Hearty cuisine is a given in Switzerland where you can feast on carb-rich, filling savory and sweet dishes. Let’s start with the cheese – around 450 different kinds, predominantly made from cow’s milk but a small percentage using sheep or goat’s milk.

While multiple copy-cat ‘Swiss’ cheeses can be found in other parts of the world, Emmental, Gruyère, Appenzeller, Sbrinz, Schabziger, Tilsit and Vacherin-Fribourgeois are just some of the native cheeses that are worthy contenders for your palate. Not surprisingly, cheese forms the base of many customary recipes, such as: rosti – like a hash brown comprised of fried grated potato, onion and cheese; fondue - where bread is dipped into a concoction of melted cheese, wine and garlic; ‘raclette’ - comprised of raclette cheese melted in layers over boiled potatoes, pickles, onions and sometimes cured meats; and ‘tartiflette’ - creamy Reblochon cheese melted over potatoes, bacon and caramelized onion. 

Supposing cheese isn’t your thing, other popular foods that are readily available include delicious breads, sauerkraut, meat dishes (mainly veal, beef, pork, chicken or turkey) accompanied by potatoes and generous servings of vegetables and many pasta dishes. If you’re the sort that lives for dessert, Switzerland will be good to you, with heavenly chocolate in abundance and treats like meringues, Apfelküchlein (deep fried apple cookies, accompanied with vanilla sauce), wonderfully sweet Basel cookies, Nusstorte (a short crust tart with a nut filling), Vermicelles (a pastry tart filled with puréed chestnuts refined with butter or cherry brandy) and Engadiner Torte (a layered cake with vanilla butter cream and a Florentine top).

Breweries are plentiful in Switzerland and consequently, you’ll have your pick of craft beers. Appenzeller, Eichhof and Feldschloesschen are some of the favorites with locals. 

Like many European countries, the Swiss make their own varieties of wine, with Pinot Noir, Chasselas, and Gamay being some of the most significant. Liqueurs also play a dominant role when it comes to beverages. Made from the juice of cherry pits, Kirsch is a common choice, as is Pflümli (made from plums) and Träsch (brandy made from cider pears). 

Hot beverages like coffee, tea and hot chocolate will keep you toasty in colder altitudes. Meanwhile, refreshingly cold soft drinks like Flauder, Elmer Citro, Rivella, Passaia and Goba Cola are perfect in the Swiss summer sun. Chocolate even finds its way into soda in the form of Choclo (chocolate-flavored carbonated Swiss water). 

As a small, mountainous, landlocked country, Switzerland is geographically surrounded by Austria, France, Germany, Italy and Lichtenstein. In addition to the Alpine region in the South, Switzerland’s two other significant landscapes are the Jura Mountains and the hilly Swiss Plateau. The latter is where approximately 70% of the population reside, as most of the main towns and cities are located here. 

With close to 1,500 lakes, seven major rivers and large glacial expanses, Switzerland has a temperate climate that varies depending on altitude. Higher altitudes bring colder temperatures that make it difficult for fauna and flora to survive. Animals that have specially adapted to life in the Swiss mountains include chamois, ibex, marmots and red deer. Nearly 400 different varieties of bird inhabit this country, including kestrels, hawks, eagles, cranes, swans, woodpeckers and kingfishers. Meanwhile, the lakes and rivers attract beavers and otters (once both extinct in this region due to overhunting but now protected and making a comeback) and multiple freshwater fish species, such as trout and Atlantic salmon.