Switzerland
Visas & entry
Switzerland is in the Schengen Area but not the EU. U.S. citizens and many other visa-exempt visitors, including Canadians, Britons, Australians, New Zealanders, Japanese and South Koreans, may generally visit for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; visa-required nationalities need a Schengen visa. Passport validity, ETIAS implementation and entry requirements can change, so verify rules with official Swiss/EU sources before travel.
Getting in
- Zurich Airport: The best all-purpose global gateway for central, eastern and German-speaking Switzerland. It has direct rail links into Zurich and fast onward connections to Lucerne, the Bernese Oberland, Graubünden and Ticino.
- Geneva Airport: The logical gateway for Lake Geneva, Lausanne, Montreux, Geneva and western Valais. Choose it over Zurich when your trip is built around the French-speaking west or a Zermatt-to-Geneva itinerary.
- EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg: Useful for Basel, the northwest and trips paired with Alsace or Germany; it is much less efficient for an Alps-first itinerary.
- Paris, Milan, Munich and Strasbourg/Basel by rail: For travelers already in Europe, international rail can be more logical than flying. These routes connect well into the Swiss network and avoid airport time for city-to-city itineraries.
Getting around
Use trains by default. Switzerland’s network is frequent, integrated with buses, boats and mountain transport, and most ordinary trains do not need reservations; use the SBB app for live routing and compare point-to-point fares with a Swiss Half Fare Card or Swiss Travel Pass. The pass works best with many long travel days, but expensive mountain lifts are often discounted rather than fully included. Rent a car only for a deliberate rural-road itinerary—remote valleys, vineyards, Jura or rural Graubünden—because it is a liability in major cities, Zermatt and car-free Oberland villages; parking is costly, mountain roads are demanding and high passes are seasonal. Domestic flights are almost never worthwhile.
Money
Switzerland uses the Swiss franc, not the euro. Contactless cards are widely accepted, but carry a small amount of CHF for small purchases, rural businesses and occasional mountain stops. Service is included in listed prices; tipping is not obligatory, though rounding up or leaving a modest amount for good service is normal.
Daily budget · CHF (Swiss franc)
- Value
- CHF 110–180
- Mid-range
- CHF 220–380
- High-end
- CHF 550–900+
- These estimates exclude international flights and assume two people share a room.
- Value travel means hostels or simple guesthouses, supermarket breakfasts and picnic lunches, selective restaurant meals, ordinary rail and free outdoor activities.
- Mountain lifts, resort-hotel nights, alcohol and panoramic-train reservation supplements are the budget breakers. A CHF 25–40 lunch is normal, and a major mountain railway can cost more than a simple hotel night.
- For mid-range comfort, spend on a well-located base and a few deliberate mountain excursions rather than trying to ride every famous lift.
- Use supermarket picnic supplies aggressively; Switzerland is expensive, but its grocery stores make self-catering unusually painless.
Eating well
- Reserve Friday and Saturday dinners, peak-season resort restaurants and destination restaurants in Zermatt, St. Moritz, Wengen, Mürren and Montreux.
- Make lunch your main restaurant meal when possible; it is often noticeably better value than dinner.
- Small towns can be quiet on Sundays, and kitchens may stop taking orders earlier than North American travelers expect.
- Carry picnic supplies for hikes; Swiss supermarkets and bakeries are often a better use of money than mountain restaurants.
- Tap water is generally excellent for bottle refills unless a sign says otherwise.
Book before you land
Glacier Express seat reservations, especially in summer, winter holidays and on popular Zermatt–St. Moritz dates · Bernina Express seat reservations in peak summer and winter periods · Gotthard Panorama Express reservations during its operating season · Peak-date restaurants in Zermatt, St. Moritz, Wengen, Mürren and Montreux, particularly Friday and Saturday evenings
- Do not confuse a Swiss Travel Pass with an all-inclusive mountain-lift pass: check each excursion, as many major lifts offer only a reduction.
- Mountain weather changes faster than city forecasts suggest. Carry layers, rain protection and proper footwear even on a seemingly simple cable-car day.
- Zermatt is car-free; park or arrive by train at Täsch and continue by shuttle rail. Wengen and Mürren are also car-free, so plan luggage and connections accordingly.
- If driving, the motorway vignette is mandatory; it costs CHF 40 and is available as a sticker or e-vignette.
- Book accommodation by transport logic, not just scenery: an extra rail change with luggage can erase the benefit of a cheaper remote village.
- Avoid unofficial ETIAS or visa websites. Check official Swiss and EU sources shortly before departure, particularly while ETIAS rollout dates remain subject to change.
Entry rules change — verify visa requirements for your passport before booking this country.