Getting to and Around Switzerland

Edelweiss Air
Getting to Switzerland from Vancouver is usually a hassle, especially if you have to transfer planes. Edelweiss Air makes it easy with three scheduled NON-STOP flights a week from Vancouver directly to Zurich, Switzerland.
Very efficient on-line booking at: https://www.flyedelweiss.com/en/pages/home.aspx,
and we had our tickets in no time.


Founded over twenty years ago, Edelweiss Air has been an affiliate of Swiss International Air Lines and part of the Lufthansa Group since 2008. Based at Zurich Airport, the company now has ten Airbus jetliners, and nearly 700 employees. Vancouver is one of Edelweiss Air’s 62 destinations in 28 nations.    

Flight times from Vancouver to Zurich aboard the recently acquired Airbus A340-313 were less than 10 hours going, and just over 10 hours return.
 We were lucky on our flight to Zurich to have a whole middle row,

AND...two window seats. 

Tight confines with little legroom weren't a problem going, but we were sure glad the return flight wasn't overly long.
 The cabin crew kept us adequately fed and hydrated in both directions, although alcoholic beverages are no longer complimentary in basic economy. Meals and snacks were quite palatable. Good selection of new movies and other items kept us entertained.
 In short, Edelweiss Air is the way to fly to Switzerland!

 This direct, non-stop service from Vancouver to Zurich has proven to be so popular that Edelweiss Air is planning on offering four flights per week in 2018.

Swiss Rail
We loved our Swiss Rail passes from the Swiss Travel System, and travelling on efficient and punctual Swiss Rail trains.


On main train routes like Zurich to Geneva, the high-speed trains were really fast, smooth, and whisper-quiet. We also took slower commuter routes that allowed us to admire many spectacular mountain (like being able to lower the railcar's windows to get photos of the Matterhorn) 

and lake vistas.
While we were totally impressed with the rail service, we got to experience how efficient the Swiss buses 

were too...especially where drivers had to negotiate tight switchbacks and narrow roads when going high into the mountains (and down again) while shifting a manual transmission. OMG, we did consider using the seatbelts provided, but within a few short kilometres relaxed and accepted that if were going to go over a cliff, the belts wouldn't help...
Since we were travelling for two weeks in Switzerland with only carry-on, we really appreciated that the Zurich airport terminal also housed a main SwissRail hub. 

Our Edelweiss Air flight landed right on schedule, and we had plenty of time to make our train connection. Swiss trains leave right on time...no dawdling!!!
Our Swiss Rail passes also got us into many museums for free, and allowed us to use all forms of city public transport, including boats & funiculars.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cows of the Hérens Breed

Image
While Val d'Hérens is known for its skiing, snowshoeing, and even biathalon in winter, and activities like mountain climbing, hiking, and parasailing in summer, it is renowned for its Hérens breed of cattle. The breed is unique to Valais in Switzerland and Valle d’Aoste in northern Italy. These stocky bovines with rather short legs are perfectly suited to the steep alpine pastures where they spend their summers. They are prized for their lean, flavourful meat, with less bone waste and trim than other breeds. But they have one trait that separates them from almost all other cattle… When we met Franziska Amstutz from Valais Tourism on the train to Zermatt, she said that she and her colleagues were puzzled why we wanted to go to Val d'Hérens, so far off the usual tourist track. Being such a French-speaking part of Switzerland, most of its North American visitors are from Québec. She was surprised when we told her that we had stumbled upon an anecdote about the cows of the...
Read more

Zermatt - 1

Image
Zermatt Arrival Bags packed, cameras stowed, we made our way to the to the Geneva train station. We had had a wonderful three nights at the Hotel Royal; I was going to miss those light, flaky croissants at breakfast...   Despite the fairly early hour, it was already getting warm. Luckily our walk to the train station was very short. But what would the weather be like in Zermatt, our next destination? Forecast was all over the place: sunshine and 25° on our travel day, clouds with thundershowers & only 14° the next, and back to sunshine on the day we were leaving. We love the Swiss Travel System and their network of Swiss Rail trains, buses, and boats. Our Swiss Rail passes had already proven their worth with all the complimentary museum entries and local transportation, as well as rail travel.  Joining us on a portion of our train trip was Janine Zingg, Media Relations Assistant for Swiss Travel System.  Janine had joined us for the Gourmet Dinner ...
Read more

Walking Tour of Sion

Image
Sion – Part 2 Afternoon Tour & Wine Tasting We followed a well-marked walking tour of the Old City. Visitors can get a map of this Discovery Walk from the Tourisme Sion visitor’s office, in the village’s biggest Place de la Planta. The friendly, helpful staff can also provide information about any of Sion’s many attractions, or book a guided tour. We clambered up a trail to see the world’s oldest working pipe organ (dating back to1435 A.D.)  in the basilica at the Château de Valère, and marvelled at the stunning view of the Rhône Valley and surrounding mountains from atop this high promontory. Gazing out over Sion, Suzanne was enchanted by the reverberating clamour of church bells echoing across the valley. In the day’s heat, we decided against tackling an equally stiff climb to Château Tourbillon, which crowns the other high knoll above Sion.  Sébastien did suggest that we return some day to see...
Read more