Five enchanting experiences you wouldn’t expect to find in Switzerland
From thundering waterfalls to sun-drenched vineyards overlooking the mountains, here’s why you should be selling springtime in Switzerland – and summer and autumn too!
It’s often skiers on snow-capped mountains and cosy Christmas cabins that spring to mind with the mention of Switzerland, but there is so much to the destination year-round, too. Here, we explore some lesser-known but thoroughly captivating experiences to recommend to your clients for spring, summer or autumn holidays.
1. Rheinfall
Standing above Europe’s largest waterfall, Rheinfall near Schaffhausen, and surrounded by romantic Swiss castle turrets, your clients will be able to feel the roar of the water vibrate through their entire bodies as it plunges 23 metres.
In the middle of the mighty falls stands a rock that has withstood the elements for a thousand years. The rock, as well as the castles of Worth and Laufen, and the Rhine Basin, can be reached on a circular boat tour of the Rhine Falls. Your more daring clients can even rent canoes. There’s also a new visitors’ centre, a children’s playground and the Historama – an interactive exhibition about the falls.
2. Wine tasting
In addition to high-quality wines – they are a “well-guarded secret” – Switzerland also offers an enormous variety of experiences and activities in and around its vineyards, for clients who are everything from wine buffs to those who just enjoy a glass at dinner.
The myswitzerland.com website is a trove of information on wine tourism, and features links to dozens of wine-tasting experiences, including Grape Escapes.
3. Trummelbach Falls
Another staggering waterfall location is the Lauterbrunnen Valley's Trummelbach Falls (one of 72 waterfalls including the imposing Staubbach Falls – see below), roaring into the inside of a mountain, carrying the meltwater of the glaciers from the Jungfrau. They are the world's only glacier waterfalls that are accessible underground by lift, galleries, tunnels, paths and platforms.
The hiking tour on mainly flat land leads from Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg, past water gushing from vertical rock faces that are several hundred metres high.
4. Vineyard tours
Beyond tasting the wine, your clients might like the sound of a walk among the vines or an overnight stay in a vineyard (there are even wine hotels).
Again, Switzerland’s tourist board website is awash with suggested tours. Visitors can enjoy harvest and an aperitif in the vineyards of Bonvillars in autumn; families can jump on panoramic trains criss-crossing an enchanting route around Saint-Saphorin (a Unesco World Heritage Site); or they can jump on e-bikes for a gourmet tour through Sierre. These are just three of the many options available the country over.
5. Staubbach Falls
Clients can see their very own mist-covered mountains with a trip to Staubbach Falls – the third highest waterfall in Switzerland at almost 300 metres.
In the summer, warm winds swirl the waters around so the falls spray in all directions. These droplets of water spray gave the brook and the waterfall its name, with “staub” meaning “dust”.
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