Wanderweg—The Magic of Walking in Switzerland

The Wanderweg (W’s are pronounced like V’s in German) is the term used for the more than 31,000 miles of walking trails in Switzerland. Walking the Wanderweg is a common Swiss past-time and it is quite usual to see Swiss hikers of all ages on the trains heading to or from their hikes with rucksacks and walking sticks in hand.

The Wanderweg is posted with orange signs to keep you on course and every so often there will be directional signs with estimated time and kilometer distances. Consider that while many of the routes on the Wanderweg are roads of various sizes, there are also numerous stretches that are mere foot- or sheepworn paths through a field or pasture, or even a lawn!

Take your time. Never be in a rush when starting out on a new Wanderweg route. Much of the fun and charm have to do with the adventure of making your way through the beautiful landscape. Another wonderful aspect of the Wanderweg is that it is not just for recreation and sightseeing. The Wanderweg is practical. If you have figured out your route—you can walk to your destination be it clinic, store, attraction—no need for cars, or public transportation. Or for variety you can take advantage of all options, walking one direction and taking public transport for your return, or walking both ways, but taking different routes. A word to the wise—be prepared for steep walking—both uphill and downhill—Swiss walking is not for the weak-kneed.

One of the pilgrimage-walking routes to Santiago de Compostela (St. James Way or Jacobsweg in German) in Spain goes through the Fribourg area of Switzerland. See the Swiss site for Santiago routes in English.

Excerpted from the Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in Switzerland

Go Really Green—Camping in Switzerland

When the weather is amenable, camping is an inexpensive and environmental option. In Switzerland there are numerous campgrounds, but camping outside of designated camping areas is forbidden (verboten).

Two Web sites provide campsite information for Switzerland, available in German and English and can be searched by region: www.camping.ch and www.swisscamps.ch. The Swiss Camps site lists thirteen campsites that rent tents (tent is zelte in German). A few sites offer regional camping information—for the Valais area www.campings.ch; for the Berner Oberland area www.camping-bo.ch; and the Interlaken area www.campinginterlaken.ch

A cross between camping and hosteling is Schlaf im Stroh (Sleep on Straw), for which you need a sleeping bag and a desire for a farm experience. Some of the two hundred and forty farms participating in this program also offer camping, guest rooms or dorm-style accommodations. Prices range from 20 to 30 CHF/person/night. The Web site, offered in German, French and English, is searchable by region using a map or list; Web: www.abenteuer-stroh.ch

There are hundreds of alpine “huts” across the Swiss Alps. Short and long term hikers can take advantage of these—most are open only in the summer and early fall, while a few are open in winter and early spring. Often local food is served—from homemade butter, jams and breads to vegetables and traditional muesli. Founded in 1863, The Swiss Alpine Club manages the three hundred plus huts. Visit www.sac-cas.ch for a map showing hut locations. The site is in German and French, but easily searchable under French “Chercher une cabane” or German “Hütte suchen”—click on the map and then click on any red “hut” dot for more information about that specific hut location.

Whether camping or not, take advantage of the remarkable walking trails, the Wanderweg, that wind through Switzerland.

Flea Hunting In Zurich

Zurich is home to possibly the largest year round flea market (called flohmarkt in German) in Switzerland. Held every Saturday morning with maybe as few as three exceptions (see Web site for closed (geschlossen in German) Saturdays), the market is open from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm in a park at Helvetiaplatz.

In the warmer months up to 400 vendors can be selling their wares, but in the winter you can find as few as only six stalls. The winter, with the snow, cold and wind, is for the truly hale and hearty or utterly desperate.

To find the market, walk or take the tram or bus from the main train station (Hauptbahnhof). Look for tram 8 or bus 32 to Helvetiaplatz, or tram 2 or 3 to Bezirksgebaude.

Like any flea market, Zurich's offers a range of items - you can find wonderful treasures or items that should honestly be in a dumpster somewhere, but the exploring is what makes it fun.

Abundant Natural Remedies in Switzerland

Switzerland, like much of Europe and Asia, has a long history of using natural remedies for health care. This is evident when traveling through Switzerland where drugstores and pharmacies throughout the country sell both natural and pharmaceutical products, often side by side. Switzerland is a highly developed, wealthy country complete with its own pharmaceutical giants, who would like consumers to buy their pharmaceutical products instead of long-standing, successful, natural remedies. But cultural heritage and attitudes run deep. In Switzerland, druggists and pharmacy owners must go through years of education and apprenticeship, including not only the study of pharmaceutical products but also of herbal and homeopathic remedies.

Unlike the United States where homeopathic and herbal preparations are sold in health food stores, you must buy homeopathic remedies and many herbal products in a pharmacy or apothecary – called Drogerie, Apotheke, or Farmacia. Fortunately there seems to be one on just about every street.

Natural remedies of the highest quality are made in Switzerland, Germany, France and other European countries. These natural products and medicines are displayed in pharmacy windows often with equal or greater representation than conventional products. Swiss brands include A. Vogel-Bioforce, Ceres, Weleda, and Phytomed.

In Zurich the Bellevue Pharmacy has been in operation since 1887 and stocks thousands of remedies including over 6000 homeopathic and anthroposophical medicines. Open twenty-four hours a day, all year long, you can find them in the old part of the city on Bellevueplatz by the lake.

It is a joy to travel in Switzerland (for many reasons) and have easy and abundant access to high quality natural remedies.

Fantastic Second-Hand Shopping in St. Gallen

Brockis, or Brockenhaus, are thrift shops in German and are very popular and numerous in Switzerland. As a shopper, I would recommend Switzerland as a place to peruse such shops as the merchandise is usually of very high quality. 

In St. Gallen there are a few Brockis, one of which is the Blaukreuz Brockenstube (Blue Cross thrift shop), a three-story second hand shop with proceeds going to support work on alcohol abuse and other social issues. They have an excellent selection of all manner of items including clothing, household items, furniture, books, records, movies, linens, and shoes, all at good prices. 

The have another store in Gais which is great as well but closed in the winter. The rest of the year a visit to the Gais store makes for a great excursion.


Blaukreuz Brockenstube, Turnerstrasse 20, 9000 St Gallen; Tel: 712 222 277; Web: www.blaukreuz-brockenstube.ch; open Monday to Friday from 1:30 to 6:00pm, Saturday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. Take the number 7 bus towards Abtwil and get off at the Vonwil stop (3 stops from the Bahnhof). Once off the bus walk in the direction the bus is going to the corner - go right and the Brockenstube is half a block down on the right. For the store in Gais take the Appenzeller Bahnen (train) to the Zweibrucken stop. Happy hunting!

Booklovers Delight - Rare Books in St. Gallen

Being an extreme book lover, I find the crowning site in St. Gallen, Switzerland to be the Abbey Library. The library, tucked in behind the cathedral, is a work of art unto itself. Upon entering you must slip on giant felt slippers over your shoes to protect the inlaid wood floors. The Baroque-style library has a magical quality to it, filled with treasured handwritten and illustrated books dating from as early as 500 AD. Allow plenty of time to feast your eyes on the extraordinary illuminated manuscripts and imagine the monks tonguing their paintbrushes. The Cathedral and Abbey Library are designated as UNESCO world heritage sites. To find this gem, make your way into the old city and follow the signs for the Stiftsbibliothek. 

For divine hot chocolate and other delicacies you can go to the Chocolaterie an Kloserplatz serving local Munz-Maestrani chocolate and other goodies looking out at the cathedral. For health food eats, see the post Health Food Stores in St. Gallen. 

If you are unable to make the trip to St. Gallen you can now, as of the past year, view 353 of the precious manuscripts on-line at a virtual library - Codices Electronici Sangallenses (Digital Abbey Library of St. Gallen). The virtual library is continuously being updated and expanded. 

Abbey Library of St. Gall Stiftsbibliothek, Klosterhof 6D, St. Gallen; Tel: 071 227 3416; http://www.stiftsbibliothek.ch; Open Monday-Saturday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, Sunday 10:00 am to 4:00 pm; closed in November. Entry: 10 CHF.

Chocolaterie an Kloserplatz, open Monday from 1:00 to 6:30 pm, Tuesday to Friday from 9:00 am to 6:30 pm, and Saturday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Health Food Stores in St. Gallen Switzerland

The city of St. Gallen in the northeast corner of Switzerland, east of Zurich is a delightful small city. It has much to offer including interesting museums and wonderful hiking trails in and all around the city. It also has a bustling old center lined with cobblestone streets that are for pedestrians only.

St. Gallen has some wonderful health food stores all conveniently located in and near the old area. One block from the train station you can find the bright, airy Yardo, filled with a variety of foods from produce, meats, dairy, dry goods and personal care. They also have a salad bar café for lunch. Muller Reformhaus, a chain of stores in northern Switzerland, has two locations in St. Gallen, one a few blocks from the train station and the other in the heart of the old city. These stores are smaller than Yardo but also have a good selection especially the store on Spisergasse in the old city. Stadtladen is a gem tucked into a side street across from the Marketplatz, also filled with everything you could need. If you are in need of gluten-free (glutenfrei in German), Yardo and Muller have the best selections.

Some of my favorite items in these stores are the creamy organic sheep yogurt and the dried salmon jerky (great for travel food). You can also find a full range of natural cosmetics and body care products and some unusual organic Swiss wines.

For more information about the stores and a map of locations see the Green Earth Guide: Traveling Naturally in Switzerland: St. Gallen Health Foods Stores Map at the Traveling Naturally Web site.