Switzerland conjures up a fair swag of clichés: irresistible
chocolates, kitsch clocks, yodelling Heidis, humourless bankers,
international bureaucracies and an orderly, anally-retentive and
rather bland national persona. But Harry Lime was wrong on more
than one account when, in The Third Man, he said 500 years of
Swiss democracy and peace had produced nothing more than the cuckoo
clock. For a start, the Germans invented this monstrous timepiece;
secondly, the Swiss, who are a brainy lot, have won more Nobel
Prizes and registered more patents per capita than any other nation
on earth. Muesli, DDT and life insurance may not be the stuff
of legend, but where would the rest of us swashbucklers be without
a bit of Swiss nous behind us?
Switzerland may be neutral but it is certainly not flavourless.
The fusion of German, French and Italian ingredients has formed
a robust national culture, and the country's Alpine landscapes
have enough zing to reinvigorate the most jaded traveller. Goethe
summed up Switzerland succinctly as a combination of 'the colossal
and the well-ordered'. The untamed majesty of the Alps and the
tidy, just-so precision of Swiss towns prevent Switzerland from
ever being as one-dimensional as some pundits like to try and
make it.
Full country name: Swiss Confederation
Area: 41,295 sq km (16,105 sq mi)
Population: 7.3 million
Capital city: Bern (pop 130,000)
People: 74% German, 20% French, 4% Italian & 1% Romansch
Language: German, French, Italian & Romansch
Religion: 49% Roman Catholic & 48% Protestant
Government: Federal republic
President: Kaspar Villiger
Facts for the Traveler
Visas: Citizens of Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South
Africa, the UK and the USA do not require a visa. A maximum stay
of three months applies though passports are rarely stamped
Health risks: Altitude sickness, hypothermia & sunburn
Time: GMT/UTC plus one hour
Electricity: 220 volts, 50Hz
Weights & measures: Metric
Tourism: 11 million visitors annually
When to Go
You can visit Switzerland any time throughout the year. Summer
lasts roughly from June to September, and offers the most pleasant
climate for outdoor pursuits. Unfortunately, you won't be the
only tourist during this period, so prices can be high, accommodation
hard to find and the mainstream sights crowded. You'll find much
better deals and fewer crowds in the shoulder seasons of April-May
and late-September-October.
If you're keen on winter sports, resorts in the Alps begin operating
in late-November, move into full swing around Christmas, and close
down when the snow begins to melt in April.
Events
February is carnival time, or Fasnacht, in many towns, but
Basel really funks it up with elaborate parades beginning at a
bleary 4 am. In the lower Valais, from March to October, cows
battle it out in the Combat de Reines (cow fighting) to see which
beast is most suited to lead the herd up to the summer pastures.
The world-renowned Montreux Jazz Festival takes place in July.
National Day (August 1) is celebrated with fireworks throughout
the country, and Swiss wrestling in the Emmenthal area east of
Bern. On the fourth Monday in November, Bern hosts its famous
onion market (Zibelmarit), where traders take over the whole town
centre and many a tear is shed.
Activities
The mountains and lakes of Switzerland are a natural playground.
There are dozens of ski resorts throughout the Alps, the Pre-Alps
and the Jura. Zermatt and Verbier have the best combination of
slopes, scenery and nightlife. Hiking is the number-one activity
in the country, with 50,000km of designated footpaths and regular
refreshment stops en route. There are well-established mountaineering
schools in Pontresina and Meiringen, though Zermatt is perhaps
the most famous destination for experienced mountaineers. Ski
mountaineering is popular along the Haute Route in Valais. Many
of the resorts also offer paragliding and hang-gliding and hire
out the gear. Water-skiing, sailing and windsurfing are common
on most lakes. Rafting is possible on many alpine rivers, including
the Rhine and the Saane. Canoeing is mainly centred on the Muota
in Schwyz canton and on the Doubs River in the Jura.
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