Seebad Enge is another option for summer night lounging in Zurich.

It’s amazing what can be done with a few coloured lights and some chilled out sounds. And the approach often seems to be to take an open-air swimming pool and turn it into a trendy late-night zone.

Well, hardly late-night, it closes at 24:00. We can’t have the locals being kept awake…

The restaurant serves the usual salads and grilled foods, washed down with beers and drinks from the bar.

The location is good too, out by the big jet d’eau-style fountain. Get there early, especially at weekends if you want to find somewhere to sit! 

You can also rent the place if you’re having a big celebration, check out the website.

www.tonttu.ch

Photo: Flickr – araki

Post from: The Switzerland Traveler

I mentioned the ladies’ swimming pool in a previous post, and now it’s nearly summer (although not today) it’s time to mention the Barfussbar.

In the photo it’s about half way along the left bank of the river. Stadthausquai.

Open to the public – including men - after 20:00 on Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, there is a bar with music, and a very pleasant ambience.

Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, the bar can be rented for private parties, although it closes at midnight so this is a big limitation.

Wednesday tends to be concert night, with tickets available in advance, Sundays is dance night, tickets available on the door.

www.barfussbar.ch  

Photo: Flickr – aforero

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It occurred to me after doing the Appenzell post that I hadn’t mentioned Rorschacherberg, which offers one of the best views of Lake Constance – or Bodensee as the locals call it.

With a cute little mountain railway to get up there, it’s reachable for everyone.

I once thought there was a prospect of seeing five countries at once, because the area is called “Fünfländerblick” (view of 5 countries) but it turns out that three of the countries are more like states of Germany.

But either way it’s an impressive view.

Take the train from Rohrschach to Heiden, or the other way round. It’ll take about an hour to an hour and a half.

Here’s a couple of extra pictures to give you a taste:

Photos: Flickr-kecko

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Well, it’s certainly an attention grabbing headline!

I’m not convinced that “fountain of youth” is strictly true, Appenzell tends to conjure up words like sleepy and unspoilt, but it’s what the people at the tourist office say, so it must be true.

That’s probably because it has a wealth of rich mineral springs, and visitors have been coming for over 100 years to bathe.

There are a range of hotels in Appenzell offering wellness breaks, often combining Swiss water and air with eastern philosophy and treatments: whey treatments and Kneipp cures alongside Ayurveda, Tai-Chi and Chi-Yung beauty weeks.

Wellness has been a topic in Appenzell long before the word became overused, and I have to say the air is about as fresh as you can get. Plenty of hills to walk up and down too.

If you like the idea, here’s a list of some Health and wellness hotels in Appenzellerland:

• Gonten – Hotel Jakobsbad, Kurhaus Bad Gonten
• Heiden – Hotel Heiden, Kurhaus Sunnematt
• Schwellbrunn – Kurhaus Sonnenberg
• Speicher – Appenzellerhof
• Walzenhausen – Hotel Walzenhausen
• Weissbad – Hotel Hof Weissbad
• Wienacht – Hotel Seeblick

Photo: Flickr raelb

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It might not be the Pompidou centre, or even the South Bank, but the citizens of St Gallen have their own feature to be proud of.

Designed by architect Carlos Martinez and Multimedia-artist Pipilotti Rist, the Stadtlounge is a novel way of making a clinical financial area (Bleicheli) seem more people-friendly.

The entire  area is covered in a red surface, a playground surface for pedestrian areas and tarmac for the car areas. Even the Porsche 911 shaped lump that’s supposed to discourage you from parking. You wouldn’t want to come back and find your car has been resurfaced, would you?

At night the area is lit by floating “things” that are variously described as blimps, eggs or even planetoids. What do you think?

The stadtlounge is considered to be Switzerland’s largest outdoor living room.

So where’s the TV?

Photos:  Flickr – mightymightymatze

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Maybe I’m biased as Baden was the first town I lived in when I came to Switzerland, but I think it’s lovely.

As you can see, it is picture-postcard lovely, and has a beautiful old town with buildings dating back to the 14th century.

Of course, the internals have been modernised, the Swiss have a great, non-sentimental way about doing that, but from outside they are unbelievably authentic.

Starting with the covered wooden bridge (now you know where Madison County got the idea from) the walk up the hill towards the centre takes you past some unlikely, and thriving shops.

My favourite used to be the violin maker, but he became so successful he’s moved. So it’s best just to wander around and see for yourself.

Many of the shops sell child-related (unusual toys, clothes etc) so it can be a fun place to go as a family.

If the town hall is open, try to get in and have a look at the walls and ceilings. Quite outstanding.

Should you go late in the evening, there is a casino, not Las Vegas style, but quite popular these days. I tend to lose, so stay away, apart from eating in the excellent restaurant there. Sunday brunch is a favorite, especially in summer when you can sit outside.

Take your swimming gear in winter, the thermal baths, after which the town was named, are still very much the place to visit. Very relaxing in winter, but don’t except to be able to swim laps. Its more about having jets of water aimed at those painful joints that you got while walking along the Lägern.

Photo: Adrian Vogt

Post from: The Switzerland Traveler

Switzerland is not renowned for its tall buildings.

Mountains yes, buildings no.

So there are very few opportunities to get high above the city and look down on the lights at night.

But the Messe Hotel in Basel does offer that opportunity. It’s the tallest building in Switzerland that I know of, and rather sensibly, they put a bar at the top of it.

It’s located on the 31st floor, and I know this is going to sound weird, but make sure you visit the toilets/restrooms. Let’s just say it’s an unusual experience…

It can get pretty crowded (the bar, not the toilets) leading to queues for the lifts, so early evenings in winter are best to appreciate the night skyline.

Bar Rouge is located at Messe Platz, and virtually all Basel trams make it easy to get there. It opens at 17:00 and is open to at least 01:00 or 04:00 at weekends.

No need for directions – it’s the big building! When you are in the Hotel reception, just look for the red cordon with a large gentleman in a black suit. Smile at him nicely and he’ll call the lift for you!

Photos: Personal collction

Post from: The Switzerland Traveler

The lake is surrounded by three countries, Germany, Austria and (you guessed it) Switzerland.

The Swiss part runs from Kreuzlingen (which merges smoothly into Konstanz, apart from the border crossing) along through Romanshorn and almost up to Bregenz in Austria.

The photo above is a sunrise taken from Arbon, which lies on the shore north of

St Gallen.

There’s also a much quieter part of the lake, the Untersee, which runs from Konstanz to Schaffhausen, effectively forming part of the river Rhine as it does so.

Its a relatively quiet lake shore, which is surprising as it is so beautiful. But as it is nearly an hour from Zurich, the Swiss are unlikely to commute and so tends to be used for retirement and relaxation rather than daily work-life balancing.

But if you have time, it’s well worth taking a cycle ride along at least part of the lake. Hint: Lake shores are flat!

Or just drive along, and stop at a lakeside restaurant and order trout and some local white wine…

Photo: litscher

Post from: The Switzerland Traveler

There are times when you have to admire the teutonic way of naming things. So logical.

Seealpsee (pronounced: say alp say) means literally “Lake Mountain Lake”. And you can’t argue with that. It’s a mountain lake, and er, a lake.

It’s located in Kanton Appenzell, on the eastern edge of Switzerland, allow a couple of hours to drive from Zürich, or a similar time to catch the train to Wasserauen. Then it’s about a four km (2.5 miles) walk to get to the lake, but I’m assuming that if you want to go to a really peaceful, quiet lake, then you won’t mind a bit of a stroll.

There are other lakes nearby, the Fälensee for example, so if you don’t mind a bit of a stroll, you can make a nice round trip of it.

You’ll need a good map, or print out directions. If you go in winter,there’s likely to be snow around, and there are a few ski lifts in the area, which are unlikely to be heavily used.

There are no restaurants or cafes there, and no parking. The idea is to go and experience tranquility, so don’t pack your iPod, just a bottle of water and some sandwiches and fruit.

This is what Heidi was all about!

Photo: Flickr

Post from: The Switzerland Traveler

On the shores of Lake Lucerne, there is a very cute place called the Swiss Chalet. On the outside it looks like a normal restaurant hotel, but on the inside…

Actually, even on the inside it’s a good quality restaurant and hotel, it’s just when you discover some of the "speciality" rooms, that you begin to wonder what’s going on. Don’t panic, this isn’t going to get seedy!

First stop would be the Jaguar suite. Instead of a bed, there’s an old Jaguar, which you can sleep in. The hotel claims it’s a Mark II Jaguar, although it’s obviously a Mark 10, but let’s not criticize them for that.

From the photos it would appear that if you open the boot, there’s an attractive view of the lake, and what better way to start a morning than that?

There’s also a room with a rocking coach, and a Moulin Rouge suite, which sadly appears to have nothing more than a few Toulouse Lautrec style murals. You’d expect a trapeze at least!

But if you are after something more adventurous, the bridal suite offers private use of the hotel swimming pool during the night, complete with a gondola (naturally the seats have been replaced with a double bed) which lowers into the pool.

The pool is open to the other guests from 7am though, so clearly the proprietors don’t expect newlyweds to sleep in…

The hotel is run by a smart looking chap called Prince Joseph 1st, and he’s happy to send the hotel Rolls-Royce to the airport to pick you up should you feel the chalet merits a special visit.

Let me know how you get on!

Photos and Info : Schloss-Hotel **** Swiss-Chalet 
CH-6402 Merlischachen
Tel +41(0)41 854 54 54 www.schloss-hotel.ch

Post from: The Switzerland Traveler