Archives For Switzerland

Travelling From Ireland To  Switzerland By Car

When it comes to travelling one of my favourite ways to travel is by car.  The reasons for this is because I am not a big fan of travelling by plane.

As I do not like getting my belongings rummaged through and not being allowed half of your personal belongings.   One of the other added benefits of flying is getting radiated at the airport and having to wait hours between flights in long queue’s not forgetting of course having to walk what seems like miles around an airport dragging your belongings around with you.

I will take going by car to Europe over the plane every time.  It is also a lovely trip to do with your family it’s great for the kids being able to see the different landmarks and all the different languages and cultures.  It is a wonderfully eye opening experience for children and would recommend everyone does this trip with their family at least once in their lifetime.

interlaken-switzerland3a

When driving to Europe my two favourite places are Switzerland and Greece also Austria And Germany have some lovely sights to see. Driving through the Alps at night is amazing the lights of the cities in the valleys are awesome.   We stopped off at a hotel in Switzerland at about 2am in the morning was a long day driving the hotel was called Hotel Pilates.  It was lovely so comfortable had a lovely sleep but when we woke up in the morning opened the french doors it was a beautiful sunny day and we had nice decking looking out there was a nice boat and a beautiful lake surrounded by the Alps..  The views where absolutely breathtaking.

Lake-Lucerne-Switzerland

Really quiet and peaceful place with pastries, chocolates and desserts like nothing I had ever seen before.  People in many parts of Switzerland leave there cars unlocked because there is very little crime.

It is well  worth taking a trip to Hergotsvil to see the glass factory we also made a day trip to Zurich and went to one of the shopping centres there the food was absolutely amazing.  They also have an abundance of freshly squeezed fruit juices every kind of fruit juice you could possibly imagine was there. 🙂

Make sure you go in a nice reliable car we have been a number of times we went once in a VW Passat, A few times in a 7 seater Volkswagen Sharan and also we did the trip once in a campervan the campervan was great until we arrived in Greece with no air conditioning that was pretty crazy… But definetely a trip to remember too.  If you are thinking about driving too or around Switzerland by car don’t think about it just do it.  The only thing is you will find many parts of Switzerland are very pricey for food and even basic groceries.

switzerland

At the end of the day the stunning scenery lovely clean air beautiful food more than makes up for the expensive prices this is definetely one trip to mark in your Diary.

Hope to see you there 🙂

Travelling From Ireland To  Switzerland By Car

 


Switzerland is a beautiful country located in Western Europe. This landlocked country is geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss plateau and the Jura; with the Alps occupying the greater part of the country. You can find Mother Nature in all her glory in Switzerland. If you want to enjoy the breathtaking views of the Alps, you have to visit Switzerland.

The country has four languages (Swiss German, Italian, Romansch and French). It offers a wide variety of cultures. Switzerland offers something or the other to people belonging to all age groups and to people with different tastes and preferences.

Here is a brief overview of some Swiss attractions.

Even though Berne in the capital of Switzerland, Zurich is its largest city. Guided walking tours are available in English throughout the summer months. It is advisable to visit the old town area (Altstadtbummel).

The ride in the traditional trolley bus enables you to enjoy the spectacular views of the town, mountains and Lake Zurich. Boat rides along the Limmat River is very popular among tourists.

Roman baths offer you a glimpse of Swiss history. They were built more than 2,000 years old. Switzerland is well known for its public observatories. The Urania Observatory offers multi-language shows and is well-known for its enormous telescope.

The Zurich zoo is sure to attract animal lovers. This famous zoo houses more than 2,000 animals, covering around 300 different species. The penguin parades are very popular among children.


If you want to enjoy some really wonderful views of the Alps, you should visit the Valais area. The bus and cable car trip along the Pillon Pass offers you dramatic Alpine sceneries. On a clear day, you can see Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps.

Art lovers must visit Winterthur, a city located in northern Switzerland. You can find beautiful paintings by German, Austrian and Swiss artists in the famous Oskar-Reinhart Foundation Museum.

The Heidi Area in Switzerland is famous for chalets in the mountains, ski lodges and horse-drawn sleight rides. It offers alphorn blowers, beautiful hilly pastures, wood carvings on houses and bridges, waterfalls and glaciers.

Chur is perfect for ski-lovers. It is one of the oldest cities in Switzerland. The famous ski resorts of St. Moritz, Davos and Arosa are located nearby. You can also find Stone Age relics in the archeological museum. If you are visiting Switzerland for skiing only, it is advisable to visit Zermatt.

Switzerland is blessed with immense natural beauty. Rail routes in Switzerland offer you an opportunity to enjoy amazing views of ice-capped mountains, dense forests and beautiful lakes. Golden Pass, Glacier Express, William Tell Express, Bernina Express, Chocolate Train, Palm Express, Mont Blanc Express and Romantic Route Express are some popular scenic rail routes in Switzerland.

Switzerland is well-known for its castles and fortresses. The Chillion Castle, which is located on the shore of Lake Geneva, is the most famous castle in Switzerland. You can enjoy magnificent views of the lake from the castle’s four halls and three courtyards.

The Geneva Jet D’eau is a fountain in the heart of Geneva. It projects water up to 140 meters high and is considered one of the symbols of the city of Geneva. The Piz Gloria is a revolving restaurant on located on top of the Schilthorn Mountain.

Visit to the above-mentioned tourist attractions in Switzerland is sure to make your trip a memorable one.

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Driving To Greece From Ireland

I have done this trip a number of times before there are quite a few possibilities on how to travel this journey on our last trip we went from Dun Laoghaire to Holyhead in the boat with StenaLine the journey took us about 3 hours in total. From Holyhead we drove down to Dover and got the boat across from Dover to Calais we went in the Campervan though on all other 8 occasions we drove by car.  The drive through Wales has some stunning scenery and if you go off the dual carriageway for a bit there are some beautiful scenic side roads with nice shops and cafe’s.

Staying At Mum,s House The Night Before Our Trip In dublin

After driving for another 6 hours or so we arrived in Dover for the boat over to Calais upon arrival in France it seemed a little difficult to find places to eat with proper food all the restaurants we stoppped at apparently don’t serve proper food till like 6PM and it was about 2PM after driving in around all morning this was a pretty painful part of the journey all their seemed to be was sandwiches Croissants and brioche.  If you are sick of ham and cheese sandwiches and look for food in France during the day like ourselves you may have a problem..

Finally after about 3 hours of searching for food we found a roadside cafe and had chicken,chips and peas not very exciting but compared to our previous options that day it felt like a feast..  After France we drove through Belgium offering us an opportunity to even take a little detour via Holland..  We lived in Holland when I was a child and had many fond memories in fact it has changed very little from how i remembered it. There is a wonderful beach called Scheveningen well worth a visit and the Dutch Indonesianstyle Satay sauce is really amazing.

If you are with kids like us no trip to Holland is complete without a visit to the model city Maduradam just outside Rotterdam, there is also the Euromast which at one stage many  years ago had been one of the tallest buildings in Europe also worth a visit it has amazing views from the cafe. The gets where absolutely in paradise in Maduradam watching the model planes boats,trains and scaled down version of Holland. Plus a visit to the Panakook House.


For some of the best home made Large think pancakes you have ever tasted with fruit syrup,maple syprup or ham or bacon and cheese toppings. And last but not least Hollands top dessert Pofferjies mit stroop…  Definetely worth a try…  When arriving in Holland I would definetely suggest booking yourself into a hotel for the night and spend at least 1 full day doing the tour above. 🙂




Okay finished with the little dutch mini vacation time for the road again and on to Germany down to the autobann . If you have a fast comfortable car this is perfect place to put the foot down to the metal for a bit..  I don’t recommend doing it for too long as when driving for so long you will get pretty tired and driving at extremely high speeds when a little tired is not recommended for obvious reasons. There are lots of Rasthouses in Germany so you can book yourselves into a room and get a good nights sleep when you start feeling your eyes getting heavy..  Or if you are on a budget there are rest stops along the road where you can pull in for a few hours at a time and grab some sleep.  I found the food and pastries etc in Germany are very nice only problem I have with Germany is some of the employees have an attitude of someone who just had their brother shot by you..  But hey that’s their problem not yours.

 

After Germany on to Switzerland a little on the expensive side but very beautiful we stayed in a lovely hotel overlooking the Alps absolutely amazing and the morning air was so fresh. There after on our way to Italy the mad drivers and lots of Tolls. In Italy you have choices drive fast or become a target for the mafia lol..  They drive like maniacs everyone seems to drive at least  150 KM PER HOUR In Italy so if you don’t you would be probably causing an obstruction and not be too popular. I definetely recommend stopping off at some beautiful beaches along the road. The sea is a beautiful shade of green and in the summer the temperature of the water is just perfect.

Food during the day can also be a bit of a problem restaurants seem to open in the evening so during the day you may be left eating parma ham sandwiches home made pizza which looks like  well done tomatoe puree on overcooked french baguette with no cheese. Or some type of biscuits or pretzels..  Not exactly a feast but if you have any sense you will buy a few supplies in Germany before hitting the food free zones it also helps if you have an icebox or mini fridge. After enjoying the drive and intense 45% TEMPERATURES in Italy arrive in Ancona ready for your 19 hour boat trip to Patras on Superfast. The hospitality of the Greeks on superfast is second to none though they do tend to go through little rants at times, But hey we can  just put that down to all those rays from the sun..

Then we arrive in Patras stay in a Hotel by the sea head out for a nice evening in a typical Greek Restaurant yes indeed my favourite part of the holiday begins, The Greek food,Greek atmosphere hospitality and beautiful white villas and shops. The next morning up early and set off for Athens, I am cheating a little as my sister lives there outside a village called Pendelis. So I didn’t need to book any hotels in Athens, but a visit to Loutsa to the beach and some of the best home made ice cream you can imagine.  The Souvlaki in Pendelis and the lovely little restaurants beside the Acropolis together with a visit to the ruins of the parthenon and outdoor theatre are well worth a visit.   Just chill out enjoy the food weather and hospitality and crazy drivers and most of all remember when in Greece do what the crazy Greeks Do..  Enjoy 🙂

 

Driving To Greece From Ireland

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