Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Cheese and castles go together like PB and jelly or Bert and Ernie, socks and shoes, cheese and crackers! Switzerland castles have a flavor unlike any other. We visit Gruyere Castle for the ultimate in cheese.
If you have heard of Swiss cheese do not limit yourself to the sort with holes in it.
Swiss cheeses are varied and oh so delicious they will make you say, “Praise cheeses!” Each alp is known for its own variety of cheese due to the lusciousness of the milk which is due, according to the cows, to the lusciousness of the grass, which is due according to the grass, to the beautiful sunshine and tasty clean rain. Should you visit, pick your fav cheese and go there. Or pick any and go there.
Travel tip… buy a foldable planning map of Switzerland before you go!
Had fun storming the castle…
We were heading back to Zurich and just happen to be passing by the Gruyere region. I love gruyere, I love castles. There was a sign for Gruyere Castle though we could not see it due to that tasty clean rain drifting lazily down and clinging to the foot of the hills. There was parking at the top, still no sign of a castle. We followed the signs and the few bedraggled stragglers…
What you get at Gruyere Castle, which may extend to other castles of CH, I’m not sure, is this sweet little castle village along with the castle proper. Visiting in shoulder season has its perks in cost effectiveness but also in lack of crowds—it was a ghost town in that castle but most of the shops and restaurants in the castle walls along the square were open… and serving fondue.
And o’er the ramparts we skipped…
The castle museum was really amazing. The tour started at the ground floors with the oldest relics including a kitchen with a pebble floor that must have been a mouse’s paradise though the ages. As we went up the floors of the castle, the timeline also marched up in years from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance to the Victorian Era to the artistic Art Nouveau era. The artifacts included the massive cow bells discussed in the last episode, along with an impressive armory, and the equipage of daily life oh just from the past almost thousand years. O’er the ramparts we walked, CT ducking the whole way whereas my short statue had me skipping along. Though we couldn’t see the view of the alps, the fog made the scene very dramatic and woeful which went well with the gray walls of stone and quiet veneer over all.
Hotel Recommendations, Switzerland
Secret Schaffhausen, Switzerland
This cute little boutique hotel, The Hotel 2b, had eight rooms all with their own theme-decor. Our balcony overlooked an abbey built in the 16th century. And on the other side of the building was a Christmas Market. Schaffhausen was an important train stop in WWII where spies would cross neutral Switzerland from both sides! The Hotel2b is in the old city center with several points of interests and excellent German restaurants within walking distance. Read more about my adventures In Schaffhausen here.
Hotel Mirabeau Best Western, Lausanne
Five years later and this hotel is still in our top 5. Not only was it absolutely darling Swiss-French garden style, the whole Hotel Mirabeau experience was such a treat. The breakfast was excellent with a buffet and cook to order meals served by a French waiter in a tuxedo while we shared the breakfast room with Olympic athletes and their trainers. The Olympic Training Center was directly across the street and the Olympic Museum was just down the hill. Read more in our in-depth review of the best of the Best Western Hotels here.
Modern Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland close to business and Christmas Markets
The Hotel Ameron Zurich Bellerive au Lac features a modern room style, excellent breakfast, and within a two-minute walk to the old city center and the modern bustling business district. Our balcony overlooked Lake Zurich which damped the city noise and was an excellent view. The restaurant was visited by locals as well as hotel guests which points to the hotel’s prime location and fine dining experience.
Read more about Zurich Chocolate and Christmas Markets here.
Hush, the fondue bubbles in its caldron, while unknowingly to us our parking ticket expired—this was not lost on the patrolling policeman. We are, most egregiously… out this door.
Read how the trip came about in: “Finding a Travel Partner”
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