Switzerland & Liechtenstein

After a teaser in Oberstaufen it was finally time to dive deep into the almighty Alps!  A lot of people are “beach people”, but I consider myself much more of a “mountain person.”  I can appreciate a beautiful beach, but no landscape gives me quite the same feeling as a good mountain range and for me the Alps are just magical.  To this point in my travels I have seen way too little of them in person.  This trip has been my first chance to really spend some time in this majestic mountain range.

The Walensee

Our home base in Switzerland was an AirBnB near The Walensee, a larger alpine lake in eastern Switzerland.  I picked this spot because I found a place that met my criteria and the landscape looked simply breathtaking.  It did not disappoint in real life.  The Walensee is bordered almost completely by towering mountains.  As we were starting to move ever closer towards winter the peaks were starting to get some snow which just takes everything to another level.  I was never bored looking at the views outside the windows.  We also had an alpine stream running directly by the side of the property that is a sound that can’t be beat.  

View from where we were staying on The Walensee. Every morning required a double take to make sure the view was real.

Our time in this area was mostly spent walking and enjoying nature.  I was not anxious to drive if I didn’t need to because the road up to our neighborhood was a winding single lane road that required vehicle gymnastics whenever you encountered an oncoming car.

On one of our days we did drive down to the lake and take a nice out and back walk along half of the other side of the lake.  The first part was a single lane road that went through a tunnel that looked more like a cave.  There was a traffic light at each end of this stretch of road to keep the traffic moving in a single direction at a time.  The timer on the light was set to 24 minutes!  Can you imagine having to wait at a 24 minute traffic light?  That must take some patience!

After passing a couple of waterfalls our trail started taking us farther up along the side of the mountain and past some houses and farms.  The views continued to impress the entire way.  The payoff at the end was a massively tall waterfall cascading down a cliff face on the side of one of the mountains.  For not the first time nor the last time on this trip I wished this was my daily walk at home.

Some pictures from our waterfall walk on The Walensee including the one lane cave and accompanying 24 minute traffic light.

On another day we forked over the money to take a cable car up the mountain directly behind our AirBnB.  Cable cars abound in this part of the world but the big drawback is the cost, especially in Switzerland.  I think we paid close to $50 USD for the 3 of us to ride up and back (and that’s a cheap ride in Switzerland).  There was an intermediary station about a 15 minute walk downhill from our AirBnB so it was an easy thing to do on a nice day without having to drive anywhere.

The ride up was about as pretty as you could imagine and at the top we were dropped off in the town of Flumserberg.  There were plenty of trails leading out of the small town where you could explore the tops of mountains.  You could also climb or take a chair lift to the peak which we did not do.  The sun was shining and it was clear so the walking conditions were great.  

After strolling for a few hours taking in the sights we stopped at one of the restaurants to sit on their patio and have a couple of beers and a snack.  Maverick of course insisted on french fries and we obliged.  After we were done it was an easy ride back down on the gondola and a quick walk back home.  There are probably hundreds of places like this in the Alps where you could do something similar.  It seems there are cable cars and gondolas everywhere.

Some pictures from our cable car ride up to Flumserberg.

Liechtenstein

Our home away from home in Switzerland was only a quick 30 minute drive from the border of the tiny country of Liechtenstein so of course we had to go and check it out for a day.  The country is a mere 62 square miles and is entirely located within the Alps.  The options for a visit were either spending a day in the capital city of Vaduz or doing some hiking.  We decided to visit Vaduz.

Vaduz is nestled in a mountain valley next to the Rhine river.  I’d barely consider Vaduz a city, it feels more like a large town.  Looking down onto the town from part way up a mountainside is the picturesque Vaduz castle, residence for the Prince of Liechtenstein.  We drove through town and up the road to the castle and parked at a nearby free parking lot here. This is a good option to park if you come here because much like neighboring Switzerland everything is really expensive.  You just have to be ok with the steep climb back up to your car at the end of the day.  We would have climbed up to the castle anyway so it was a win-win.

We started our visit with a close up look at the Vaduz Castle.  You can’t go inside because it is a royal residence but you can walk right up to it which is a bit surprising.  Of course being part way up the mountain there are great views of Vaduz below and the surrounding mountains.

Vaduz Castle

After leaving the castle we took a nearby trail across the side of the mountain to another view point with even better views. From there we walked down into town checking out the historic Red House, Vaduz along the way.  We then casually explored town before grabbing a coffee and a sweet treat at American Bagel & Coffee Co..  Maverick was welcomed inside and the staff was really nice.  As you can probably tell from the name it was more of an American style of coffee, think big cups and too much sugar.  The prices here will make you sweat.  $28 USD for 2 coffees and a piece of cake is the going rate in Liechtenstein!

From top left to right, 1) picture at the viewpoint above Vaduz, 2) some vineyards in Vaduz, 3) Red House Vaduz

Following our really expensive coffee break we walked across town to the Alte Rheinbrücke.  This is the only wooden bridge left that crosses the Rhine.  It’s a lot longer than the wooden covered bridges we are used to seeing around New England.  The border between Liechtenstein and Switzerland is in the middle of the river so there is a fun little border sign halfway across the bridge.  Maverick insisted on posing here.

Alte Rheinbrücke

We then started heading back to the car stopping into the Kathedrale St. Florin along the way because there is always a church to visit during every stop you make in Europe.  All in all it was a really pleasant and relaxing day out in Vaduz.  Admittedly, there is not a whole lot here.  It’s definitely not a destination, but the location is beautiful and if you are in the area it is worth a day trip in my opinion.

St Gallen

During our seven day odyssey across the Atlantic Ocean on the Queen Mary 2 we had a unique shared experience with a small group of other dog owners.  At the end of our journey we exchanged numbers with a few people in hopes of meeting up again during our travels.  Katie, Max and their dog Aurora were one family in particular that we became fast friends with on board the ship.  We shared several meals and a few drinks with them over the course of that week.  Katie is American and Max is German but they live in Switzerland a mere hour drive from our Swiss AirBnB.  They were on their way back to Europe after completing extended travel across the US and Canada in their ex-military ambulance named “Bruce” which Max had converted to a camper.

I had to include a picture of “Bruce” because he is impressive!

After we arrived in Switzerland I reached out to Katie and Max to see if they were still interested in meeting up.  They graciously invited all of us to come stay over at their house in their guest room (Maverick included of course!).  After arriving we all decided to take a quick train trip into the nearby small city of St Gallen.  This was not a place that was on my radar but our new friends said it had a nice old town and was definitely worth a visit.  Soon enough Maverick was once again riding the rails, this time in Switzerland.  He handled it like a pro as usual.

St Gallen sits near, but not quite on, the massive Lake Constance which is one of the largest fresh water lakes in Europe.  The old town did not disappoint with beautiful classic buildings and the gorgeous St. Gallen Cathedral and Abbey of Saint Gall.  After strolling the old town we took a quick funicular ride up the hill that borders the city to walk in a park area at the top that afforded great views of Lake Constance in the distance.  Don’t miss out on St Gallen if you are in the area.

After touring the city we went back to Katie and Max’s house for dinner and a fun night hanging out with some of their close friends.  We also spent most of the following day with them before heading back to our AirBnB.  It was an amazing couple of days and will stand out as a highlight of the trip.  We hope someday soon our new friends will come back to the United States so we can reciprocate the kind of amazing hospitality they showed to us!

Some pictures around St. Gallen old town and looking down from above.

Zurich

I’m not usually a person who does much for my birthday but with it falling into the timeframe of this trip it only made sense to try and do something special.  In this case I splurged on a hotel we didn’t really need in Zurich.  I booked the Park Hyatt Zurich for a single night and used a Hyatt suite upgrade certificate I had available in my account to bump us up to a suite.  In case you aren’t familiar with the Park Hyatt, it is probably the most luxurious brand in the Hyatt portfolio.  If it isn’t, then it is right up there.  

Just a regular room in the Park Hyatt Zurich runs close to $1,000 a night which is kind of mind boggling.  A suite easily tops $2,500.  I had to cash in a whopping 40,000 Hyatt points for the booking.  This is not something I would normally do but like I said, it was a birthday splurge.

Another thing I never do is reach out to a hotel to let them know I’m celebrating a special event at their hotel.  I had heard these can get you some freebies and special treatment but had never really done it before.  I decided to give it a try this time because at a hotel this nice I figured I might get something pretty nice out of it.  Well, I’m not sure what I expected but reality blew that expectation out of the water!

Let me paint the picture for you.  We show up with a crazy dog wearing casual clothes and carrying two small backpacks and a dog bed.  Meanwhile this hotel is full of fancy pants Swiss bankers and business travelers dressed in their work best.  Despite this we were greeted warmly by the front desk staff and I was wished a Happy Birthday.  It was pretty early so our room wasn’t ready but they offered to store our bags and then sent us to the lounge for a welcome drink.  In the lounge we got a free glass of champagne and then to my surprise the two waitresses brought out a cake and sang Happy Birthday.  Remember, we have Maverick jumping around and are surrounded by people doing work and having business conversations dressed in suits.

Welcome champagne and first(!) birthday cake.

After leaving for a few hours to stroll the city and grab a coffee we returned to check in to our room.  This is when things started to get REALLY crazy.  They upgraded us to the Presidential suite!  We were personally escorted up to the room.  Maverick got a bed, treats and his own bottled water.  The suite was absolutely massive with a dining room, living room, office, bedroom, kitchenette, ½ bath, walk-in closet and the largest master bath I have ever seen in person.  There were multiple coffee machines and multiple fridges stocked with tons of water, juice, soda, beer, and liquor which was all included.  On top of the suite itself, it was decorated for my birthday with balloons and other decorations plus there was more champagne and another cake!  I of course had to look up the cash price and it was a little under $7,000 for one night in this suite.  All I paid was the $55 pet cleaning fee.  Travel hacking really is a super power.

A taste of the presidential suite and the decorations.

After marveling at our amazing suite for a little while we were ready to get back out on the town to enjoy the evening.  Our first stop was dinner at Zeughauskeller which was recommended by the hotel concierge.  The restaurant has a beer hall vibe and allows dogs inside.  It was the perfect spot for a birthday dinner as far as I was concerned.

Following dinner we did a little more walking around the city and ended up at an outdoor table at Bierwerk Züri enjoying some local craft brews.  It was a great way to cap off a memorable birthday.  

My kind of birthday dinner!

The next morning we headed downstairs to enjoy the Park Hyatt breakfast and low and behold my birthday still wasn’t over as far as the hotel was concerned.  We were personally greeted and seated at a reserved table that was decorated and adorned with a gift of local artisan chocolates.  We were then offered another complimentary glass of champagne to go along with our breakfast.  Totally over the top!

We spent the better part of the day exploring more of the city.  We didn’t have to check out of the suite until 4pm thanks to my status with Hyatt.  What a birthday!  I’d say it’s definitely worth letting the hotel know you have an event like a birthday or anniversary that coincides with your stay.  Especially if you are staying somewhere nice like a Park Hyatt.  

This was our second time in Zurich only because we got stuck here for a day due to a flight cancellation while returning from Cairo earlier this year.  The city is really nice and just small enough to be easily walkable.  It’s setting by the lake and lack of tall buildings make it feel more like a large town than a city.  The only downside is that it is really expensive, but getting your room for free goes a long way towards alleviating those costs.

That sums up our time in Switzerland.  There is still so much more of the country I would love to see.  We will most definitely be back in the future.  Next stop is Italy, we’ll see you there!

Zurich