Swiss Discounts Not Only for Youth

Switzerland is expensive, but its scenery and cities are unforgettable. Now the Swiss Youth Hostel Assn. (SYHA) is making them cheaper to see with packages for independent travelers that include transportation and accommodations.

While the word “youth” is in the title, there is no age limit.

The SYHA Go-as-You-Please packages, designed for independent travelers, include a Swiss Pass that’s valid for unlimited travel on all trains, buses and lake boats of the 990-mile Swiss public transportation network. Not all Swiss railways are public, but the pass provides a 25% discount on most private railways.

The packages also include overnight accommodations with breakfast at any of 70 SYHA hostels, plus a special travel kit with maps and information. The lodging is in rooms sleeping several people; sheets are included but local taxes are extra.

A package that includes four nights’ accommodations and a four-day Swiss Pass is $241; eight nights’ accommodations and an eight-day Swiss Pass, $355; and 15 nights’ accommodations and a 15-day Swiss Pass, $512.

SYHA hostels are located in popular winter and summer resort areas. One popular destination for winter skiing and snowboarding, as well as summer hiking, mountaineering and hang gliding, is the beautiful glacier valley of Grindelwald. The SYHA youth hostel there is a 20-minute walk uphill from the rail station. It features 123 beds in rooms shared by two to nine people, and has a fireplace room and a wonderful view of the countryside. It’s within walking distance of the local swimming pool.

Even trendy, upscale St. Moritz has an SYHA hostel at Via Surpunt 60; telephone 011-41-81-833-39-69, fax 011-41-81-833-80-46. This hostel accommodates up to 190 travelers in rooms shared by two to four. It’s about a mile from the rail station, on the edge of the forest near the lake. The region has more than 200 miles of downhill ski runs, but for those who don’t have the budget for lift tickets, the hostel also directs you to a network of more than 95 miles of cross-country ski trails.

To arrange a Go-as-You-Please package, contact the SYHA tour company, Jugi Tours, Schaffhauserstrasse 14, P.O. Box CH-8042, Zurich, Switzerland; tel. 011-41-1-360-14-14 or fax 001-41-1-360-14-44. Ask for a free copy of the annual SYHA country map that indicates the locations and facilities of all the hostels. SYHA is affiliated with Hostelling International. For membership details, contact Hostelling International--American Youth Hostels in Santa Monica at (310) 393-9913.

The SYHA also publishes a free 54-page booklet called “Downtown Switzerland” that lists hostels in Basel, Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Lausanne, Lugano, Lucerne, Montreux, Schaffhausen, Sion, St. Gall and Zurich, and gives brief information on activities and sites in each area. For free copies ask at SYHA hostels or write to Swiss Youth Hostels, P.O. Box 161 CH-8042, Zurich, Switzerland.

Montreux is known for its jazz festival in early July and for the 11th century Cha^teau de Chillon. The Montreux Youth Hostel is at Passage de l’Auberge 8, 1820 Montreux-Territet (tel. 011-41-21-963-49-34) on the shore of Lake Geneva. Take bus No. 1 to Territet, or figure on a 30-minute walk from the rail station. The youth hostel has 114 beds in rooms shared by two to eight travelers. There is a dining room and a small garden.

For those who want to visit the castle, it’s a convenient 15-minute walk from the hostel. Jazz enthusiasts will find reminders of the famous annual event throughout the city. The dining room of the hostel is decorated with portraits of jazz superstars.

You’ll get your exercise hiking the hills in Lausanne, home of the Olympic Committee and an Olympic museum. You can reduce your entrance fee to them considerably with an International Student Identity Card. An SYHA hostel, the Jeuno^tel Lausanne, is at Chemin du Bois-de-Vaux 36, 10007 Lausanne (tel. 011-41-21-626-0222 and fax 011-41-21-626-0226), not far from the lake.

At the far end of Lake Geneva is the city of the same name. The Geneva Youth Hostel is at Rue Rothschild 28-30, 1202 Geneva (tel. 011-41-22-732-62-60, fax 011-41-22-738-3987). The SYHA youth hostel is in a new seven-story building and two old townhouses, and is surrounded by a park. It has 362 beds in rooms shared by two to 14 people, and there is a self-catering kitchen and cafeteria.

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Izon is a Toronto-based freelance writer. She can be reached at https://www.izon.com.