Swiss City Guide: 12 hours in Neuchatel

Neuchatel is not a very touristic city and even if I live in Switzerland I was never in Neuchatel so far. But this changed last Saturday. It was the perfect weather for a city trip. A lot of sunshine and around 25 degrees. I was not able to see even one cloud. My journey started at around 10:30am at Neuchatel train station. And already the way to the train station was sensational, because of the great weather I was able to see all the mountains behind the lake. After seeing that view out of the train it was not questioned that I went directly to the lake first. I can recommend going to the Port and spending some time walking around this part of the lake. There are a lot of places where you can sit down and have a break. In such day trips, I always love to prepare some snacks at home. I will never understand why eating breakfast in a restaurant is so expensive (at least in Switzerland). For me, it is rarely worth eating breakfast in a restaurant, but don’t blame me, that’s just my opinion)

Neuchatel is not a very touristic city and even if I live in Switzerland I was never in Neuchatel so far. But this changed last Saturday. It was the perfect weather for a city trip. A lot of sunshine and around 25 degrees. I was not able to see even one cloud. My journey started at around 10:30am at Neuchatel train station. And already the way to the train station was sensational, because of the great weather I was able to see all the mountains behind the lake. After seeing that view out of the train it was not questioned that I went directly to the lake first. I can recommend going to the Port and spending some time walking around this part of the lake. There are a lot of places where you can sit down and have a break. In such day trips, I always love to prepare some snacks at home. I will never understand why eating breakfast in a restaurant is so expensive (at least in Switzerland). For me, it is rarely worth eating breakfast in a restaurant, but don’t blame me, that’s just my opinion)

Heading over to the old town you can find a lot of restaurants, cafes and other local places. Especially in the old town, you can find a lot of stores with local brands. In my opinion, local brands are too underrated and they should be more popular than they are. If you are in Neuchatel it is worth visiting a few of them. Exploring the old town was really exhausting and that’s why I became hungry and went for lunch at the “Brasserie Le Jura”. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was charming.

After lunch, I walked all way up to the botanical garden. The view from there over the city, the lake, and the mountains are just insane. If you don’t like botanical gardens it is still worth walking all the way up the city only for the insane panorama view.

After spending a little time at the botanical garden I walked back down to the city through small streets with great art. it almost feels like the smaller the streets the better the artworks. That means, keep your eyes open and try to walk a different way down than you walked up to the botanical garden.

Back in the old town, I took a little break at a small coffee shop and I ordered something to drink and a little snack to have enough energy for the rest of the day. What I love about old Towns is the number of restaurants, and coffee shops and the possibility to sit outside of a restaurant and enjoy all the noises, the discussions, and the atmosphere.

With full energy, I went back to the port and got a ticket for the boat.

With a certain train ticket, you can benefit from a discounted price. So check that they charging you the correct price. Usually, I don’t like going on a boat tour on a lake, because somehow I just get bored really fast. But today I was in the mood for a boat trip.

If you like history a visit to the history museum can be worth it, if History is nothing for you, you could also go to the archeology museum. This

After the boat trip, it was time to eat something for dinner before going back to the train station. I went to the restaurant called “Au Quai du Port” located directly at the port Neuchatel with a great view of the lake.

I was very surprised by the city of Neuchatel, I didn’t expect such a beautiful city. It was a mix between a historical town and a modern style. The old town was super charming with all the local stores and the old buildings. Even outside the old town, there were a lot of old buildings but somehow still with modern architecture. The view from the top over the city and the lake were sensational, I was even able to see the mountains in the back. The water of the lake was super clear and I was able to see all the stones and the fishes in the water. The promenade along the lake is very inviting for a long walk. (I can imagine it would be also good for a date 😌)

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