On 15 June 2022, Swiss airspace was closed after a computer malfunction. At 6:30 am the Swiss air navigation service provider Skyguide reported a technical malfunction and announced the closure of Swiss airspace for safety reasons. Two hours later at 8:30 am Skyguide reported that the technical malfunction had been resolved. The outage affected several […]
SWISS cancels summer flights due to staff shortages
On 7 June 2022, Swiss International Air Lines announced that around 2% of passengers on scheduled flights to destinations in Germany, Poland, UK and Los Angeles would be affected. A SWISS spokesperson said that bottlenecks at air control centres, ground and airport services in Europe and at SWISS were to blame. Personnel shortages at the […]
The low-cost Michelin-starred restaurants closest to Switzerland
Michelin-starred restaurants are synonymous with high cost. However, there is a wide price range and some offer meals for 30 Euros or less. Prices for a three-course meal at Michelin-starred restaurants in Europe go as high as 595 Euros at the Ciel Bleu in Amsterdam while descending as low as 20 Euros at the L’Antic […]
Switzerland looking at buying vaccine for monkeypox
With number of cases of monkeypox rising, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) is looking at the possibility of buying a vaccine against the disease, reported RTS. With at least three cases the number of confirmed infections in Switzerland is low. The first infection in Bern was followed by cases in Geneva and Zurich. […]
All Covid travel restrictions have ended in UK
On 18 March 2022 at 4:00am all remaining UK travel restrictions were lifted. Passenger locator forms (PLFs) have been scrapped and unvaccinated arrivals no longer need to test. Vaccinated arrivals have not needed to test for some time. The lifting of these final travel restrictions marks nearly two years since travel into the UK was […]
New Swiss plates for bike racks launched
From 1 March 2022 it will be possible to order extra licence plates for a bike rack from the cantonal authorities, announced Switzerland’s Federal Roads Office. This will remove the need to transfer car plates to the bike rack. It is expected that the first plates will be delivered from the end of March 2022. […]
Swiss epidemiologist sees the end of general Covid restrictions from summer
Swiss epidemiologist Marcel Tanner said that state imposed measures to combat Covid-19 may not be needed from summer, reported RTS. After the Omicron wave has passed, blanket measures, such as mask wearing and Covid 2G restrictions, may no longer be needed, said Tanner. If we continue to get vaccinated, get booster shots and voluntarily respect […]
Swiss train punctuality slips in 2021 with big regional differences
In 2021, 91.9% of Swiss passenger trains were on time, down 0.7 percentage points from 92.6% in 2020, with significant regional differences. Across eastern German-speaking Switzerland 94.7% of trains were on time in 2021, compared to 88.0% in western French-speaking Switzerland. In southern, Italian-speaking Switzerland, 90.7% were on time and in central Switzerland the rate […]
Three Swiss villages awarded “Best Tourism Village” status
Last week, at a gathering in Madrid, Switzerland put forward a selection of three Swiss villages in the hope that the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) would include them on its list of “Best Tourism Villages”. To qualify for selection, Swiss villages had to promote local activities, such as farming and wine making and […]
Switzerland bans flights from southern Africa
Flights to Switzerland from Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa have been halted, reported RTS. In addition, anyone arriving in Switzerland from Hong Kong, Israel or Belgium, must now show a negative Covid test and quarantine for 10 days, announced the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) on 26 November 2021. Entry […]