Brought to you by Swiss French School. On 1 January 2019, Switzerland’s federal government tightened and harmonised the rules on language requirements to qualify for some residence permits, B and C permits in particular, and … [Read more...]
News and Features
Switzerland’s first robotaxi takes to the road
Passengers in Zurich’s Furttal valley can now book rides in self-driving cars. The pilot scheme, called Iamo, is Switzerland’s first robotaxi service open to the public, according to the canton. Three electric self-driving cars are operating … [Read more...]
FILM: ZURICH FILM FESTIVAL 2026 – excellent international films and top stars
2 October 2026 ZURICH FILM FESTIVAL 2026 (24 September - 4 October) Once again, I jumped over the Röstigraben this autumn…from Geneva to Zurich, and it’s a delightful and liberating move. Pity that many of my Suisse Romande colleagues don’t … [Read more...]
Swiss parental-leave initiative gathers more than 100,000 signatures
Swiss voters are likely to have their say on a proposal to introduce parental leave. The Green Liberals announced on Wednesday that they had submitted 112,517 signatures in support of the initiative to the Federal Chancellery for … [Read more...]
How Swiss Rail uses AI to find track defects
Instead of sending staff to walk the tracks and inspect them by eye, Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) uses specially equipped diagnostic trains and artificial intelligence to examine around 2,000km of track each month, according to SRF. Rather than … [Read more...]
Guides
6-step guide to hiring a cleaner in Switzerland
Brought to you by quitt.ch - No. 1 provider of registration and administration services for domestic help in Switzerland. 1. What do cleaners cost in Switzerland? Cleaners are expensive in Switzerland and good personnel are hard to find. Prices … [Read More...]
Setting up a business in Switzerland – a guide
Brought to you by Winbiz online accounting for Swiss businesses. So you have decided to start a business. You have a business plan and are ready to get started. Before you launch you need a name and possibly a company. Broadly there are two options … [Read More...]
Activities
Switzerland’s cow parade (désalpe/alpabzug) 2025 and its history
By Bill Harby What exactly is the alpine descent or désalpe / alpabzug? This article explores the event’s history and where to see it. In Switzerland, we know the clock will soon strike autumn when processions of cows crowned with flowers and … [Read more...]
20 ice skating rinks around Lake Geneva. Get your skates on!
Ice skating season is here so get your skates on! There are ice-skating rinks all over Geneva, Vaud and neighbouring Fribourg. Entrance prices vary and all rinks have skates that you can hire. The links below will take you to the relevant websites … [Read more...]
Places to go for early season skiing in Switzerland
Mention skiing in November and it is likely to draw blank expressions, or comments like: "It’s too early, there will be no snow". While this is true for some resorts not all ski domains were created equal. A recent study shows that in 2015, snow … [Read more...]
