From exploring the top of Europe to sailing around Lake Geneva, photographing Chillon Castle or passing by the spectacular Rhine Falls on your Grand Train Tour, you’ll soon realise why Switzerland is known to be one of the most beautiful countries in the world are there are endless fun activities. If you’re planning a trip there, be it the Alps or all the great lakes in Zurich and Lucerne, here are the 50 best things to do in Switzerland in summer.
Things To Do in Switzerland in Summer
1. Book a hotel with a view
If you’re going to spend your hard earned cash on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Switzerland, the you might as well stay in one of the most incredible hotels in the world. Hotel Villa Honegg has got a lot of attention recently (mainly due to viral Instagram images!) thanks to its spectacular infinity pool overlooking the Alps.
When it comes to a room with a view, it doesn’t get much better than this! If this is *a little* out of your budget, then below are some equally amazing and unique places to stay in Switzerland with a smaller price tag!
An alternative and much cheaper option is to stay in Chateau Guetsch, Lucerne for just €200 a night or check into a mountain pod.
2. Eat your weight in Swiss cheese
If you didn’t already know Switzerland is famous for its cheese – now you know! One of the most fun things to do on any trip to Switzerland is to see how many different types of delicious Swiss cheese you can eat. Be it for breakfast, lunch or dinner, while sitting in a fancy Fondue Restaurant, or at a picnic in the park you’ve put together for your self, nothing beats a meal of cheese.
We ate at the oldest restaurant in Lausanne and I can happily say I’ve never eaten that much cheese in one sitting in my life – it was heavenly! It should be noted that in Switzerland they don’t really call it “Swiss cheese” as they simply have a huge variety of delicious Alpine cheeses, made from cows milk that comes from the happiest cows in the world.
3. Do a chocolate-making workshop
4. Stay in the world’s prettiest hostels
Whether you are on a shoestring budget or not, staying in hostels is weirdly one of the top things to do in Switzerland. They are unlike any other backpackers hostels I’ve encountered around the world – and many are even prettier and better-located than their neighbouring hotels. In Interlaken we stayed at the very famous Balmers Hostel, which is the oldest private hostel in Switzerland and has more extra facilities than you can shake a stick (of chocolate) at.
There’s a restaurant, a night club, a massive terrace and garden, a room full of hammocks and a play area with foosball and pool tables. We stayed in a private room that was more spacious than some of the hotels we’ve stayed at and the decor was certainly unique!
While we didn’t stay in Lauterbrunnen the hostel we saw there was also one of the prettiest hostels in the world and might be worth checking out for a night or two if you plan to do some hiking. Also, this is the starting point for the train to Jungfraujoch, the highest train station in Europe!
READ: Best Hostels in Switzerland
5. Go wine tasting in Lugano
While Switzerland may not be as famous as its neighbouring countries for wine (hello France and Italy!) the wines that we tasted were pretty amazing and Switzerland in summer is drop dead gorgeous. There are even some pretty famous wine-making districts around the country from the UNESCO World Heritage Vineyards in Vevey to the warm, hills around Lugano in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. Ian and I spent a few hours at a very small family run vineyard in Lugano called La Fattoria Moncucchetto.
It was actually really nice to look around a very small vineyard (the produce 35,000 bottles a year and don’t export anything) as well as learning how their various varieties of wine are made. We tasted a few glasses of their 2014 Refolo Brut and both agreed we wouldn’t mind purchasing a bottle on ten! The bubbles went straight to my head but in a good way! Be sure to visit if passing through Lugano – the views are also incredible from their terrace.
I’ve listed Lugano as one of the top places to in Switzerland. Want to see the the other top 10 beautiful towns and villages? Read this post about “Where to go in Switzerland.”
6. Discover Switzerland’s oldest town
The city of Chur, located in the Swiss canton of Graubünden, is officially the oldest town in Switzerland dating back over 5,000 years and visiting is one of the most unique things to do in Switzerland. The towns official language is German but the main language spoken here is the Alemannia Swiss German dialect. The old part of the town is very picturesque and 100% car free making a visit here even more enjoyable.
Chur #chur #graubünden #switzerland
A photo posted by Simona Guarino (@siimonaguarino) on
7. Cruise down the River Rhine
One of my favourite things to do in Switzerland was a morning spent cruising down the famous River Rhine. We hopped on board in the town of Schaffhaussen in Switzerland and watching in awe as the boat manoeuvred its way down the river with Switzerland to one side and Germany to the other. Was sort of like being in two countries at once.
We passed some stunning little villages, camp sites and absolutely massive mansions on either side of the river and it was by far one of the most relaxing mornings we had.
As most of the boats rides in Switzerland are included in your Swiss Travel Pass, we just hopped off the train and onto the boat with our giant backpacks and took a sort of two-hour detour down the river then re-joined the train further down the route.
8. Experience three cultures in one
You may laugh at me, but until I actually travelled around Switzerland I was not aware that there are three separate languages spoken. Four if your can Romansh, a language only spoken in the Graubünden area to the West of the country.
Three languages means three separate cultures and three very different varieties of food. It’s quite fun travelling from the French-speaking area around Lausanne – where you’ll find delicious baked goods, crepes and other delightful delicacies from France to the German-speaking area where you will suddenly see street signs in German and advertisements for Bratwursts!
The moment we got off the train in Lugano it actually felt life we had already crossed over into Italy – expect the prices of course!
9. Descend a mountain in a cable car
Whether you decide to take the cable car up the mountain or down, riding in a cable car is definitely one of the most fun things to do in Switzerland!
In the winter they’re obviously used by the masses to get to the top of the mountains before skiing or snowboarding back down, while in summer there a little quieter and can be used to get to the top of various peaks to admire the spectacular view from the top. As we had a 8-day Swiss Rail Pass, we were allowed to take some cable car rides for free such as the one linking Mount Rigi near Lucerne to Weggis at the lakeshore.
Switzerland is also home to the world’s first revolving cable car – while we didn’t get to experience this personally I’ve heard it’s an incredible experience. Cable car rides up the mountains is definitely one of the most fun things to do in Switzerland!
10. Take an old cog railway up Mount Rigi
One of the best day trips on our 8-day Grand Train Tour was a morning ascending Mount Rigi in an old cog railway. the incline was seriously steep and the train went at a snail’s pace, but this meant all the passengers could easily hang our the windows and take some of the most stunning panorama shots of the surrounding lakes and mountains.
One photo I took was so spectacular that most of my friends thought it was taken with a drone! Once at the top there is a cafe and restaurant and some great photo opportunities looking back down to the three lakes that surround Mount Rigi.
The walk back down to the cable car station is extremely easy, and you might even come across a paraglider flying off the mount as you walk by! Going up Mount Rigi was one of the best things to do in Switzerland – especially if you’re after some spectacular photos!
11. Photograph the world’s happiest cows
Did you know Switzerland is famous for having the “happiest cows in the world”? Apparently, that’s why Swiss chocolate is so famous – it’s all about the rich and creamy milk! We saw these happy cows everywhere we went, roaming freely through fields, hills and with their cute bells hanging around their necks. We never got too close, but we did have fun trying to get some picture-perfect shots of these famous milk-makers!
12. Go skydiving in Interlaken
Forget about Queenstown in New Zealand or Victoria Falls in Southern Africa, I can say with confidence that Interlaken is the new adrenaline-junkie capital of the world.
Whatever sort of crazy activity you can think of, be it skydiving, bungee jumping, paragliding, mountain biking, off-roading, quad biking and loads of others that i can’t begin to explain – they have it. It is also one of the most spectacular spots on earth to go skydiving – surrounded by the dramatic peaks of the Alps. Check out Skydiving Interkalen for info on prices!
Skydiving in Interlaken has to be one the most fun things to do in Switzerland!
Who faced it better? #spam p.s. cheers brothers for funding the adrenaline kick @jeremycator @freddiecator A photo posted by Bel (@annabelcator) on
13. Take a steamboat around Lake Leman
One of the things I love about Switzerland is how they manage to combine ancient traditions with modernity. Its home to some of the most complicated banking and technology systems, but still maintains traditional steamboats and old cog railways.
We had the pleasure of taking two separate steamboat rides while in Switzerland but our favourite was a 100-year-old cruise around Lake Leman (otherwise known as Lake Geneva) taking in beautiful lakeside towns and villages such as Montreaux, Vevey and Port Valais. This is one of the best things to do in Switzerland in September – when most tourists have already left!
14. Visit a UNESCO Vineyard at Vevey
15. Explore old railway bridges
Depending on how much time you have in Switzerland, one fun thing to do is to spend a day exploring old railway bridges. We did this while passing through St Gallen, where the tallest railway bridge in Switzerland is located.
There are actually three bridges next to each other – one for cars and two for trains. Whether you walk over them or under them, they are a sight to behold and a great place to meet some locals or even take a dip in one of Switzerland’s many perfectly-clean rivers.
16. Get soaked by a waterfall
This might happen by accident but it will most definitely happen! One thing Switzerland has a lot of is powerful waterfalls. we actually came across a few by accident and the one that we paid to get into was one of the most incredible waterfalls I’ve ever had the opportunity to visit. if you take the train to Lauterbrunnen and take the super-easy 1 hour hike to Trummelbach, you will actually pass about two or three other waterfalls along the way.
If you have a few more hours (or even days) to kill, you can check out all 72 waterfalls to be found in this mountainous region of the country! Trummelbach, the most famous waterfall, has been formed by the melting snow breaking through cracks in the rocks and gushing down into the valley. Because it’s so cold and so clear, the colour of the water is this unusual greyish white colour which can be viewed up close at the bottom of the falls.
To see the falls up close, they have carved steps and platforms into the rock face so visitors can view the waterfall in all its glory from varying dizzying heights.
17. Discover picturesque villages
While Switzerland is famous for a few of its large and well-known cities, the real beauty is to be found in all the small and picturesque villages you pass along the way. It’s best not to try fit too much into your daily itinerary so you have time to hop off the train as you please to have a coffee in a cute little village, take a walk around and unknown lake or simply to take pictures which is what I did.
At one stage I hopped off the train in a town called Spiez with all my bags and left Ian ride on to Zurich by himself as I was so keen to take some drone shots (which you can see below!). The same goes for boat rides – give yourself enough time to jump off at some the more picturesque towns and villages you see along the way.
18. Stroll through Stein Am Rhein
A town I had never heard of until a local took us there following a boat ride down the River Rhine, Stein Am Rhein is a medieval town in the German-speaking part of Switzerland with perfectly preserved ancient centre. No amount of photos would be enough in this storybook town – I kept feeling as if I had walked into a fairytale such a Shrek as not one building looked like any i had ever seen before. Dating back hundreds of years, the front of most buildings were perfectly preserved with ancient paintings in beautiful colours. Has to be seen to be believed!
19. See Europe’s most powerful waterfall
If you didn’t get your fill of amazing waterfalls in The Alps, then a visit to Rhine Falls just 40 minutes outside of Zurich by train is must.
Our train passed right by and I honestly nearly jumped out the window of the train i was in such awe at what I was seeing. I kicked myself for not doing my research and knowing that it existed so I would have known to get off the train!! Don’t make the same mistake as me – plan your journey and be sure to make s all photo stop here!
A photo posted by joerg.fotoblog (@joerg.fotoblog) on
20. Take in a Zurich sunrise
This wasn’t planned (we just happened to need to get up very early when leaving Zurich) but I highly recommend you set your alarm clock and explore this beautiful city as the sun rises. It’s so quiet and peaceful in the morning, the light is at its best for photographs and the river is flat calm allowing for some stunning reflection shots.
21. Visit the Olympic Museum
While there are lots of fantastic museums in Switzerland, The Olympic Museum in Lausanne is by far the best by a long shot. Located in the Olympic City, the home of the founder of the modern-day olympics and the International Olympic Committee, visiting this museum is both fascinating and exciting.
Perfect for all ages, this interactive museum takes you through the history of the olympics, all about its founder and his life in Lausanne as well as a chance to see signed memorabilia from many of the past Olympic Games. You can take a photo of yourself holding the Olympic Torch from Rio and you can even try your hand at some Olympic Sports from athletics to shooting as well as playing games to test your balance.
Tom Cafe, the restaurant on the top floor, has a beautiful terrace with panoramic views of Lake Geneva and delicious buffet to treat yourself to. My travel buddy Ian has written a separate post all about why he loved The Olympic Museum which you should definitely check out!
