Switzerland
Switzerland19 guides across 4 destinations — where to go, when, what it costs and what to eat.
Destinations in Switzerland
Practical essentials for Switzerland
Swiss franc (CHF)
German, French, Italian and Romansh are official - German in Zurich and Lucerne, French in Geneva; English is widely spoken.
Type C/J, 230V 50Hz
SBB runs an integrated rail, bus and boat network; visitors usually buy a Swiss Travel Pass or Half Fare Card and use the SBB Mobile app.
Service has been included in listed prices since 1974; round up the bill if you want to, but nothing more is expected.
Tap water is safe to drink, including from most public fountains.
Right-hand side; a valid national licence is accepted for a visit, with an International Driving Permit recommended if yours is not in Latin script.
112; also 117 police, 144 ambulance, 118 fire, 1414 air rescue
Country-level guidance, checked against official sources. Currency, fares and entry rules change — confirm anything time-critical before you travel.
Recent stories from Switzerland
Where to Stay in Zermatt: The Areas to Book, and the Ones to Think Twice About
Matterhorn views, lift access and the walk home in ski boots — a candid neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood guide to basing yourself well in Zermatt.
Geneva Essentials: Arriving, Getting Around, and Getting It Right
Geneva is small, expensive and unusually easy to navigate once you know three local mechanics. Here is how to arrive, how to move, and how to spend less than you feared.
Ranking Geneva: The Fountain Comes Ninth
Ten things in Geneva worth building a trip around, ordered by a single unkind test, with the postcard landing a long way down the list.
Coffee, Chocolate and Lake-Watching in Geneva
Geneva does not do cheap, but it does do sitting still beautifully. Where to take a coffee, which chocolate is actually local, and the terraces worth the francs.
The Most Photogenic Corners of Zurich, Ranked
Zurich's looks are badly underrated: eight corners of old town, river and lake, ranked, with the light, the order and the logistics to shoot them all in one weekend.
Geneva's Green Side: Parks, Gardens and Quick Escapes
Chess under chestnut trees, a rose garden above the lake, two rivers meeting in different colours, and a cable car to a French mountain. Geneva outdoors, for free.
Which Side of the Rhône to Sleep On in Geneva
The river splits Geneva in two, and the bank you book on decides what the trip costs and how the evenings feel — here is how the quays, Pâquis, Eaux-Vives and Carouge compare across three budgets.
The Zurich Neighborhoods Most Visitors Never See
Most visitors trace the same Zurich triangle and leave believing the clichés about a banking city; the Zurich locals love is five neighbourhoods and one tram ride away.
Basing Yourself in Zurich: The First-Timer's Neighborhood Guide
Old town for romance, Bahnhofstrasse for grandeur, Zurich-West for edge — a first-timer's guide to choosing a neighbourhood in a city where every tram ride is short and every bed is expensive.
Zurich for First-Timers: The Complete Guide
A medieval old town, a swimmable lake, Chagall windows, and the best-run transit on earth — how to crack Switzerland's biggest city.
Lucerne's essential bucket list, ranked
Lucerne compresses lake, Alps, medieval town and Belle Epoque grandeur into a few walkable minutes — here is what to do first, what to skip, and when each of it actually works.
48 Hours in Geneva: The Perfect Itinerary
Two days between the Jet d'Eau and the Palais des Nations — old-town towers, lake baths, watch museums, and a bohemian district built by Sardinians.