{"id":42737,"date":"2026-01-10T16:03:23","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T16:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/ive-lived-in-switzerland-for-5-years-here-are-the-6-biggest-mistakes-i-see-first-time-visitors-make-over-and-over\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T16:03:23","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T16:03:23","slug":"ive-lived-in-switzerland-for-5-years-here-are-the-6-biggest-mistakes-i-see-first-time-visitors-make-over-and-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/ive-lived-in-switzerland-for-5-years-here-are-the-6-biggest-mistakes-i-see-first-time-visitors-make-over-and-over\/","title":{"rendered":"I&#8217;ve lived in Switzerland for 5 years. Here are the 6 biggest mistakes I see first-time visitors make over and over."},"content":{"rendered":"<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/695d53aa64858d02d217d71c?format=jpeg\" alt=\"View of railway, trees, mountain in Switzerland\"\/><figcaption>I&#039;ve seen tourists make mistakes in Switzerland that cost them time, money, and peace.<\/p>\n<p>mzabarovsky\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>After living in Switzerland for five years, I&#039;ve watched tourists make a lot of the same mistakes.<\/li>\n<li>Don&#039;t try to see too many places in one trip, and try visiting some smaller mountain villages.<\/li>\n<li>Become at least a little familiar with the local languages and book your train tickets in advance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Though I&#039;m a US citizen, I&#039;ve spent the past five years living in Switzerland. <\/p>\n<p>As a semi-recent transplant, I know there&#039;s much more to this amazing country than what visitors typically come to see. It&#039;s one best experienced thoughtfully and authentically \u2014 not by mindlessly racing through &quot;Top 10 &quot; lists.<\/p>\n<p>In terms of mistakes tourists make, here are a few things I suggest you know \u2014 and avoid \u2014 before visiting Switzerland for the first time. <\/p>\n<p>You&#039;ll probably regret only visiting the Instagram-popularized spots.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/695d5fa664858d02d217d915?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Lake Lucerne view with houses, greenery, mountains nearby\"\/><figcaption>Lucerne is incredible, but it&#039;s not the only great place to visit in Switzerland.<\/p>\n<p>Peter Shaw\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Zermatt, Lauterbrunnen, Interlaken, and Lucerne are popular, jaw-dropping locations, but they&#039;re not the only spots worth visiting in Switzerland.<\/p>\n<p>Instead of only seeing the few places on every tourist&#039;s list, consider branching out to smaller, lesser-visited ones for at least a day trip. Fortunately, many are easily accessible by public transportation out of some of the area&#039;s main hubs.<\/p>\n<p>For example, close to Interlaken are the mountain villages of Frutigen, Kandersteg, and Adelboden, which offer gorgeous alpine views combined with fewer crowds and more authentic experiences.<\/p>\n<p>Don&#039;t assume the dining-out culture and prices will be what you&#039;re used to back home.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/69445497832e0ef1ead68037?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Vegetables on plate\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Ashley Franzen<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In Switzerland, dining out can seem expensive \u2014 in part because the cost of production, labor, and relevant service charges are typically already included in the price of the meal.<\/p>\n<p>Personally, I find the prices easier to stomach when I remember you&#039;re often paying for high-quality, regional fare, and restaurant staff here are typically earning a fair wage.<\/p>\n<p>And although tipping servers 15% to 20% of a bill is standard practice in places like the US, it&#039;s not the norm here. If you enjoyed the meal and the service, it&#039;s customary to round up a few francs or leave a tip between 5% and 10%.<\/p>\n<p>Make your train reservations in advance.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6952d6e464858d02d2177d16?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Train tour sign in Switzerland\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Ashley Franzen<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Switzerland is a popular travel destination throughout the year, and its major attractions can fill up quickly \u2014 especially seats on our world-famous scenic routes.<\/p>\n<p>If you plan on riding the Glacier Express or Bernina Express, book your train tickets as far in advance as possible.<\/p>\n<p>However, don&#039;t fret if you realize it&#039;s too late to book a seat on a scenic route. You&#039;ll be just fine on our &quot;regular&quot; trains, which tend to run faster, not book up as quickly, and still offer beautiful views.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking of trains, don&#039;t get fined for sitting in the wrong class.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6944549604eda4732f2dce60?format=jpeg\" alt=\"First-class train car in Switzerland\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Ashley Franzen<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When traveling by train, it&#039;s important to double-check your ticket class and location. (And, if you have a paper ticket, get it validated.) <\/p>\n<p>Signage indicating first or second class can be found both outside and inside each car. Oftentimes, the class is also noted on the headrests of the seats themselves.<\/p>\n<p>Ticketing agents on board will not hesitate to issue an on-the-spot fine for tourists seated in the wrong class. In addition to a fine of about 100 francs, you&#039;ll also have to pay the difference in price for the ticket.<\/p>\n<p>Also, pay attention to where your seats are before entering each car so you won&#039;t have to lug an oversized suitcase through the entire train.<\/p>\n<p>Switzerland is small, but I don&#039;t advise trying to cram everything into a short trip.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/69445496832e0ef1ead68035?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Snowy mountain views on way to St Moritz\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Ashley Franzen<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Switzerland is one of the smallest countries in Europe, at about 16,000 square miles. However, I&#039;ve seen tourists mistakenly assume they can just zip through and see everything it has to offer in just three or four days.<\/p>\n<p>For example, Zurich may seem close to Geneva on a map, but they are actually about three hours apart by train. Sure, you could also opt for a one-hour flight \u2014 but my point is that trying to see so many cities in a short period won&#039;t allow you to truly get a feel for each. <\/p>\n<p>Travel is about <em>experiencing<\/em> a place, not just visiting to check it off a bucket list. If you&#039;ve only got a week in Switzerland, I suggest you limit yourself to exploring two or three cities instead of trying to cram six or seven single-night stays in new places into your itinerary.<\/p>\n<p>Become at least a little familiar with the local languages and commonly used symbols.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6944549604eda4732f2dce61?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Recycling bins in Switzerland\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Ashley Franzen<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Switzerland is composed of 26 cantons, and each of these administrative regions has its own distinct culture, government, and history.  They also don&#039;t all speak the same languages. <\/p>\n<p>Although you&#039;ll find English speakers throughout the country \u2014 especially in popular tourist areas \u2014 Switzerland actually has four official languages: German, French, Italian, and Romansh.<\/p>\n<p>It&#039;s helpful to learn a few basic greetings in those major languages and ensure you use them in the appropriate region.<\/p>\n<p>Also, it&#039;s handy to become familiar with some of the commonly used symbols \u2014 especially when it comes to trash cans. <\/p>\n<p>The Swiss are conscientious recyclers, so take a beat to look up the symbols printed on the bins before tossing something in them if you are confused. Your mindfulness will be appreciated<\/p>\n<p>Read the original article on Business Insider<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I&#039;ve seen tourists make mistakes in Switzerland that cost them time, money, and peace. mzabarovsky\/Getty Images After living in Switzerland for five years, I&#039;ve watched tourists make a lot of the same mistakes. Don&#039;t try to see too many places in one trip, and try visiting some smaller mountain villages. Become at least a little [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-42737","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42737","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42737"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42737\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42737"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42737"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42737"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}