In May 2016 my our daughter will be doing a 2 week study abroad program with her university. Her trip will end in Basel. My wife and I want to meet her at the end of her program and spend 8 to 10 days exploring this region. My initial thoughts were to rent an apartment in the Basel area and do day trips into France, Germany and other areas of Switzerland. Is this a good idea and what are some must see or things to do in this region. Thanks. Mark
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
- Basel itself is a lovely city and worth 2-3 days.
- Colmar
- The Alsatian wine route, with lots of lovely little towns such as Kayserberg, Riquewihr and Ribeauvillé. This needs a car.
- Tour the Black Forest (car needed).
- Strasbourg. This is relatively far (1½ hours by train), so needs a full day.
- Freiburg im Breisgau.
- Day trip to Luzern. The a boat trip on the lake.
- If you want to go up a mountain, and see a (small) glacier, the nearest one is Titlis. This is do-able as a day trip by train.
- Bern (the city). Day trip by train.
Basel, and Switzerland, are more expensive than France or Germany. The cost of your "apartment in the Basel area" will vary depending on which side of Basel.
Posted by
OP
Irmo SC
22 posts
Thanks for the response. I was trying to avoid renting a car. The only reason we were thinking about using Basel as a home base was that's where my daughter will end her program. Might another city be a better base of operations? It seemed that Basel is convenient to explore all 3 countries. Another thing is that we will most likely fly into Zurich but do not have to depart from there. Thanks.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Being "in Basel" will definitely be more convenient than "the Basel area", I was just going by what you said in your original post but it will be more expensive, it is city prices. And you will be in the right place to get trains for all your day trips. It is a better connected city than any of the other options in the area. If you are in a hotel in Basel city you get free Public Transport in the city for the duration of your stay. Do not even think of driving in the centre of Basel, trams rule!
For the one or two places where you might need a car (Alsatian wine route), you can hire a car for one or two days.
Click here for the official Basel tourist website: https://www.basel.com/en
It has accommodation in and around Basel, plus lots of tourist info.
There are regular trains (2 per hour) from Zürich airport to Basel, takes 1½ hours - easy.