Holidays to Switzerland Travel Podcast Episode 169 Transcript

Don’t Forget These Switzerland Trip Planning Essentials

You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.

Welcome to the Holidays to Switzerland podcast. If you’re planning a trip to Switzerland, this is the podcast for you. I’m your host Carolyn Schönafinger, the founder of holidaystoswitzerland.com. And in each episode, my expert guests and I share practical tips to help you plan your dream trip to Switzerland. You’ll get helpful advice about traveling around Switzerland and hear about the most popular destinations as well as some hidden gems. And we’ll introduce you to plenty of wonderful experiences that you can enjoy as part of your Swiss vacation. Each episode is packed with expert tips, itinerary ideas, and inspiration to help make your Swiss vacation planning easy. So let’s dive in.

Grüezi, welcome back to the podcast. Today we’re wrapping up our four-part series, Four Steps to Planning Your Swiss Vacation. In the past three weeks, we’ve covered choosing your travel dates, booking flights, and getting your travel insurance organized. We’ve also covered planning your itinerary. And last week we covered all those key items that you really need to book well in advance. Today we’re talking about the final step. Everything else that you should arrange before leaving home to make your trip as smooth as possible. These are the little details that when planned ahead will save you time, stress, and any last-minute headaches.

The first thing I want to mention is restaurants. Switzerland has some incredible dining experiences from tiny local cafes to high-end gourmet restaurants. But some of the most popular places do book out well in advance, especially in peak season. Now, if you had have said to me a few years ago that you should book restaurants in advance when you’re going to Switzerland, I would have laughed and said, “Why would you do that?” But some restaurants are becoming very popular, probably due to social media, and it really does pay these days to book ahead if there is a particular restaurant that you really want to dine at. So whether it’s a famous fondue spot, having a Sunday brunch on a mountain top, perhaps dining at a Michelin-starred restaurant, or at a cafe with a view of the Matterhorn. If it’s something that you really want to do, book it before you leave home so you don’t miss out and end up disappointed.

So how or where should you book these restaurants? Well, you’ll need to go onto the restaurant or cafe’s website. Some of them have an online booking form, others you can email them, and some even let you book via WhatsApp. So just go on and have a look and send them a message or book online and secure that reservation before you leave home so you’re not disappointed. And even if you’re planning a more flexible itinerary, at least locking in a couple of your top dining experiences ensures that you don’t miss out. So you can be very flexible during the day, but know that you have that dinner reservation already organized for you.

Next you should think about activities that aren’t dependent on the weather, but which may book out. So for instance, the Lindt Home of Chocolate in Zurich is a very popular experience and most tickets are sold on a time slot basis. And in peak season they can book out very far in advance. So it’s always a good idea to book those in if you know that that’s something you would definitely do that day. Other things like guided city tours, tickets to perhaps something like the Swiss Museum of Transport, if you know that you are definitely going to go there and your ticket isn’t included with some other part of your travel arrangements, book that or purchase your ticket in advance. This not only means that you’ve paid for it well ahead of time, but it also means that you can save time because you don’t need to queue up when you arrive.

Now things like mountain excursions I typically don’t recommend booking too far in advance. They can be very weather dependent. You don’t want to spend hundreds and hundreds of francs going to Jungfraujoch for instance if it’s a total whiteout up there and you can’t see a thing. That might not give you the best experience. So for weather-dependent excursions, I recommend leaving that until the day before travel before you go ahead and purchase those tickets.

Now let’s talk about staying connected when you’re in Switzerland. Having internet access is essential. It’s great for checking maps, checking train times, and even just keeping in touch with family and friends. Two of the most popular ways to stay connected with Wi-Fi whilst you’re in Switzerland are buying an eSIM for your phone or renting a pocket Wi-Fi device. I personally recommend WifiO and I’ve used both of their options, the eSIM and the pocket Wi-Fi device on different occasions. And I really like them. I found them to be reliable, easy to use, and perfect to stay connected. WifiO are also the only company that have guaranteed 5G coverage. And you can find out more about them and how you can get a discount from the link that I’ll put in the show notes. I find that arranging internet connection before you leave home means that you can just be online from the moment you land, which makes everything a whole lot less stressful.

Another thing you’ll want to think about and organize before you leave home is money and payment methods. Switzerland is a largely cashless country. Restaurants, shops, trains, and even mountain lifts accept credit cards. But it is important to know which cards you’re going to use and whether they have any foreign transaction fees attached to them. Credit cards are widely accepted and debit cards also work, but in both instances you’ll want to check with your card provider to see what fees are applicable because you don’t want to be hit with huge international bank fees when you get home from your trip. Having a small amount of Swiss francs in cash is useful for small purchases or using it for ticket machines. Sometimes you might want to buy something from a farm stall that you’re walking past if you’re going for a hike. So having a small amount of cash is a good idea. You can probably get away without having any cash at all, but I always like to have a small amount just in case I need it.

And finally, have a plan for when you arrive in Switzerland. How will you get from the airport to your accommodation? Will you take a train, a taxi, or do you need to book a private transfer? And will your accommodation be accessible when you arrive? Make sure you know what the check-in time is, especially if your flight lands early in the morning or late at night. If you can’t check in straight away, what are you going to do? Consider the day that you’re arriving in Switzerland too. If it’s a Sunday, remember that most shops in Switzerland are closed. Sundays can be a good day to settle in, explore outdoors, or have dinner at your hotel, but if you were staying in an apartment, the only grocery stores that you’re likely to find open are at the train station. So have a bit of a think about your arrival logistics and that’ll help you get your holiday off to a great start with no stress and no last-minute surprises.

So today we’ve covered the important things that you need to arrange before you leave home. Any must-visit restaurants, tickets for non-weather-dependent activities that are likely to book out, getting your mobile connectivity sorted, and knowing how you’ll pay for your purchases in Switzerland and if there’s any fees involved, and planning for your arrival. Once you get these little things sorted, you’ll start your Swiss adventure feeling calm and confident and you’ll be ready to enjoy every moment. So that wraps up our four-part series, Four Steps to Planning Your Swiss Vacation.

If you’ve enjoyed these episodes, make sure you subscribe to the Holidays to Switzerland podcast so you don’t miss any of our future episodes which are packed with Swiss travel tips and inspiration. You can also visit the website holidaystoswitzerland.com where you’ll find suggested itineraries, planning resources, and destination guides. And you’ll find more information about our trusted partners who offer a discount to podcast listeners on the website as well. Whether you’re looking to save on itinerary planning help, your eSIM, a hotel stay, or a travel package or tour, be sure to quote our exclusive promo code when booking and you’ll save some money too. And that promo code of course is HTS Swiss and you’ll find that in the show notes as well. Thank you so much for listening today. I hope the series has given you confidence and inspiration as you plan your Swiss vacation. I’d love to hear how your trip planning is coming along, so send me an email to podcast@holidaystoswitzerland.com and let me know where you are in the planning stage and when you plan to visit Switzerland. Next week I’ll be back with another episode with more Swiss travel tips and inspiration. So until then, tschüss.

You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.