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It took us 4 trips to Switzerland before discovering Appenzell. We enjoyed it so much we went back last May. A great moderate hike is to magnificent Seealpsee. You just take the short train ride from Appenzell to Wasserauen to access the trail to the lake. Don’t miss the gondola to Ebenalp and the wonderful cliff restaurant. I believe you can also hike down to Seealpsee from the restaurant but I chose hiking from Wasserauen to save my knees. Then on another day if time permits, take the gondola up to Sanits for a wonderful view of Seealpsee from on high.
We’ve gone to Oeschinensee twice and it’s lovely but for my money it doesn’t compare with Seealpsee.
<< (I’m the rare Swiss tourist to travel by rental car–I very much appreciate the flexibility, and ability to stop and marvel at the landscapes). I typically travel with no fixed itinerary, and arrange for lodging from the road. I find it easier as a solo traveler. >>
<< But long story short, I hadn’t researched Swiss travel that first trip in June, 2018; so I ‘accidently’ presumed that people get around by car,and flew into Lugano, rented a car, to drive to Sils Maria. I LOVED driving in the Alps, and continued to travel by car ever since. I do want to eventually travel by train as well, but I haven’t so far. >>
Your reasons for liking to travel by car in Switzerland are exactly why I always prefer the automobile to the train. It allows you to have total control over where you go, when you stop, how long you stop, and thus when you move on. And you can usually get a place to park when you get to each night’s accommodation. Another great advantage is that your car becomes, in a way, your baggage storage locker for the duration of the trip. You just take what you need for any occasion, be it a walk or a night’s stay, and everything else you just lock in your car, best out of sight. No need to be constantly carrying around luggage each time you make a move. As you drive around each day, in some places you may have to look for a parking spot, but I can pretty well predict that the place you ultimately find will be closer to where you want to go than the train station. The exception to this will be in some of the larger cities, where when you get off the train, you will be pretty well in the centre of things. In these cases, you might consider parking in a small town near the city with a train station so that you can go from there to the city centre by train. In the smaller villages and locations, you won’t have any problems finding a place to park.
Proponents of trains and the train passes are always quick to mention than there are some places that cannot be reached by automobile, and yes, it is true that there are a few, perhaps the most often-mentioned being Wengen and Zermatt, where cars do not have access. The flip side of all this is that there are so many places you can’t get near to by train. Post buses do extend your reach, but not always, and then again you don’t have the flexibility mentioned above.
You mention that you are a solo traveler, and so you don’t get to share the cost of a car rental with a fellow traveler (or travelers), which would be an advantage compared to public travel, where each adult would have to pay for his ticket or pass. That said, traveling solo makes it easy to make the where to go and where to stop and when to continue decisions.
I must say that the Swiss public transportation system is wonderfu l. In my student days I traveled Europe from northern Sweden and Norway to southern Spain, Portugal, and Italy, and most places in between, all by train. I believe I can safely say that none of the other countries of Europe have a system comparable to what we have in Switzerland, where train, bus, and boat connections are so wonderfully meshed. These train journeys allowed me to get a first experience of Europe beyond Switzerland and because I was getting on and off the trains in train stations, much of my time was in or near cities. Often the trains went nowhere near places I would have loved to visit. This is less of a problem in Switzerland because of its quite high track density, one of the highest in the world. The highest if one excludes a few city states from consideration.
When you do eventually get around to traveling by train, you might consider, for the first time, the purchase of a half fare pass, so that you can get to some places that are inaccessible by train, or perhaps just to sit back and enjoy the passing scenery. With your car rental and one of these passes, it’s kind of like having the best of both worlds. But once you have experienced the joy of driving over mountain passes and through valleys and along lakes, and stopping in villages away from the hordes of tourists, I think it will be hard for you give up the rental car entirely.
By the way, up to now, I have not mentioned the Swiss lake boats, as these are a complement to the various forms of land transportation. As mentioned above, they sync very well with the trains and buses, which helps eliminate waiting times. Most of these lake cruises are a great experience.
Hi,
So glad to hear that you so enjoyed Appenzell. The cantons of Appenzell and Saint Gallen, including the Toggenburg are something I always recommend to friends and travelers. I was wondering what the temperature was like when you went up by gondola from Schwägalp to the Säntis ? I was up there in July one year and it was very cold, so cold that the wind had fashioned horizontal build-ups of snow from the vertical metal structure. It was also neat to look to the north-east and see the Seealpsee way down below.
<<“I believe you can also hike down to Seealpsee from the restaurant but I chose hiking from Wasserauen to save my knees. “>>
Even that short steep hike downhill on the road can be hard on knees.
Certainly not as much as coming down from Ebenalp, of course.
Slowpoke
Another advantage of solo travel, which most Americans are not aware of, is that many fine Swiss hotels have ‘single’ rooms which often have balconies with amazing alpine views, and cost nearly half of standard double rooms. In the US, a single traveller pays the same rate for a hotel room as a couple does.
When I stay in Sils Maria, because I only need a single room, I can afford to stay in the wonderful Waldhaus Sils, a grand regal hotel perched on high overlooking Sils Maria, and lakes Silvaplana and Silsersee, and is a stones throw from the amazing Val Fex. Hermann Hesse, Carl Jung, and Thomas Mann stayed here for weeks and months at a time to soak in the inspiration of Nietzsche.
Hi,
Good point. I must say that I have never stayed in a hotel in the USA.
We actually went up to Santis about the 2nd day after it opened after being damaged by the avalanche the previous winter. I believe it was June 1 or 2. There was snow everywhere at the top. The workers were using snowblowers to clear yet unopened areas of the area. The weather in late May and early June of 2019 was lovely. The hike through the woods to Seealpsee was clear as was the road back to Wasserauen. The only snow at the lake was a small area on the perimeter trail. I’d send a picture but for some reason whenever I try to attach one I lose everything I’ve typed! I’ll try to attach one to another post.
Hi Peterli –
Over the years I have evolved a travel pattern which involves the use of a rental car as a portable luggage storage device, exactly as you mention. As your comments imply, staying in a village usually offers free parking, and can place you at the beginning and end of many nice walks. And, buses, in addition to the trains.
I’d emphasize more strongly than you do that the bus services are an excellent supplement to the trains, affording access to many of the out of the way places. There is the same important benefit that is a major reason for train travel. You can look at the scenery and don’t have to keep your eyes on the road.
Bus service to some more remote trailheads, such as the ones for a nice walk up the Napf, is no longer as frequent as when I first started hiking in the Emmental. Service to Mettlenalp is now provided, if I recall correctly , only as a once in the AM, once in the PM, bus on Sundays. However, the frequent service to Fankhaus is quite usable. I have not checked Luthernbad or Romoos Holzweg, but I think they have the same pattern nowadays.
The bus network is quite dense, and is a well timed supplement to the trains.
Once I have parked my portable luggage storage device at a country inn, I use an annual Half-Fare card to visit cities, ride the buses, or travel to meet friends.
The combination is not the cheapest way to travel. I have long since decided that travel to Switzerland is a pleasure worth paying for, and I simply accept the hat cost. I make up for it a bit by staying in the villages.
I do not find buying tickets to be a bother. And, the Half-Fare card gives 50% off essentially everything, whereas the Swiss Travel Pass has a lesser discount on the expensive transport around the Jungfrau locale.
Driving in some Swiss cities is a problem, even with GPS. In others, not so much. One way streets are an nuisance anywhere in the world. And, though parking in Luzern is exorbitant by most standards ( similar to Manhattan), one poster in the Forum stayed at a Luzern Hotel that offered “free”parking. Presumably, the cost is built in to their rate structure, but it has got to be cheaper than the parking garages. Although I can drive in Luzern, I don’t. I drive in, park, and walk or use the buses.
It took me many years before I was willing to drive a few selected routes in Zürich. The problem is that the intersections come up quickly. and are not on a simple grid ( as one finds in Manhattan). So, even though I have driven in Boston ( one of the USA’s worst, where they paved the cowpaths), I avoid doing it in Zürich. I don’t think that I would drive in Geneva, either.
In Zürich, I get my rental car on Gartenhofstrasse, and get out. Renting at the airport adds a 10 % surcharge on the whole bill…..and I have learned how to drive to my hotel and pick up or drop off luggage on my way in or out. I allow a few carless days at each end of a trip to see friends in Zürich, enjoy the cultural aspects and restaurants of a sophisticated and convenient small city, take day trips, walk on Uetliberg, visit Rapperswil and Hurden, St. Gall, etc.
I’ve carried out entire trips by public transport, using the Swiss Travel Pass or it’s predecessor. Even when I’ve traveled completely by car,, I’ve had to use the public transport services some. The hybrid pattern that I’ve described pattern works best for my travel patterns. I visit many places that most tourists have never heard of.
I think that , if I were to go only to the Jungfrau Region and Zermatt, for example, I’d not rent a car at all, even today. Although, these days, hauling luggage is more of a nuisance than it was when I was much younger.
Slowpoke
I agree with you; driving in the cities is a problem. I decided to take a side trip on my way back to catch my flight home. I wanted to visit the Wagner museum in Luzern. I had the coordinates plugged into my GPS, and it took no less than three information stops at car dealerships and supermarkets to finally reach it; very disconcerting, and Luzern is pretty low density and spread out.
My interests have largely been in the villages, and alpine roads.
“There is the same important benefit that is a major reason for train travel. You can look at the scenery and don’t have to keep your eyes on the road.”
This is what I expected as well; but my first trip, they gave me a rental car with “heads up” display which I had never used before. It displays all the information from your dashboard onto the windshield (GPS directions, current speed, and incredibly useful, current speed limit). After using it for a few hours, I was able to view the passing scenery pretty effectively, while still being aware of driving safety. I’ve insisted on that feature for all my subsequent trips.
The other perspective is that, in the USA, you rent the room for a fixed price no matter how many people. So, if you get a cot brought in, there is only a modest fee.
In Switzerland, you rent per person.
That works because US hotel rooms do not include breakfast in the cost, unless you buy a specific “package” deal.
Slowpoke
<<“It displays all the information from your dashboard onto the windshield
(GPS directions, current speed, and incredibly useful, current speed
limit).”>>
I find in Zürich that the turns and intersections come up quite fast, and you need to be in the correct lane or you cannot turn. I can read German, but still have trouble getting placed correctly to make turns at intersections..Further, the available travel times at some lights are quite short, and if you try to squeeze through as a light is changing, a radar camera will nail you.
I have that heads up display in my own car in the USA. It helps, but it still does not let you stare out the side window for several seconds, to really absorb the contents of what you are looking at…..in my experience, anyway.
The speed limit information is more than just “incredibly useful.” It is absolutely critical. Radar cameras are everywhere. And, they are expensive. The stretch of road east of Luzern toward Baar is notorious…the speed limit drops down to 80 suddenly at places for short stretches, and the road design wants you to drive considerably faster. The grace “zone” of 5 km/hr is not worth much. I’ve also gotten caught on the road along the northwest shore of the Bielersee, near Tüscherz. Same issue, quick changes, except lower speed limits.
After somewhere in the neighborhood of 90 trips to Switzerland since 1980, I’ve come to consider that the trip is incomplete without extensive train travel. I consider an essential part of feeling like I am in Switzerland.
There is one aspect in particular of Swiss rail travel that my colleagues at our Geneva office, who came from from various countries, used to point out.
One of the fun things about train travel generally is is that you go “through” through the back yards of people, especially near the cities, and you get to see that part of the housing. Kind like peaking into their private lives.
But, in Switzerland, the back yards are just as neat, clean and organized as the front yards. “Boring.” 😉
Slowpoke
“90 trips to Switzerland since 1980”. I defer to you sir;and am curious to know where you reside in the US, and your relationship with the Swiss economy?
<<” I defer to you sir;and am curious to know where you reside in the US, and your relationship with the Swiss economy?”>>
I live in Connecticut. I am a US citizen. I just happen to like Switzerland. The way the country works impresses me. Democracy is very powerful there. Perhaps if you were to spend some time with books on how and why Switzerland works, you might begin to gain some understanding of what I have learned. Among other things, an exceedingly diverse population, with a wide income gap works well together. Mostly, because the residents ..especially the citizens…have learned that is is a good idea not to tear the place down.
I recommend Jonathan Steinberg’s 3 books titled “Why Switzerland.” In the appendix of one of those…2nd edition, IIRC…. there is an extensive and intensive exposition of how the voting system works to protect the rights of all citizens. Winner take all, it ain’t!
My relationship with the Swiss economy is that I have poured pour a lot of money into it. ;-). I feel that I got as good as I gave, and am happy to support the Swiss economy by providing information for travelers (and learning a lot) in this forum.
When I was gainfully employed, my job responsibilities managing chemical R&D in the USA for a global specialty chemicals company required me to work with technical departments of customers all over Europe. Our European HQ, and my base in Europe, was in Geneva. I added weekends or days at the ends of trips to explore Switzerland…by train. 😉
Between 1980 and 2003 when I retired, or 2005 (when I reduced my consulting activities), many trips there were on business, but more and more on vacation. Now, they are all vacation.
Slowpoke
<“but only in my late 50’s did I become passionate about studying Freud,
and that led me to an obsession with the study and reading of Nietzsche,
which I pretty much engage in every day.”>>
My attitude is more Jungian.
Slowpoke
Hello Slowpoke,
<< I find in Zürich that the turns and intersections come up quite fast, and you need to be in the correct lane or you cannot turn. I can read German, but still have trouble getting placed correctly to make turns at intersections..Further, the available travel times at some lights are quite short, and if you try to squeeze through as a light is changing, a radar camera will nail you. >>
<< I have that heads up display in my own car in the USA. It helps, but it still does not let you stare out the side window for several seconds, to really absorb the contents of what you are looking at…..in my experience, anyway. >>
<< The speed limit information is more than just “incredibly useful.” It is absolutely critical. Radar cameras are everywhere. And, they are expensive. The stretch of road east of Luzern toward Baar is notorious…the speed limit drops down to 80 suddenly at places for short stretches, and the road design wants you to drive considerably faster. The grace “zone” of 5 km/hr is not worth much. I’ve also gotten caught on the road along the northwest shore of the Bielersee, near Tüscherz. Same issue, quick changes, except lower speed limits. >>
From your description of your driving experiences in Zurich, I am wondering if “Slowpoke” is perhaps not the best descriptor for you, at least when you are behind the wheel of an automobile. The signage on the pavement and signs above is excellent, not only in cities but elsewhere, including the ubiquitous round-abouts, and if your GPS is up-to-date (probably will be if you are renting) and you choose a soothing voice and you respect the speed limits, you should have no trouble getting to where you want to go. You have to be ready to improvise on occasion, as an Umleitung may thwart your GPS guidance. And yes, if you go through an intersection where your light has turned red, you may very well get a ticket mailed to you after you get back to the USA and your speedy Interstates. By the way, if you do miss the correct exit when in a round-about, you can always go around a second time and get it right. Notwithstanding the above, I would remind you and other readers that driving in the larger Swiss cities is best left to the natives. If you are traveling by car, find a place to park it and use public transportation, which we all agree is excellent.
I’m curious about the heads-up display you mention in your car in the USA. What make and model car are we talking about here ? Are you talking about a system that projects the information onto the windshield of the car, like the HUDs I read about for sophisticated jet fighter planes ? Just curious.
One does have to pay attention to the changing speed limits. The signage is there, even to the point of stating what it is on an approach to an exit and then turning in an exit, and responsible drivers must always be alert to see these signs. My last speeding ticket was 7 years ago in Serrières, part of Neuchâtel, when I was flashed by a radar going 7 kilometres an hour over the permitted speed. They knocked off the 5 km/hr “marge de sécurité” and so my fine was CHF 20 for the remaining 2 km/hr. Last Fall they were doing work in the tunnels of the A5 below the city, and many drivers were nailed for driving above the permitted speed. One last thing, people who plan to drive in Switzerland should be aware of the Via Secura, which is a series of measures that has been progressively introduced since 2013, the goal of which is to reduce road deaths and injuries. Here is an article (from 2015) about these rules and penalties: lenews.ch/2015/04/23/new-swiss-driving-rules-could-have-you-locked-up-and-deported/
Thanks everyone for your input.
I loved reading about all your experience. Such great insights.
Hope everyone is keeping well 🙂
Regards,
Anna
FYI, Jung too was obsessed with Nietzsche. He also stayed at the Waldhaus Sils to walk in Nietzsche’s footsteps. From a scholarly journal that I just read:
“Jung was fascinated by Nietzsche. From the time he first became gripped by Nietzsche’s ideas as a student in Basel to his days as a leading figure in the psychoanalytic movement, Jung read, and increasingly developed, his own thought in a dialogue with the work of Nietzsche.”
I agree with your comments about learning to understand Swiss culture (ie mentality). I don’t speak German, but one of my favorite activities was conversing with Swiss tourists (the one’s I typically met lived and worked in Zurich and Berne, and were on holiday in Alpine villages and spoke English). They were usually fascinated to pick the brain of an academic from Manhattan. I drifted toward staying at highly rated hotels that excelled in cuisine and half-board, and I met numerous Swiss people seated at adjacent tables. I miss those conversations and look forward to returning largely due to that.
<<“From your description of your driving experiences in Zurich, I am wondering if “Slowpoke” is perhaps not the best descriptor for you, at least when you are behind the wheel of an automobile.”>>
Perhaps. 😉
<<“The signage on the pavement and signs above is excellent, not only in cities”>>
True, but it is not in my native tongue, and the information can include less familiar words and may be of high density, requiring quick comprehension..
.<<“You have to be ready to improvise on occasion, as an Umleitung may thwart your GPS guidance. “>>
And, indeed, that is not a trivial issue.
<<“And yes, if you go through an intersection where your light has turned red, you may very well get a ticket mailed to you after you get back to the USA “>>
The Swiss system should be described as “while turning” or even “beginning to think about starting to turn” not “has turned” red.;-)
<<“Notwithstanding the above, I would remind you and other readers that driving in the larger Swiss cities is best left to the natives. “>>
I don’t need reminding. 😉
I know that you visit the USA on occasionally. Have you ever driven in Boston? If you have, you will note that the same advice would apply for Boston. Much less so for Manhattan.
I grew up near Philadelphia, got my bachelors degree in the city, and went to Cambridge, Mass for my graduate studies. The drivers in Philadelphia, where the streets are in a grid pattern for the most part, and in the suburbs, are rather civilized, and fairly polite.
Things changed when I got to Cambridge. During those 4 years driving around the Boston area, I developed a set of reflexive habits and mannerisms that were critically necessary for productive and somewhat safe driving. One accurate descriptor is “aggressive.”
A couple of years ago, I had to drive to and in Boston frequently. I, and my companion, noticed that as I approached the city limits, the “instincts” learned many years before came out of hiding, and my driving style reverted to that old pattern. So, indeed, “the natives” develop an easy familiarity with the system. A stranger does not have those subconscious ” reflexes.” So, though your description of the locales may be correct, those things that you describe are not familiar or instinctive for a stranger.
<<“I’m curious about the heads-up display you mention in your car in the USA. What make and model car are we talking about here ? Are you talking about a system that projects the information onto the windshield of the car, like the HUDs I read about for sophisticated jet fighter planes ? Just curious.”>>
Like, but not the same as. My car is a Mazda –
http://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=heads+up+display+on+Mazda+3
http://www.hallmazdamilwaukee.com/blog/which-mazda-models-have-a-heads-up-display/
It is effective, though less sophisticated than a true “heads up” system.
Mazda’s official name is “Active Driving Display.”
Slowpoke
Hi Maloja Snake
Our experience interacting with fellow tourist at mealtime is similar to yours. We always get half board at the Beausite Park Hotel in Wengen and have the same table for all our meals. Over the course of a week we get to know our neighbors and often share a bottle of wine and get to know each other quite well. At the Beausite the guests overwhelmingly seem to be from the UK. I have learned a lot about Brexit. Anyway it is an aspect of our stay we thoroughly enjoy.
My daughter is a Vanderbilt trained Psychiatrist who works for the state treating mental illness in indigent and homeless people in Nashville. I followed her educational process sporadically (I’m an Ophthalmologist but she said eyes “creep her out”). Anyway I don’t think they had much exposure to Freud, Jung, or Nietzsche in residency and when I asked her one day what she thought of Psychoanalysis she looked at me like I had 2 heads. Apparently modern Psychiatry is heavily weighted to drug management, some counseling , and addiction treatment. It may be up to academics like yourself (and Renaissance men like Slowpoke) to keep Freud, Jung, and Nietzsche’s ideas alive.
Last, a group of 9 friends and myself are scheduled to stay in Wengen for a week and the Waldhaus in Sils Maria for a week in September. It will be my first time in Sils. We love hiking ( 5-9 miles typically). Any suggestions ? Anyway I’m keeling my fingers crossed but it doesn’t look too promising.
Best wishes to NYC, stay safe. Mark.
Ah Slowpoke, I would have pegged you as a Tesla man not a Mazda. Personally I have an Audi R8 spider but 99% of the time I drive a red Ford F150 Pickup truck (mostly from gas station to gas station). Mark
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