Aargau
Aargau's got a lot to offer. Rural areas, urban centres and cultural highlights invite you with numerous excursion destinations that appeal to both culture lovers and naturalists as well as sports enthusiasts.
The famous castles and palaces of Aargau are witnesses of a fascinating past. Exciting exhibitions and stagings reveal the Middle Ages and the life of the Habsburg aristocratic family, which has its origins in Aargau. The Romans used the Aarau area as a traffic junction from the 1st century B.C. onwards. 2000 years later you can follow the traces of the Romans back I their time. With its 13 historic old towns, the Aargau a great treasure trove of unique cultural assets.
More than 1,065 kilometres of hiking trails entice you to leisurely as well as challenging hikes across lush meadows, through cool forests and enchanted floodplain areas. Aargau is rich in scenic pearls such as the Hallwyl moated castle and a special floodplain park landscape where the Reuss and Limmat rivers meet the Aare.
Basel-Land
The Basel area is rich in scenic beauties, impressive nature and cultural gems. The Baselland in the northwest of Switzerland and just outside the city of Basel borders directly on the neighbouring countries Germany and France and is known for its nearby Jura landscape with its almost untouched nature.
This is why the Basel area with its gentle, wooded hills is particularly appreciated by hiking enthusiasts. Numerous castles and palaces line the more than 1000km hiking trails in the region. A visit to Liestal, the capital of the Baselbiet, with its picturesque old town is also worthwhile.
A particularly popular hiking area is the Wasserfallen region in the upper Baselbiet. The gondolas of the Wasserfallen cable car open up a unique Jura landscape with magnificent vantage points. The mountain station is the starting point for many hikes, because from here you can access a wide network of walking and hiking trails in all four directions.
A boat trip on the Rhine is also an experience, for example to Augst in the Roman Augusta Raurica town, which is the largest archaeological open-air museum in northwestern Switzerland. This is the best preserved antique theatre north of the Alps.
Bern
Bern invites you to linger: With the river Aare, which provides refreshment in summer, the cosy restaurants and cafés, which offer both regional and international delicacies, and the cellar bars, where the night turns into day.
The six-kilometre-long arcades, the longest covered shopping mile in Europe, the Renaissance fountains, the Zytglogge, which attracts thousands of visitors every day, the Gothic cathedral and the sandstone facades make up the city, which was built in 1191 and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
From Meiringen to Kandersteg there is a special view for visitors: The UNESCO World Heritage Site Swiss Jungfrau Alps-Aletsch covers almost the entire Bernese High Alps in the cantons Bern and Valais. On countless hikes through the Bernese Oberland, visitors can marvel at imposing mountain ranges, rustic valleys and the largest contiguous glaciated area in the Alps.
Graubünden
Valleys north and south of the Alps. Rivers that flow in all directions. German, Rhaeto-Romanic and Italian in one canton. Do you know Heidi, Capricorn and St. Moritz? Then you know a little piece Graubünden.
Switzerland's No. 1 holiday region comprises 150 valleys, 615 lakes and 937 mountain peaks up to Piz Bernina at 4,049 metres. In Graubünden the rivers Rhine and Inn rise and visitors marvel at the largest prehistoric landslide in the world at Flims. With three regional nature parks, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the only Swiss national park, Graubünden presents the highest density of parks in Switzerland.
The charming mountain landscape is enlivened by numerous streams, rivers and lakes. Waterfalls and gorges such as the Rhine and Viamala Gorges have created unique scenery.
The world-famous Rhaetian Railway has been transporting tourists to the Grisons holiday regions since 1889 and forms the basis for tourism. With its tunnels, galleries and bridges as well as the fantastic views during the trip, the RhB itself has become an attraction and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Neuchâtel
Located between the Three Lakes Region and the Jura, the canton of Neuchâtel harbours a vast array of options for leisure activities and visits to cultural attractions. During the summer season, a holiday ambience prevails along the shoreline with its beaches and wide-ranging opportunities for water sports. What could be more relaxing than a cruise on the Three Lakes as you gaze at the surrounding hillsides? Hikers can take advantage of over 1,000 km of signposted walkable trails – stopping off to sample Neuchâtel's gourmet specialities in farmhouse-inns along the way. The meadowlands and pinewoods of the Jura crests are also a paradise for mountain bikers and cross-country skiers. And let's not forget the awe-inspiring Creux du Van (a stunning rock arena that rises to a height of over 200 meters), the Areuse gorges and Les Taillères lake near La Brévine, renowned for its icy temperatures in winter. If there is fog in the lowlands, lift your spirits by taking a trip up to Vue-des-Alpes pass to admire a breathtaking panorama of the Eastern Alps stretching as far as Mont Blanc.
The Neuchâtel Tourist Card is issued to everyone who stays for at least one night in an accommodation facility in the canton. The card gives you free access to the public transport network and also to 29 activities. And be sure not to miss the underground hydraulic mills at Le Locle, the asphalt mines and the Absinthe House at Val-de-Travers!
Solothurn
Solothurn lies at 430 m above sea level at the southern foot of the Jura. The city is divided by the Aare into a northern and southern area. The smaller streams include the Brunngraben, the Brühlgraben, the Obach, the Dürrbach and the St. Katharinenbach (from west to east). To the north-east of the municipality, the Emme flows into the Aare at Emmenspitz.
Topographically, the old town of Solothurn lies on a terminal moraine of the Rhone glacier from the Würm ice age, which is said to have dammed Lake Solothurn after the glacier melted near Wangen an der Aare.[8] Towards the north and on the other side of the Aare towards the south, the municipal area rises to 470 and 450 metres above sea level respectively. The municipal area covers 629 hectares, of which 66% was occupied by settlements in 1994, 25% by agriculture and just under 9% by woodland, copses and unproductive land.
About five kilometres to the north at 1284 metres above sea level is Solothurn's local mountain, Weissenstein, which until 2009 was served by the Oberdorf-Weissenstein chairlift from Oberdorf railway station, which has been replaced by a gondola lift since December 2014.
The nearest major cities in the country are Bern (41 km), Basel (75 km) and Zurich (93 km).
St. Gallen
The historic city of St.Gallen lies against the impressive backdrop of the Alpstein massif with the Säntis and between the idyllic Lake Constance in the corner of Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Liechtenstein. The metropolis of Eastern Switzerland is only an hour's train ride away from Zurich and is ideal for excursions into the mountains or to the lake. The metropolis of Eastern Switzerland captivates with its unique monastery district, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983. There you can admire the original monastery plan from the 9th century in the new exhibition hall.
The Gallus City can also trump with its Old Town decorated with oriels, cosy cafés, exciting museums, theatres and festivals. These make St.Gallen a first-class cultural city.
The rural surroundings also offer a lot: unforgettable excursions on one of the Lake Constance theme ships, cooling off in the historic bathing hut in Rorschach or recharging your batteries in nature and discovering the beauty of the nearby Rhine Valley excursion and wine region are just a few attractive examples.
Zurich
Zurich is the economic and educational centre of Switzerland. In the heart of Europe and at the foot of the Swiss Alps, Zurich is the ideal starting point for discovering Switzerland.
In the canton of Zurich, the nearest recreation area, barbecue area or hiking trail is never far away. Lush forests such as the Sihlwald provide fresh air and plenty of natural space for relaxing walks or sporting activities. Hikers and cyclists get their money's worth: whether the idyllic Tösstal valley or the Zurich wine country with its lakes, fields, vineyards and the Rhine are ideal for an excursion into nature.
In the Zurich region, a dense transport network with trams, buses and trains guarantees comfortable travel - reliable and punctual like Swiss clockwork.
As the capital of the canton, Zurich is avant-garde: not only Dada, but also the Freitag bag and the world-famous "Helvetica" font originated in Zurich. Today, innovation is provided by researchers at the prestigious Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) or companies like Google and Disney Research.
Winterthur is the second centre of the canton. An innovative environment with attractive workplaces has developed around the ZHAW. At the same time, Winterthur has remained livable. The pedestrian-friendly old town invites you to take a stroll, the city has been voted Switzerland's best city for cycling several times and if it gets too colourful, the next recreation area is only a stone's throw away.
