Touring Swiss Advice

On the day we did a circular tour around Mont Blanc we started from our base in France, crossed the boarder into Switzerland without any issues and were waved through the boarder with no passport check. We headed up the Grand St Bernard pass down into Italy, this time not even having to stop at the Italian boarder. Crossed back into France at the petite St Bernard pass again no stops or checks.

My only advice would be not to go crazy over the speed limits and do nothing to draw attention (very loud exhausts), check your insurance covers you together with breakdown. I took out additional travel insurance, carried PDF'd copies of insurance, bike details, licence details on my phone and always had my passport.

I went with a guy who goes every year and as far as I know he's never had any issues in Switzerland....... he did get done for speeding in France though. Hope you have a great time, we did. :upyeah:

 

My daughter lives in Switzerland near Basel and I've been going there on the bike every year for some time now and will no doubt be going again this year.

So what are these "stories"? The only weirdness I found was that one year I was stopped at the border and they checked my tyres had plenty of tread. One of my French biking mates reckoned he knows bikers have been turned away because of worn tyres.

Other than that it's pretty much the same as anywhere else but be careful of the motorways as they are marked in GREEN (everywhere else seem to use BLUE) Because of this it's easy to find yourself on one accidentally thinking you're on a normal road. If you get pulled on the motorway without a vignette you'll get a hefty fine. Using ordinary roads in Switzerland can be painfully slow so a trip to Lucerne could take longer than you might think. The traffic round Basel can be awful. I came back through rush hour once and even on the motorway on a bike I was held up.

A number of petrol stations (especially outside the big towns) don't have pay booths. You have to find the automatic pay station and use a credit card. Once you've found the pay station you select the pump and type of fuel you're going to use and then you can go to the pump and fill up.

Be aware that Switzerland is EXPENSIVE compared to France (especially now as they've just removed the cap on the value of the Swiss Franc - btw they don't accept Euros). Strangely enough petrol was cheaper than in France last year although that may no longer be the case.

In terms of where to go ....

From Mulhouse Basel is just down the road and not an unpleasant place to visit. Lucerne is also a pleasant enough place for a day out. If you go try and see the Bourbaki Panorama. I don't know Interlaken but Bern is Ok if you're going that way.

Even though the smaller roads can be difficult the scenery is often wonderful and if by magic you hit on a well surfaced, traffic free winding road through the countryside it's a real joy :smile:

I'll lay my cards on the table here and say I've never been "taken" by Switzerland. The word that springs to mind is PLEASANT! I've never actually had a bad time there but neither have I thought "I'd come back here again".

Have fun :biggrin:

 

I've been visiting Switzerland many times over the years. I've never had a problem with the Police or other enforcement agencies. Keep below the speed limits and you won't go far wrong.
I never use the Swiss motorways, they are very busy and utterly boring. The other roads can be great fun and of course some have spectacular views.
Interlaken is a great place to visit. Have a trip on the lake if you can.
I prefer the southern Alps especially the Simplon Pass which is a joy to ride.

 

Expensive is right! Last year in Lucerne a beer and a coke cost about £7 and a pizza in a restaurant was about £15.

I've not noticed any antagonism towards bikes or bikers and never had any run ins with the police.

I'm not sure what it is about Switzerland but despite the picture postcard beauty of the scenery and some of the towns I prefer riding in France and wouldn't bother going back if my daughter didn't live there!

It's worth a visit without a doubt but it's not a place I'd choose for a holiday.

 

I always buy my drinks and food for lunch from local supermarkets. I stop at hotels that provide an evening meal and breakfast. Expensive yes, but saves a lot of hassle.

 

I've been to France 4 times over the last few yrs , and covered over half the country on a motorbike , maybe a bit more & never encountered any police at all , seen a few speed cameras here & there , but to be honest if you ride normally it's no problem whatsoever & there's more chance of getting done in the UK I think. The only strange thing I did encounter on the continent was in Germany where I was filtering through standing traffic along a dual carriageway & got a ticking off , he was going to give me a fine I think but got distracted by something else & waved me away lol. But basically his message was don't filter , its not allowed