lengthened to the plateau and end at a train station stop, quite near Interlaken.

Sphinx Observatory

Schwarzhorn (Bernese Alps)

Regarded as one of the most stunning look-out peaks in the Bernese Oberland. Its summit can be accessed by a trail on the southern ridge.

Jardin Anglais

urban park

Stadtcasino Basel

concerthall in Basel

Bachalpsee

Chinese Garden, Zürich

This small but beautiful Chinese garden was offered to the city of Zurich by the Chinese city of Kunming as symbol of gratitude after Zurich helped Kunming with technical knowledge.

Käferberg

mountain

Fluntern Cemetery

cemetery with lots of famous people most notably James Joyce who lived in Zurich for quite some time, the writer Elias Canetti and a few nobel price winners are also buried there

Eissporthalle Obersee

geographical object

Schanzengraben Zürich

A small canal that used to be part of the city fortifications between Limmat and Sihl. From the main station, go to Gessnerallee, find the stairways down to the tiny creek, and walk all the way to the lake.

Corviglia

Hohtürli

mountain pass

Parc des Eaux Vives