Debbie-
I realize that I did not complete my earlier comment about this particular region on the French/German language border. You will not find them on lists of common tourist destinations.
This set of places probably works better in some parts by car than by public transport.
These villagees have a series of wine festivals on weekends in the fall.
I mentioned Ligerz/Gleresse earlier. A lakeside village, it is in Canton Bern, just at the border with Canton Neuchatel.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Ligerz
We like the Gasthof Kreuz. Good kitchen, simple menu, fresh fish. Modest wine list. Generous sized rooms at a moderate price.
It is near Biel (which I think you noted earlier as Bier?) with frequent train service.. Biel/Bienne has two names - common at the language border. The old town in Biel is small but charming; 10-15 minutes walk from the main station.
At Ligerz, a walk along the lake front and/or through some of the wine villages - Ligerz/Gleresse, Twann/Douane, Schafis (adjoins Ligerz)- is good for photography and just being a tourist.
The vineyards sell their wines at their facilities along the streets.
A walk up to (or, funicular up to the first stop) puts you on a level with the landmark church. Nice walks in the vineyards. An old pilgrim's trail runs through there (der Pilgerweg.)
A bit to the south is the larger partially-walled medieval town of Le Landeron. Definitely take your camera. Best by car.
Further south and east - Murten/Morat on the Murtensee/ Lac Morat. A good sized town on the lake, hotels, restaurants, shops, tourists are thick on weekends.
Sugiez -
just at the end of the canal from Lac Neuchatel on the edge of the Murtensee, Sugiez is the northrnmost of the wine villages along the foot of Mont Vully. The ones further south between the lake and the mountain (such as Motier) are really attractive, plenty of wine makers+shops, and the vineyards run up the slopes. Some very good wines are made here.
(Swiss red wines-
The use of oak casks to age red wines is in its infancy in Switzerland. These days, if you want your wine to taste like it was poured through oak sawdust, order a wine that has the word "barrique" in the name/label. It probably was. Proper use of wood in aging is used skillfully by winemakers to produce superior wines. The Swiss are just learning how.
I personally prefer the newest generation of Pinot Noir wines which are late-picked (Spätlese) or "Selected Picking" (Auslese.) Best known - the ones from the Bündner Herrschaft - towns like Jenins, Fläsch, Mainfeld, Zizers - are very sophisticated, well made, and have only the natural tannins from the grape stems and leaves left in during fermentation. The ones from Mt. Vully are also quite good. It is hard to find such well made wines with no added woody tannins anywhere else in the world.
If I want sawdust, I can buy well made wines from California or France, for example.)
We stay and eat at the Hotel de'lOurs in Sugiez whenever we can. The wine cellar, full of excellent local wines as well as French vintages is incredible. The kitchen is almost always excellent; once it slipped to "very good" because none of the items available were to our taste that particular night. About 4 rooms, not cheap, generous size, very nice bathrooms.
The family who run the inn - the Mao's - are attentive and friendly. You know that you are welcome.
The general area -
The location on north-south land routes since prehistoric times has made this area a treasure trove for archeologists.
In the region -
On top of Mt. Vully are look-out locations and a reproduction of a small section of a wall from a pre-Christian era fortified camp of the Helvetic tribe and also partially accessible ruins of a WWI major defensive fortification.
Across Lac Neuchatel to the west is La Tene. The site is -called the LaTenium. This is a site of prehistoric lake dwellers ( houses on pilings) with an impressive and informative major exhibit about the history and archaeology.
These are all the kinds of smaller destinations that are not on the normal tourist routes. They reward walking, and using a car to get from one to another on a flexible schedule.
The region is known as the "Three Lakes Country" ( Drei Seen Land) or sometimes the Seeland (Lake Country). It lies very close to France, with the Jura mountains rising steeply just to the west
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Seeland_%28Switzerland %29
www.juradreiseenland.c h/en/.
