Holidays to Switzerland Travel Podcast Episode 6 Transcript
10 Useful things to know before you visit Switzerland
You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.
Intro
Welcome to the Holidays to Switzerland Travel podcast. Your host is the founder of holidaystoswitzerland.com and the Switzerland Travel Planning Facebook group, Carolyn Schönafinger. On this podcast, Carolyn will be joined by a variety of guests who share their knowledge and love of the country to help you plan your dream trip to Switzerland.
Carolyn Schönafinger
Welcome to episode 6 of the Holidays to Switzerland Travel podcast. Planning a trip anywhere overseas can be really exciting, but it can also be a bit daunting, particularly if it’s your first time travelling abroad, or if you’ve previously joined an escorted tour, and now you’re going to be travelling more independently. When you’re on a tour, things like your accommodation, your meals, your sightseeing, most of that is often already prepaid, so you don’t really have to think too much about it. You just have to be at the right spot at the right time. But when you’re travelling independently, sometimes there’s a few little things that could really help you and make your trip go much more smoothly. So in today’s episode, I’m going to share with you 10 useful things to know about Switzerland before you visit. If you’ve already subscribed to the Holidays to Switzerland newsletter, you’ve probably received a copy of these 10 useful things. But I wanted to expand on them today because there’s so much more I can tell you about these useful tips than I can fit on just a one-page download.
Carolyn Schönafinger
So let’s start with currency. The Swiss franc is the currency in Switzerland and whilst euros may be accepted in some tourist spots, your change will always be given in Swiss francs. If you’re visiting other countries in addition to Switzerland, it can be a little bit annoying sometimes just to have to get Swiss currency just for the time you’ll be spending in the country. But it’s definitely worthwhile having a few notes for those little expenses like using a public a toilet or buying a coffee, buy an ice cream. So although euros can be accepted, you’re not always going to get the best exchange rate if you’re using, for instance, a debit card. I go into much more detail about the best ways to take your money to Switzerland in a dedicated article on the website. So I’ll link to that in the show notes.
Carolyn Schönafinger
The second useful tip is also related to money, but it’s all about tipping. Now, I know many of our listeners are from the United States, where tipping is part of everyday life. But in Switzerland, it’s not compulsory, and nor is it really expected. It’s customary to round the bill or the check up to the nearest Swiss franc if you’ve received good service, or just to save the server having to fiddle around with giving you a change.
Carolyn Schönafinger
So for instance, if you sit down somewhere, you have a coffee, a slice of cake, and the bill comes to 14.70, it’s customary to round it up to 15 Swiss franc. Now, if you’ve had a lovely meal, really good service, and you want to throw in an extra five franc, for instance, not a problem. You certainly won’t be refused, and it’ll be appreciated, but it’s definitely not expected.
Carolyn Schönafinger
Now, while we’re on the topic of dining out, another thing to keep in mind is that you almost always have to pay for water that’s served at restaurants, even if it’s still water or tap water. The Swiss, like many Europeans, tend to favour sparkling water. And if you don’t differentiate or specify which water you’d like, it’s likely that you’ll be served sparkling water. But in a restaurant, it’s brought to the table, usually in a bottle that it’s sold in. And so you will be charged for the whole bottle. Now, there’s different sizes available, but it’s not uncommon to have to pay six or eight Swiss franc for a bottle of water. So this is something to keep in mind before you go to the restaurant and order your meal.
Carolyn Schönafinger
You might not be drinking water when you go to a restaurant. You’ll have to drink wine or beer or soft drink instead. But with tip number four, there’s no excuse for not drinking water when you’re out and about. In every town and village and city in Switzerland, you’ll find drinking fountains, and the water is almost always safe to drink. Of course, there’s a sign if it’s not safe to drink. So there’s no excuse for not filling your water bottle and taking advantage of the free water. In Zurich, there are over 1,200 water fountains that all have drinkable water. So you never have to look far to find a free water fountain.
Carolyn Schönafinger
One of the most daunting aspects of travelling to an overseas country for many people is the language barrier. And travellers visiting Europe for the first time are often concerned that they won’t be able to get by if they don’t speak the local language. So I’m going to cover that in tip number five. Switzerland actually has four official languages, but you won’t be expected to learn them all, as English is widely spoken, particularly in the popular tourist areas. Having said that, though, I think it’s just polite to be able to greet a shopkeeper or your hotelier or someone you meet in the street with the local language just by saying hello, thank you, please, or goodbye. There’s plenty of translation apps and guidebooks out there that can help you learn a few simple words And it’ll make someone’s day.
Carolyn Schönafinger
Number six on my list of tips, is just to keep in mind that the Swiss are fairly reserved. Speaking loudly in public, especially whilst you’re on the phone or on public transport, is considered rude. Sure, you’re going to be excited about seeing somewhere new. You’re happy to have finally arrived in this country that you’ve been dreaming of visiting. But just keep your voice down. Not everyone else wants to hear your conversation. I was recently looking through my copy of 100 Locals Switzerland, one of the books in the Unconventional Travel Guide series. In the book, the author asks 100 Swiss locals their tips for different things, different aspects of a visitor coming to Switzerland. One of the questions was how to fit in. And a really strong theme that many, many of the locals responded with was to respect the peace and quiet. Noisy people do not go over well in Switzerland was a common theme. So just keep that in mind. Be respectful, be friendly, and you’ll get on fine. And Just one other tip, please don’t put your feet on the seats when you’re travelling on the trains. That’s definitely a big no-no.
Carolyn Schönafinger
I spoke before about dining out in Switzerland, and you’ll come across a wide range of cuisines at different restaurants. There’s everything from Asian to African to food from the Americas and right across Europe. So there’s never any excuse not to find something that you like. But when you’re visiting the mountain huts, for instance, if you’ve taken a cable car up to the top of a mountain, you’ve decided to have a lovely lunch while taking in the fantastic views, you may not find such a wide range of menu options there. Please don’t expect burgers and fries and hot dogs to be available wherever you go. In some places, they serve the more traditional Swiss meals like Bratwurst, which is like a thick sausage, possibly served with a Rösti like a hash brown. You might find hearty meals like a goulash. And often there’s the cheese fondue. So it’s more traditional food that’s served at these places. And really, trying out the different cuisine is a big part of any vacation experience. So please have a try of the local cuisine. If you’re a fussy eater or you have special dietary requirements and you’re not sure if there’s going to be something to suit if you’re going on a particular day trip, for instance, you can always buy a salad or make a sandwich or grab something from the bakery and take it with you. But please don’t expect the food to be exactly the same as it is at home, because if that was the case, what’s the point of even going on a trip?
Carolyn Schönafinger
Tip number eight is about recycling. And if you’re out and about, you’re bound to see that the Swiss take this really seriously. You’ll find different bins or trash cans for glass, plastics, paper, green waste, and general waste. And in some cases, even the glass containers are divided up into different colours. There’ll be ones for clear glass, green glass, and brown glass. So they really do take it seriously. And it’s not surprisingly, because when you see the scenery, you can understand why they want to keep it so pristine. If you’re staying in an Airbnb or a self-catering accommodation somewhere, there’s generally instructions left for you on how to recycle and where to place all the recycling waste. If you’re out and about, you’re going on a hike or you take a cable car and you’re at the train station, you’ll find the different bins, and they usually always have the what’s to go in them written in English as well as in the local language. So do the right thing, dispose of your rubbish correctly, and then we’ll all get to enjoy the beauty of Switzerland for many years to come.
Carolyn Schönafinger
While you’re out and about, you might want to do a bit of shopping. And tip number nine is to keep in mind that most shops are closed on Sundays. This doesn’t always apply to grocery stores, and certainly not to all stores in tourist areas like gift and souvenir stores and that thing. But it definitely applies to most department stores, even in the large cities like Bern and Zurich. It’s very rare that they would be open on a Sunday. There’s also limited shopping hours, sometimes on a Saturday. And throughout the country, most stores, including supermarkets, generally are closed by 07:00 PM the other six nights of the week. So there’s no 24 hour shopping like there is in many other countries. So do keep that in mind and get your supplies in advance if you need something on a Sunday.
Carolyn Schönafinger
And speaking of shopping, You might notice when you’re out buying food and other things that the prices can be quite high. Switzerland has a high cost of living, and many visitors find the cost of goods and services to be higher than what they pay at home so it’s a good idea to have a budget in mind before you travel so that you know what you’ve got to spend on a day to day basis. And I’ll link to my Swiss Travel Budget calculator in the show notes so you can download a copy of that and you can plan out your trip expenses, and then you don’t need to worry about overspending.
Carolyn Schönafinger
I hope you found the tips in episode 6 useful, and you’re more confident now planning your first trip to Switzerland. Make sure you visit holidaystoswitzerland.com/podcast, and you can find all the show notes from this episode, as well as a link to sign up to my newsletter so you can receive monthly tips, Swiss Travel Inspiration, and special deals. Thanks for listening, and until next time. Tschüss.
Speaker 2
Thank you so much for listening. For more great to find great resources on planning a trip to Switzerland, make sure you visit holidaystoswitzerland.com, where you’ll find trip planning tips, destination guides, information on transport, including Swiss rail passes, and much more. You’re also encouraged to join the Switzerland Travel Planning Group on Facebook, where you can ask questions and chat to other past and future travellers to Switzerland. You’ll find show notes from today’s episode at holidaystoswitzeland.com/podcast, and be sure to subscribe to the Holidays to Switzerland Travel podcast so you never miss an episode.
You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.
