Visit Switzerland: 5 Things You Will Love & Hate About Visiting Switzerland

Wandering the Alps, Canyoning in Interlaken, Eating Fondue & Chocolate, there is so much to love about visiting Switzerland as a tourist, but with sky high prices, offhand service & did I mention the prices, there are a few things to hate as well. This video is for travelers heading to Switzerland and wanting to know what they will love & hate about visiting Switzerland.
I love Switzerland.
I hate Switzerland.
Which one are you?
Leave a Comment Below!
Filmed in Lucerne, Switzerland
All Video, Photos, Content, Audio, etc Copyright Mark Wolters 2012

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[irismaclaren]

I find the service in Switzerland the best. Maybe not the friendliest but the Swiss are mostly very professional and that means no small talk. They do their job efficiently.

[EricaBlondie]

I'm an Italian living in Zürich since few years. It's really expensive, even with a Swiss salary, and that doesn't really help social life. When you will easily spend 50 chf per person in a normal restaurant for an average meal, well you think twice before going out too much.
I wouldn't say it's kid-unfriendly, rather that spoilt noisy uneducated children are not very much tolerated (and I'm thankful for that).
Going through the comments looks like many people think Swiss hate foreigners. I met nice Swiss people and not nice Swiss people (as it would happen everywhere else in the world I suppose). I never really felt discriminated because I'm Italian. And nobody made me stupid jokes because I'm Italian (and I can't tell the same about "humble" Germans for example).
It's just a great country to live!

[TheJapaneseBubble]

damn as a swiss, i was shocked when i tasted hershey's chocolate in the us :, D that was the day i truly started to appreciate swiss chocolate

[largolt]

A small update: considering the expense of staying, you might want to update this. I once stayed for almost an entire week and learned quickly that one cannot afford to eat out all the time. You will very likely have to do grocery shopping if staying longer than 3-4 days. In Zuerich, Migros and Coop seem to dominate the market. You have to bring a coin with you if you use the shopping card. I think you need a 2 Franc coin to unlock the bike chain. When you push the lock back into the front cart, it will return your coin. Remember, the portions are going to be small. And yes, Swiss chocolate milk is HEAVENLY and worth drinking! As a reflection of the bordering countries, I saw a lot of German and Italian influence. The bread is always decent (thank big neighbor France!). You might have to search the SHELF for milk, not the refrigerator. The Migros store I visited had very little refrigerated milk. It's hermetically sealed! Once you crack the seal, however, you must refrigerate any leftovers. If the seal is intact, you do not have to refrigerate it until you use it.

And on the subject of shopping: YOU NEED CASH. I learned that unlike the US, Switzerland places a huge emphasis on cash shopping so know how much it costs to exchange US dollars for Swiss France ahead of time! And always take a little bit more than you think you might need.

If taking the train to and from the hotel, remember, this is a country known for watch making. The train will NOT be late! You are not in Chicago or Los Angeles. If the schedule says 9:00 AM, the train will show up at 9! Not 9:15, not 9:08. Nine o clock! My dad refused to listen to me and we missed the train to Basel once! It left at noon on the dot! (My father was shocked! The look on his face was hilarious :))

And for the kids, if they want to see "Heidi's place" she "lives" in Maienfeld (pronounced "my en feld"). If you're a museum addict, Geneva is a good place to start! If you want to see the chocolate or cheese making plants, I recommend the Appenzell region. If you're a photography addict, you cannot miss the Bernese-Oberland region. The scenery will take your breath away. If you are not afraid of heights, you can take the cable car to Mt. Saantis. Ask the tour guides in any big city, they'll know how to get you there.

[hililala]

Switzerland is my favorite place in Europe. It doesn't give you a feeling of being a country because of the diversity of languages spoken there, which to tourists is a big plus because you will feel less out of place there than anywhere in Europe. And the people are among the most genuine I have seen. I can't wait to visit Switzerland again!

[alexpierce]

I`m from Wales (GB) and have been to Switzerland on holiday for 6 consecutive years. Earn average wage with average family....really haven't got a clue about what the OP is talking about. I`m there on holiday and don't expect to be waited on. Plenty of night life if you know where to go. Not kid friendly ? well not if you let them run riot. Always found the Swiss to be pleasant and polite but have realised they don't tolerate fools. I've seen so many wannabes out there expecting instant service, complaining about the slightest little thing... just chill,  be pleasant, you'll have a great time

[jamesmccollough-gilbert]

things just work in Switzerland. it is fascinating just to see the top notch infrastructure and the cleanliness of the place.

[Angela.o.b]

I happen to find Swiss people very polite, effective, no small talk, they really do their job.

[stefanonicolai]

I am an Italian guy living in Switzerland and I really think it's the best country in the world. The Swiss are great! But please, don't speak about a mixture of italian, french and german culture. They have their own swiss culture, which is quite unique.

[woltersworld]

You are right. and there are some good kid stuff in switzerland but the overall treatment of travelers with kids (and ours were very well behaved) kind of was off putting. And switzerland is ranked in the top 10 in countries for kids, though i am guessing that is because low levels of poverty and illiteracy. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[MisterLaForce]

dude nightlife in Zurich is great, and you don't need that much money for it. The good stuff is underground and you need to know where to go, and when you get there it's wicked!

[woltersworld]

all Americans don't respect other cultures... wow...
I give my honest opinions on the best and the worst about visiting places (my own country as well) because frankly the guidebooks that are out there only talk about the good of a location and travelers need to know both the good and the bad. thanks for watching and commenting.

[MasterTwig]

As a Swiss-Brazilian your points about nightlife and children hit haaard 😂 I was born and raised in Switzerland and everytime I visit my family in Brazil I see that the care for kids is just so much more loving and yeah the nightlife in Switzerland

[host]

Pack your bags honey, we're going to Switzerland.

[imakefoodhappen]

I think Americans views on service and friendliness is probably a bit askew. It's not a universal one. I'm not Swiss, but i have traveled a lot, and gotten to know a lot of other tourists. In the U.S, service and the ''friendliness'' is very exaggerated. It is overly polite and to most other nationalities, borderlines on insincere and bizarre. It's their way and their people are used to that and expect that. You go to a normal, not even a fancy restaurant and they treat you like royalty. They come over and ask if you're happy multiple times throughout your meal. In most other places, servers don't just randomly cover over unless you call them over, and they don't keep asking if everything is okay. Because, if you haven't called anyone over to complain, it is assumed that you're okay. In fact, a lot people from other countries, including myself, really dislike being disturbed over and over like this. Being asked questions while you're trying to eat etc. In our culture, a great server is someone who is invisible. The less interaction they have with you, the fancier the place you are in, probably. Lots of little things like this.

So you have to understand that this is not a universal thing. I think Americans take this above and beyond approach because of the ''tipping culture'' they have. In most other places, a tip is just something a little extra sometimes, but in the U.S it is a real expense you have to factor in because you literally tip everyone in high percentages and that's what they live off of. So the wide wide smiles and overly polite treatment is sort of the norm there, but not in the rest of the world. It is even considered weird. Like, ''thanks but what are you so crazy happy about? I'm just buying coffee from you.'' Or ''Yeah, you're selling ice cream and i'm buying one. Are you really that excited about this?'' It really is a bit over the top most of the time. I see lots of American tourists disappointed in other countries and i see lots of them complaining about things that other people do not. In most countries, they have what they have and as a customer, you either take it or leave it. They don't bend over backwards for you and try to make things happen. But American tourists are used to a more ''please the customer at any cost'' approach so they complain because the hotel doesn't have their favourite cereal. I'm a chef and i'm sure lots of people in the service industry who worked internationally or work in touristy places know what i'm talking about. It's just a very specific thing in their culture and it's a bit unfair to judge all places based on that.

[MrBrunoTheBest]

What i love about Switzerland is the fact that is probably the most difficult country to invade. In case of aggression, Switzerland has demolition points on crucial locations such as bridges, tunnels and highways (Estimated 3000 demolition points). There are cannons on strategic buildings ready to fire. Hidden artillery is in place on either side, set to prevent the enemy from clearing or repairing the damage. It is a mechanism of self-destruct. Even the Swiss people are a unique case of ''armed civilians'' as their military training for men is mandatory and they have guns which are kept at home as part of the military obligations. That's why top tier Banks with several worldwide gold reserves reside in Switzerland. During WWII, Hitler eyed to invade Switzerland to take control over the Switzerland Banks and Gold to finance his war. He planned it during ''Operation Tannenbaum'', but never gave the command to proceed with the invasion, because he realized the perfect self-defense mechanism of Switzerland. Resulting that Switzerland was never invaded by anybody in WWII, maintaining its neutrality and safety in the middle of a Nazi-Fascist Empire across all Europe. My respect for Switzerland!

[AliHussain-fzpd]

I lived in Switzerland for a couple of months, I think what sums up the people are that they are proper and orderly, in a sense its a sort of British mentality from a few decades ago, and personally I think it's great. I'm not white, I'm Muslim so a few people had some statements about my religion, others had questions, but nothing that upset me, and certainly nothing as bad as it can be in other places. In fact I found that it many ways it was advantageous because I would get to speak to people that I may not have otherwise, and I generally quite like talking to strangers (I'm weird like that) so I was quite happy. Beautiful beautiful country, wow! And about the expense, as far as I'm aware(I may be wrong) but income tax is very low in Switzerland, so if you have to pay more, at least you are waving good bye to 60% of your salary, although I suppose this doesn't concern many tourists. I actually stayed in an apartment and I really quite like to cook, one of the things that people haven't mentioned is the quality of ingredients you get in Switzerland, organic means organic, amazing milk and eggs, I could go on but you get my point. Really quite liked the place, and the people.

[Elizabethe]

Totally agree about boring/poor nightlife - living here for almost 5 years already and this country is more like sitting in a restaurant and drink your wine and then walk home slowly while looking around on pretty lights and architecture and super expensive shops :p

Rules - to be honest I haven't noticed them that much - maybe it applies to Zurich, in this case, but when staying at hotels in other cities - it felt totally normal.

Kids - dont know much about that - I dont have any, but friends who have kids and live here never said anything bad about attitude or forbiddances (at least not out loud :D)

[LeonardoFSI]

Wow, as a Swiss, and a patriot, I am really impressed by the number of dumb people in the comment section... I am sorry you get the wrong impression, idiots are everywhere, in every country. I would like to explain some things.
HATE 1: True, undenyable.
HATE 2: Yes, we are like that, but it's more like, we are all persons, and we like to treat everybody as equal as possible. However in some places they offer a very bad service, and even the swiss sometimes get pissed off, by the off-hand service. Compared to other countries. It has been much debated over the last few years, let's see how it will evolve.
HATE 3: Agreed, we are strict with rules, which is both a good and a bad thing. However some rules/laws have been challenged recently because some say it is:"too much".
HATE 4: Only in part: you have to find the right places, and keep in mind swiss cities are A LOT less populated and smaller, and of course there is less nightlife than in bigger city, like everywhere, but you also have to find the right places, Zurich has a lot of nightlife, Bern is just "meh" Like Bellinzona, where the nightlife is non-existant.
HATE 5: I don't agree with this one, it really depends on a lot of things, as a local, never seen anybody treatening children bad, you and your children could just have been rude and didn't notice, you got unlucky and found the wrong people... I think it just about the single situations.

LOVE 1: Understatement. As a Swiss I still get amazed by the landscape everytime, everyday.
LOVE 2: Agree, but ofc it goes on personal taste.
LOVE 3: Yep, but pay attention not to call Swiss-italian part of Switzerland Italy, we get offended, we are very patriotic in Ticino, we are swiss, not italians. I don't know the rest of the country.
LOVE 4: Hardly any delay, in 2014 97% of trains were perfectly in time. It really is that good, but IT IS overpriced, even for Swiss people if you don't own an AG, or you have a special offer.
LOVE 5: I love swiss cheese and chocolate, but since I never went in the US I don't know how food taste there. But I like our food :) Try eat watches, they are delicious. :P

[woltersworld]

thanks! i really love switzerland and really it was hard to come up with the 5 "hates" the loves were easy, i could have had another 5 or 6 no problem. thanks again for watching and commenting!
mark