Swiss prepare a big welcome

In the first of two reports on the nations hosting next month’s Euro 2008, STEVE McKENNA experiences a side to Switzerland seldom seen by the skiing masses...

Zurich is a magical historic city Zurich is a magical, historic city

ALPINE-loving holiday­makers often overlook Switzerland’s major cities, but next month Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Bern take centre stage when Euro 2008 kicks off.

Most match tickets are sold out but with free “fan-friendly” zones showing all the games on giant screens alongside a host of cultural and musical events, the cities themselves promise to buzz like never before.

Zurich, the country’s largest city, was the obvious place to start my whistlestop tour.

Whereas I’d feared a mini-Manhattan stacked with high-rise banks, I was actually greeted – as I arrived

by train from London St Pancras – with a pretty combination of medieval buildings, churches and spires adorning both banks of the Limmat River.

My base was the Leonardo Hotel Rigihof, a four-star design hotel a few tram stops from the central station. From here, I could wander through the Old Town, admiring elaborately-decorated guildhalls and glorious churches, including the enormous clock-face of St Peter’s.

Alongside such eye-catching architecture are pretty boutiques and vibrant, traditional restaurants, while the former industrial quarter of Zuri-West is now reborn as the city’s nightlife hub.

Zurich’s most unusual eatery has to be Blindekuh, a restaurant run by blind people where you dine in the pitch black – an unnerving but unforgettable experience.

The rest of my stay was taken up with window-shopping at the big-name designer stores on exclusive Bahnhofstrasse and wandering, agape, through the Kunsthaus, one of more than 50 museums in Zurich and boasting a standout collection of Picassos, van Goghs and Monets.

But if proper walking – rather than gentle ambling – is your thing, then take the 20-minute train ride to Uetliberg, a 2,850ft-high pine-tree covered hill that overlooks the city. It is the starting point for an invigorating network of hikes; I opted for one of the shorter trails, taking in the tremendous views over the city while sucking in the crisp air that is such a feature for first-time visitors to Switzerland.

The super- smooth, super- punctual train journey through some diverse and picturesque countryside to Geneva took less than three hours. Overlooking the vast expanse of Europe’s largest alpine lake, with snow-fringed mountains providing a stunning backdrop,

Geneva has an aura of serenity about it so strong that it may even be able to withstand next month’s influx of fans (Portugal, Turkey and the Czech Republic will play their group games here).

Walking through the al fresco cafés and charming bakeries of the Old Town, it felt decidedly Parisian. But just a 10-minute tram ride out of the town is the classy suburb of Carouge, where the atmosphere is pure Italiano with its array of smart cafés and arts and craft shops, housed in pastel-shaded mansions.

A 15-minute drive from the city brings you to Choully and Satigny, quaint countryside hamlets that offer numerous wine-tasting opportunities. Enjoying a fruity drop here, the spring sunshine on my face, football was the last thing on my mind.

GETTING THERE:

Rail Europe (08448 484070/www.raileurope.co.uk) offers return fares from London St Pancras to Zurich from £119 and to Geneva from £93 (both via Paris).

Euro 2008 Inter-Rail Austria-Switzerland passes are available from £148.

Leonardo Hotel Rigihof, Zurich (from UK: 0041 44 360 1200/ www.leonardo-hotel-zurich.com) has doubles from £150 per night, B&B. Hotel Cornavin, Geneva (22 716 1212/www. fassbindhotels.com) offers doubles from £148 per night, room only.

For Euro 2008 details, visit en.euro2008.uefa. com; Switzerland Tourism: 020 7845 7680/ www.myswitzerland.com

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