Are you wondering if your hiking boots still suit you, how much weight you can get when you submit your chocolate cravings or if you need to bring a German, French or Italian dictionary.
If it were not just for the persistent voice on the back of the head. You know, the one who keeps you awake at night with a million questions.
- How to make it through a single day in Switzerland without robbing a bank?
- Are you going to crawl into a box and sleep in a stranger’s garden just to save money?
- Are you happy to live on instant noodles like you did during that trip to Australia?
Use free public transport
If you live in Bern, Lucerne, Basel, Geneva or Lausanne, you can use local public transport for free.
Your accommodation offers you a ticket that is valid during your stay.
Canton of Ticino expanded this concept and recently introduced what I call the travel jackpot.
Every visitor who spends at least one night in the Canton receives an all-inclusive ticket.
Do not buy a travel card
Do not buy a travel card, at least not until you know your options.
Travel cards can be fantastic value for money if you are going to use public transport. But they do not always make sense.
To avoid wasting your money on something you do not need, set aside some time to do your research.
To choose your best match when buying a travel card, try to answer the following questions as accurately as you can:
- Where do you want to go? What places do you want to see?
- Will you cover long distances or mostly live in the same area?
- Do you travel to Switzerland to any other European countries?
Take things into your own hands
If you do not want to, you do not need to book a tour to explore Switzerland.
When public transport is as efficient and plentiful as it is, you will be hard pressed to find a place that is not accessible by bus, train or boat.
Buses and trains run frequently so do not worry about getting stuck somewhere.
But if you go to more isolated places, double check the timetable just to be on the safe side.
Sleep over the cows
Believe it or not, but there is.
Especially if you are looking for an adventure and traveling with a sleeping bag.
Go out of town and sleep on some Swiss hay.
With breakfast included, it’s well worth taking a detour from the city.
Embrace your inner chef
You guessed it. Eating out is also expensive.
Cooking your own food is much cheaper. Depending on how much of a gourmet you are, you can make do with 60 – 80 CHF a week for groceries.
Maybe even cheaper if you cut a few edges.
Buy Stale Bread
To fight food waste, these guys collect what bakeries could not sell during the day and offer it for half the price the next day.
As a result, you can get pastries, breads, sandwiches and sausage rolls at a huge discount.
You will find Ässbar stores in St. Gallen, Winterthur, Zurich, Bern, Friborg and Basel.
And because their concept is so popular, they seem to be expanding to other cities as we speak.