Flying into Geneva & out of Zurich. We'd like to 'hop' over the border to France and Germany (in 1 day or separate days, whatever makes most sense). It looks like hop over in the same day spot would be via Basel. Suggestions? We will be using public transportation the whole time.
Posted by
Irving
2963 posts
From Basel’s Sbb station take a direct train to Colmar, FR (45m).
From Basel’s Bad Bf station take a direct train to Baden-Baden, DE (1h 30m).
Posted by
Chicago
2680 posts
From Basel, you can easily get to Colmar and Strasbourg France and Freiburg, Germany via train. You could do Colmar and Strasbourg in 1 long day and Freiburg another day. We did 3 separate day trips and enjoyed each. Freiburg was our favorite though. Be sure to get the long red. (Due to a train strike in Germany, we ended up going to Freiburg from Lucerne.)
You can click on my name to get the link to my trip report. Basel is in my Sept. 2021 trip report. We stayed at the Hotel Schweizerhof near the train station and loved it!!
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32802 posts
yup, Basel.
10 minutes northwest to the airport and you will have gone 10 minutes into France.... bus from Basel SBB station. Or go further to Mulhouse France by train where there is a famous auto museum.
10 minutes north from Basel by train, bus or tram is Weil am Rhein a town in Germany. It has the Vitra Design Museum. If you want to go a bit further you can take a train from Basel SBB station to Rheinfelden in Switzerland where the famous beer is brewed. They also have a salt spa and Roman ruins. Cross the Rhine on the Alte Rheinbrücke (old Rhine Bridge - only for pedestrians, bicycles, mopeds, taxis and the local bus) to Rheinfelden Germany, same name, different town, and take the train back from Rheinfelden Germany to the other train station in Basel, Basel Bad Bahnhof where trains from Germany arrive, and a few run through to Basel SBB.
Further down the river (north) is Freiburg im Breisgau and the Black Forest but you might not have time for that.
Further north on the French side is Colmar and Strasbourg, both very special, but you probably won't have time for those either...
Posted by
SE Pennsylvania
2391 posts
Am I correct that these crossings wouldn't result in a passport stamp as all three are part of Schengen?
Posted by
Chicago
2680 posts
Am I correct that these crossings wouldn't result in a passport stamp
as all three are part of Schengen?
Yes, you are correct—no passport stamps. Do make sure to have your passport with you though as my sister and her husband were asked by the German police for their passports on the train from Basel to Freiburg.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32802 posts
as you walk from the main part of Basel SBB station into the area where French TER local trains go from you will walk past the empty and closed up border control booths where passports used to be checked before Switzerland joined the Schengen group. Now it is no more obvious than going from New York into New Jersey.