Switzerland / Practical city guide
Get oriented, plan your arrival, and find practical answers for your trip.
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How to get from Zurich Airport into the city by train, tram or bus, and how the same station lets you continue directly onward to other Swiss cities.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingWhy chocolate and pharmaceuticals pay for so much of Switzerland, and the visitable sites near Zurich and in Basel where you can actually see both industries.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingHow to choose between Lucerne, the Rhine Falls and Uetliberg as a day trip from Zurich, based on travel time and what each option trades off against the others.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingZurich Airport registers non-EU arrivals in the EU's Entry/Exit System even though Switzerland is not an EU member. Here is how Swiss Schengen membership makes that work.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingWhether your rental car already has the CHF 40 Swiss vignette, how to buy the e-vignette safely, and what Swiss speeding fines cost after the tolerance deduction.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingHow payment actually works in Switzerland — Swiss francs, contactless cards, the TWINT app, and why paying in euros in a Swiss shop can cost you more.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingThe difference between a Swiss cogwheel train, cable car and funicular, and why the mountain webcam, not the map, should decide your plan for the day.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingSBB assistance at Zurich Airport can be booked as little as one hour ahead. Here is what SBB confirms about the train link, and how to book help before you board.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingWhy almost everything closes on Sunday in Switzerland, when quiet hours apply, and the everyday domestic rules travelers most often break without meaning to.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingWhere German, French, Italian and Romansh are spoken in Switzerland, and why the Swiss German you hear on the street isn't the German taught in school.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingHow Switzerland's clock-face timetable (Taktfahrplan) makes the whole country one connecting transport system, and what that means for planning your own trip.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingHow to decide between the Swiss Travel Pass, the Half Fare Card and buying individual tickets, based on how many days you're actually traveling by rail.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingSwitzerland runs its own export VAT refund outside the EU system, with a 300-franc minimum and a staffed border stamp. Here is how it actually differs from EU rules.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingHow Switzerland's civil defence system and militia army connect to its neutrality, why nearly every building has a shelter, and where a visitor can actually see one.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingHow Switzerland's wage levels and price structure actually work, and what that means for what you'll pay for meals, transport and a hotel room.
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