How is visiting one of the most expensive countries in Europe possible as a family on a budget you ask?
Research, planning, timing and booking direct is a great place to start. Read on to find out how we designed researched and planned this amazing adventure.
Switzerland
Where to start?
This question can seem daunting in itself so lets break this down a little, using what we did as an example. We are both working parents with one of us working shifts, whilst the other a weekday role, so for us annual leave is always a battle between juggling child care and soaring fees in school holidays. Our first thing we will look at is accommodation and flights. Checking prices and looking at school holidays and our annual leave.
This trip was before the new 2024 school attendance rules so things have changes slightly in regards to fines and the rules but we planned this trip in a way to avoid a fine and it would still work under the new rules.
This trip had a timeline that was a little more specific as we wanted to take Poppy on a birthday adventure to find snow. She has a birthday very close to Christmas so we wanted to make it special.
After looking at flights and browsing accommodation we found some options to make this work we would have 5 days, 4 nights to achieve our goals.
After getting leave from work it was time to book it all in. Planning in advance can really help. We are from the south east of England so are lucky to have Heathrow and Gatwick airport both within 30mins to 1hr away which opens up good routes to most places.
Budget…
Setting an ideal budget for your trip is always a good idea so when you start looking at accommodation and flights you can make sure this works within your budget. Then you can build from there as you add in extras like day trips, travel costs and food.
I enjoy researching destinations to visit and travel to but its not for everyone. It can be time consuming which is why people often go for package holiday. It takes the work out of it but it also cost a lot more for this kind of service and you can pay through the nose for a generic holiday. We want to share our experiences to help give you the confidence to plan your own trips and realise that exploring with kids doesn’t have to be difficult.
There's also something magical about designing a holiday for your family. We created a holiday that provided interest and adventure for all of us. Although it was the first time we had done anything like this with the kids, it turned out to be a fantastic adventure.
Accommodation
Depending on the country and the availability of accommodations, you may want to explore all options. Consider staying in someone else's house through services like Airbnb, or booking a hotel directly or through comparison sites. We opted for one night in a hotel in Gruyères., 2 nights in a central Airbnb in Thun and one night in and Airbnb in Zurich. It gave us the sizing of accommodation needed for us to all be in the same room or apartment and worked out to be the most cost effective way to stay and visit the areas we had earmarked.
What should we do?
With children and Switzerland one of these things was an easy must do…..
Chocolate of course!! We started to look at how we could make this more a part of the holiday and we found two places we needed to go. Maison Callier chocolate factory and the Lindt chocolate factory.
In our family, trying the local cuisine is a must. We have a rule to always sample the national dish when visiting a new country, ensuring everyone gives it a try. Fondu was added to the list along with some of the other delights Switzerland has to offer.
Incorporating history and culture is something we strive to do to educate the children during our adventures. James also has a passion for history, so it's great that he can integrate this interest in a manner that engages the kids. We also invented our own game to help keep Poppy engaged and keep exploring. (Keep your eyes posted for our game launch)
Snow was another must achieve as although born close to Christmas we rarely get any in the south of England and Poppy was desperate for some on this trip.
Getting to grips with transport
In one of the most efficient countries in the world public transport was looking to be one of the best options for traveling around. You can visit remote mountain villages on trains with half hourly trains running or very regular trains to bigger cities or better known places. There are several options to look at are point to point tickets more economical, is the half fare card worth it? What about the Swiss Travel pass?
We considered a car as an option but in this case felt we would be able to spend more time together on the train and it would mean we could all stop and take in the beautiful scenery.
How did we choose to travel and why?
We decided to travel by train on our route, there was flexibility and plenty of options. Our accommodation in Thun was easily reached by bus but all the other locations we could travel to by train.
When looking at the options of what was more cost effective for our trip we had to do some planning.
The half fare card - This is a tourist version which is valid for one month giving discount on public transport across Switzerland and cost 120chf (price accurate in 2024). It gives discount of up to 50% off journeys by train, bus, boat and includes most mountain lifts and railways, it also includes the panoramic trains. Children up to 6 years old travel on public transport for free. The Half fare gives the family travel card which includes free transport for children under 16 to travel free with an accompanying adult with this card.
The Swiss Travel Pass - This pass is a little different as its price changes depending on the days required (see image 1). It includes unlimited travel on train, bus and boat. Unlimited travel on panorama trains (seat reservations are an additional cost). Free admission to 500 museums. It also includes mountain excursions to Rigi, Stanserhorn and Stoos, along with 50% off other mountain excursions. It also includes the Swiss family travel card so again children aged 6-under 16 travel free with an adult with the pass.
image 1
We chose a 4 day Swiss Travel Pass as it worked out to be the most cost effective for our trip and as you’ll see we utilised it for visiting places too. Although we needed to Travel for 5 days it wasn’t beneficial to go to the next pass which was 6 days instead we used a local travel pass in Zurich called the Zurich card (prices displayed on the right correct 2024). This can be purchase on the Zurich guide app some hotels stays may include this so check first.
We found the Swiss public transport clean, efficient and easy to navigate the SBB app is a well oiled app that makes finding your platform easy. Watch out on the platform as it will tell you where certain carridges are under the train name look out for the bear as this indicates the child friendly section. (See the link below)
Links for info:
Swiss Half Fare Card – Switzerland at half the price | SBB
Swiss Travel Pass – the All-in-one-Ticket for Switzerland | SBB
Zürich Card – Your City Travel Pass | zuerich.com
On the train with children | SBB
Other cities have these options available so do some research as you may save some money if you can get free city travel.
Our Reccomendations with kids
Maison Callier
Nestled in the mountain village of Broc a stone throw away from Gruyere is this hidden gem. An evoking smell of chocolate is in the air from the moment you step of the train. Its honestly the best chocolate we have ever tasted and a gorgeous little tour with plenty of samples to taste. This was one of the best things we did on our trip. They also offer chocolate making classes from children from aged 6.
Cost
Adult ~ 17CHF
Child 6-15 ~ 7CHF
Child 0-5 ~ Free with accompanying adult ticket
Lindt home of chocolate, Zurich
A very well know brand of chocolate and an experience that gave many treats of tasting chocolate along the way. This was a very different experience as it was modern and had been set up to encourage Instagram photo spots and lots of rooms to discover how the chocolate is made and different flavour profiles.
A very popular experience made this a busy one and booking in advance where possible is a must. They have bag storage lockers as backpacks especially are not allowed but they advise no bags allowed on the tour. We did however see a lot of handbags being taken around.
Cost
Adult - 17CHF
Children 0-7 - Free
Children 8-15 - 10CHF
If you have the Zurich card you can save 10% on admission on the cureent offers (September 2024)
Gruyeres Castle (Chateau de Gruyeres)
Included in the Swiss travel pass this was a lovely little way to explore as Gruyere was just waking up. A peaceful walk around the castle located at the top of this village which makes you feel like your walking through a fairy tail village on the way up, the views can be amazing on a clear day but the cloud was low over the mountains which gave it an enchanting feel.
Cost without pass
Adult - 13 CHF
Child 6-15 5CHF
children under 6 free. Family pass 2 Adults and upto 3 children 29CHF
La Maison du Gruyere
Just opposite the train station in Gruyere is this amazing factory. Again included in the Swiss travel pass or for a small cost you get to enter this great experience for children and adults alike. You get to see what makes Gruyere cheese so unique and get a sample pack of cheese with entry containing 3 different aged cheeses. Between 9-11am you can see them making the cheese in the factory.
It was a very family friendly experience there is a lift available to the second floor if you need it or steps up. Multiple languages available on the included audio guide.
there is a café here too if you wish to indulge in some of that amazing cheese.
Cost without Swiss travel pass
Adult 7CHF
Family rate 2 adults + children up to aged 12 - 12CHF
combined ticket for the castle and cheese factory adult 17CHF
Christmas Markets
We wanted to incorporate a visit to Christmas markets along our adventure.
We stopped of at markets in Bern the capital of Switzerland, but our main adventures through the markets were during our evening in Zurich where we manged to visit 3 of the markets on offer.
We loved that they had multiple food stalls in most the markets and found trying out different foods between us was a great budget way to grab a bite to eat whilst exploring.
They really are magical and the magic came alive even more when snow started falling as we explored.
Each market had its own unique take some focussing more on food and entertainment others on craft and some a mix of all.
Truly magical
Cost only what you wish to spend as entrance is free.
All prices correct as of September 2024
What did we learn?
We Learnt that we could travel light even to a cold country. We loved our cabin max hybrid backpacks for this. We used 2 of the Greenwhich 44l which have the max volume for flying with British Airways for carry on. Poppy had a 30l under seat bear bag which can also be used as a backpack or wheeled along.
Wearing layers is essential when traveling in Switzerland as indoor activities are well heated however it was a very cold at night. Exploring the Zurich Christmas markets we reached -9°C with the wind making it feel even colder.
Planning one thing each day with kids you really want to achieve then some extras for if you want more that day. This gives flexibility and has a realistic expectation of what’s achievable.
Throw the plan out the window if needed - We originally had Zermatt on our list to guarantee somewhere with snow for Poppy but it snow whilst in Thun and we took to the hills with sleds which were provided by our Airbnb host for a great day of fun only returning home to warm up and eat before heading out again. Sledding down the hills with the local kids was Poppy’s favourite activity.
We fell in love with Switzerland, The people, efficiency and regional differences with influences from Germany, France and Italy make this a magical place to visit.
If you have your own accommodation with a kitchen you can save a small fortune and relax in a home like environment to eat dinner. We Researched local dishes and had a very well equipped Airbnb in Thun so could make fondu, raclette and even some meringues with fresh raspberries and double crème. Then the kids could play after before settling down to sleep.
Supermarkets are a great way to save money and we often eat on the train to save time on this short trip
We discovered planning our own trips was more cost effective gave us flexibility and was a far more relaxed experience than any other holiday we had had so far.