Advice and Tips about Switzerland

Handmade gloves. I didn't expect it to be 45 degrees during summer.

Here are a few lists of things that I've learned....just for my own reference and anyone else who's going to Switzerland.

Things I wish I hadn't brought

• Computer (it was a hassel, but I'm glad I got to write the blog. Luckily, one of my roommates let me borrow hers. Thanks Alyssa.)


• A ton of food.

Things I'm glad I brought

• Trench coat; jacket
• Long johns (wore them in Bern when it was cold and rainy)
• European-made hair dryer
• allergy medicine (a few of us had allergy problems)
• American magazines (they cost about $15 there)
• Umbrella
• Extra battery & extra memory card for camera
• Nalgene bottle (can fill it up with water from any fountain)
• Switzerland travel book (good to carry around and look up stuff while on the bus or train)
• Studend ID card (we got discounts)

Things I wish I brought

• Gloves (see picture above)
• Ponch0
• Converter (luckily, my sweet roommies had one)
• bug spray (surprisingly, quite a few mosquitoes)
• Rolling backpack
• Travel book for London
• Swiss German dictionary (they don't use High German)

Things to know

• Splitting an entree costs an extra 2 CHF
• Bern is the capital (I thought it was Geneva)
• Everything closes early around 5 in Switzerland unless its Thursday, then it closes about 9.
• Walking tours are a good way to start your visit in a city.
• Get a Swiss train pass. Our professors got the Swiss Youth Pass, which is for people 26 years old and younger. It got us on trains, major city buses, trollies, and half price for rail cars and gondolas up the mountain. We also got free entrance into the International Red Cross Museum, Picasso Museum, and the Bern Natural Science, and History Musuem including the Albert Einstein Museum. I showed it everywhere we went. It was one of the best things about the trip because we could go whenever we wanted.
• McClean is a bathroom in all train stations. Its very clean, but it costs 2 CHF. Coop City has a free bathroom if you can find one of those.
• Switerland is very safe, but you still need to watch your stuff especially around the train station and at night. We didn't have any incidents while we were there.