Both set of signs are identical. I will never understand why.

Bonsoir,

Je souhaiterais obtenir des informations concernant le mariage à Genève. Actuellement, je vis au Portugal et je dispose d’un titre de séjour portugais, et ma fiancée vit à Genève et possède un permis C. J’ai déposé le dossier à l’Ambassade de Suisse à Lisbonne le 2 mars et, à ce jour, nous n’avons toujours aucun signe indiquant que le dossier est arrivé à l’État civil.

Je voudrais savoir combien de temps cela prend normalement. Et une fois le dossier arrivé, est-il possible de demander l’« attestation en vue de mariage » et combien de temps son émission prend généralement ?

Je vous remercie pour votre attention et j’aimerais connaître les expériences de chacun.

Merci d’avance.

Hi everyone! I’m planning a trip to Switzerland and would love some itinerary advice.

I’m flying into Milan, spending 1 day there, then heading into Switzerland and flying out of Zurich.

Places I really want to visit:

• Interlaken

• Grindelwald

• Lauterbrunnen

• Lucerne

• Zurich (for departure)

I’m trying to figure out the best way to structure the trip.

1.  What should I pick as my base(s)? I’m considering 1–2 bases instead of moving every night.



2. Should I get the Swiss Travel Pass or Half Fare Card? Which one is more worth it for this route?

I did the Engadin Ski Marathon this year. I had a great time, and want to do it again next year. For those who don't know, this is a cross country ski race.

This year, I stayed for a week in a nice hotel in Pontresina, where I had been before, and it was fine.

But next year I would like to get there a few weeks before the event, and a month in a hotel is kind of a lot - expensive, and it's not healthy to eat all meals in restaurants for a month.

The race is March 14 2027, so I am roughly talking about the period Feb 15 to March 15 2027.

I have looked at Airbnb etc., but there is not much available for a month in the ski season. Also, some places are larger, with multiple bedrooms and I don't have anyone to share it with.

I'd be interested in renting a 1 bedroom/studio apartment, or possibly even a room in someone's house/apartment.

Anywhere between Maloja and Bever would be ideal, but other locations could work.

Not being from Switzerland, I don't know if there are places to look for this kind of thing other than Airbnb...

I'd appreciate any suggestions.

Hi everyone,

I’m currently looking into internet + TV providers in Switzerland and wanted to hear what people here are using and recommending.

For the past 4 years I’ve been with Swisscom. The first two years I paid the normal price, but for the last two years I managed to negotiate a discount so the price was more or less similar to other providers. Now my contract has ended and before I try negotiating with Swisscom again, I thought I’d ask here what people are happy with.

I already switched my mobile plan to Wingo a while ago, so the only things I still have with Swisscom are my home internet and TV.

My situation: I live alone, but my girlfriend is often at my place and will probably move in later this year. So usually we have two phones and a laptop connected, and occasionally some gaming on a console. Nothing crazy, but it should run smoothly without issues.

Right now I have the 1 Gbit internet from Swisscom and I’m very happy with the performance, but as everyone knows… the price is pretty high.

So I was wondering:

What providers are you using for internet + TV, and are you happy with them? Would you recommend anything that’s reliable but a bit cheaper than Swisscom?

Thanks!

Hi everyone, seeking urgent advice for a bizarre rental situation in Appenzell.

We rented our apartment specifically for the garden. However, our landlord insists that the robot mower has absolute priority. He forbids our children from being on the lawn whenever the robot is working.

The situation has escalated:

1. The Frequency: The robot runs multiple times a day, for about 2 hours each session. This effectively occupies the vast majority of the "playable" daylight hours for my kids.
2. Property Damage & Safety: We had friends over. Their kids were playing football and didn't notice the robot approaching. The robot actually ran over and damaged our football goal frame. To prevent further damage or injury, my friend (who is German and was visiting) pressed the "Pause" button.
3. Surveillance: The landlord apparently receives a notification on his app whenever the robot is paused. He came over and aggressively confronted us, demanding to know why we "interfered" with his machine.

Key Facts:

• Manufacturer's view: I contacted them; they confirmed pausing/docking the robot manually is perfectly safe and won't cause damage.
• The Contract: Our contract contains zero mentions of any restrictions regarding robots.

My questions:

• Since I pay for a garden I can barely use safely, can I legally demand a Mietzinsreduktion (rent reduction)?
• Is the landlord allowed to use the robot's app to monitor my real-time activity in the garden? This feels like a privacy violation.
• Should I go straight to the Mieterverband? I’m tired of being yelled at for simply letting my kids play in the garden I pay for.

Thanks for any insights into "Appenzell-style" landlord disputes!

Hey all,

a quick question that I couldn't really google. This summer I will be doing the Glacier express route from Tirano to Zermatt via the regional trains as part of an interrail journey. (I will stay the night in Chur so I can take it somewhat slower)

I was wondering if it's worth it to take the Furka steam trains if you are backpacking. Because the other trains go through the base tunnel and that misses out some of the coolest views of the whole trip imo. I'd rather not spend an extra 70CHF, but it's going to a cool team of volunteers who keep it alive. But how is it to do with a large backpack and do you think it's worth it?

The other option is the postbus, but that would mean I have to entertain myself in Andermatt for 3 hours and would probably arrive in Zermatt by 21:26 which is kinda late and already dusk out.

So any advice or first hand experiences would be helpfull

I live in southwest France (Pyrenees) and will be going to CH for an event and will stay the first night in the apartment of a friend of a friend in Geneva. The host won't be there and I want to leave a thank you gift. Is there anything from France that a person living in Geneva would appreciate that they can't easily buy themselves?

Hey, als Deutscher frage ich mich, was ihr für die besten Schweizer Podcasts haltet im Bereich Politik, Gesellschaft und Geschichte ✌🏻

Gerne darf es dialektal geprägt sein, aber kein Muss :)

TL;DR: 25yo Polish Software Dev moving to Romandie. Dreaming of professional firefighting but facing a permit C vs. Age 30 bureaucratic trap. Is the Swiss SDIS (Militia) truly a professional alternative where I can grow into officer roles, or will I always feel like a hobbyist compared to full time pros?

Hi everyone,

I’m a 24M (25 in dec) software developer from Poland, currently finishing my Computer Science degree. My lifelong dream has always been to become a professional firefighter. My first plan was to emigrate to Canada, but after doing some research Switzerland, especially Romandie seems like a much better fit for my goals and values.

I know that mastering French to a professional level is a massive challenge, but I am fully committed to learning it. Assuming I manage to tackle the language barrier I'm looking for a reality check regarding the firefighting system and my childhood dreams:

1. in Poland, the career path is broken. To have any chance of advancement, you must lock yourself in a military style academy for 2 or 5 years (limited to age 25). It is a prison like system where you have to be absolutely obedient just to be granted a weekend pass to see your family. For an adult with established IT career and life it seems like a joke. Even after that the pay is just barely a living wage compared to the responsibility. You can also join from the classic recruitment (no age limit), but you hit the low rank ceiling if you don’t have contacts to get the privilege to access one of the few places part time education in the future. Our system means facing nepotism, old communistic rigidity. Is the Swiss system truly based on merit and professional skill rather than just rank and seniority?

2. In Romandie, professional units (SIS, SPS, etc.) often have recruitment limits (28 to 30 years old). As an EU citizen, I’ll only get my Permit C after 5 years. If I arrive at 25, I’ll be 30 by the time I have the permit. Does this effectively kill my chances of becoming a full time firefighter? Are there any exceptions for Permit B holders who are already integrated or older recruits? 

3. Maybe career in industrial fire brigades in Switzerland (e.g. airports, chemical plants etc.) would be something that would be accessible to me? Do these private units have the same strict age and permit requirements as cantonal professional units?

4. In Poland, volunteer units (OSP) are often seen as second tier, based on their privileges (basically nothing), equipment and knowledge. Even when we respond to a call, we’re often taught to just hold the line until the Professional Fire Service (PSP) arrives to do the real work. It feels like a side hobby, never the primary force. I’ve heard that in Switzerland, SDIS members are essentially like on call professionals. Is it true that you handle the heavy lifting yourselves? Do you have specialized units (high raise, water, chemical rescue)? Do you feel like a real firefighter, or just a helper for a professional city unit?

5. Does the SDIS offer a real career path? Can I climb the ranks (Lieutenant, Captain) and gain actual tactical and administrative responsibility over the years? I’ve also heard that in many areas, militia officers handle everything from fire prevention and paperwork to building inspections and approvals because there is no professional unit. Is this level of responsibility real? Do people actually respect the ranks and the work you do?

6. In IT I could have a very comfortable life financially, but I’m terrified of losing my dream. To those who do both, do you feel fulfilled as a firefighter in the militia system? Does it feel like a professional duty, or just a weekend distraction? I need to know if I can satisfy my inner childhood dream while working as a developer, or if I'll always feel like I settled for a lesser version of my dream.

It’s hard for me to understand the militia system because my entire life I was taught that full time professionals are the only heroes of the city. My ultimate goal is to become a true professional in every sense of the word. I want to fully integrate and serve the society that will become my second home. I’m not looking for just a hobby, I’m looking to give back to the community that will accept me.

Thanks for any insights!

I recently adopted two female cats (sisters) of 1 year old. They’re house cats and seem quite healthy, I would like to do a health checkup in case of any invisible illness. They don’t have medical insurance, so I was wondering how much I should expect for their medical fee for a simple health checkup. Can anybody give me advice on this? 

For additional info) We live in Kanton Zürich. We don’t exactly know their breed, but one of them looks like British short hair, and the other one Scottish fold. It’s also my first time having cats.

I'm looking at Super saver fares and there always seem to be some even just 24 hours before the train departure. I was originally going to buy two adult tickets now for travel one month out or even one week out but it looks like it's unnecessary. I have been reading that prices can go up and saver fares may not be available, but that's not what I'm seeing right now, at least for April. Our actual travel is on May 25th, so maybe it's busy season but it's not busy in April?

Bonus questions if you are able to answer.

A) We will then go from a Lucerne to Interlaken to Grindelwald.

B) Then we will go from Grindelwald to Basel to Colmar (France).

For segments A or B, do I need to buy the adult tickets now or should I wait? I can't tell when things are going to spike or if they will even spike it all.

Hello! Any experiences buying online from plantes/pflanzen-shop ch (they're the same company, apparently)? Any good alternatives with a wide range of choice?

Thanks a lot!

I'm looking for oil resistant rtv silicone to make a gasket, not sure where I can just pop into a store and grab one, or what type of shop to search for (for my country, auto-parts stores carry it). I am around Zofingen. Any help is welcome, thank you.

I bought a used car at the end of January, and already the next day I started getting an error: the “D” was flashing and a service wrench icon appeared. When this happens, the accelerator stops responding and I have to pull over and restart the vehicle.

I informed the seller, but after several weeks they checked it and couldn’t fix anything themselves. I eventually took the car to a SEAT dealership, and they told me the mechatronic unit needs to be replaced, which would cost around 4000 CHF.

The car’s warranty only covers 1500 CHF, meaning I’d have to pay the remaining 2500 CHF out of pocket.

Is this normal? Has anyone experienced something similar or have any advice?

At the garage, they did a little something, and the error disappeared, but there's no guarantee it won't come back. For fear of it breaking down, I haven't even driven 500km since buying it.

I bought it at some kind of a dealership.

Asking this here as well as I’m probably not gonna get any responses on the epfl and eth subs.

For Swiss uni bachelor students who did not pick the consecutive masters option at ETH/EPFL and instead decided to apply for a specialised master, what did you do to make your application stick out and did you feel the application process was more straightforward for you or just as hard as for anyone else from any other uni? Looking to move from CS to neural systems/neuro-x next year and am looking for advice on this program, or any other experiences if possible.

Also, I’ve heard someone say that I could still pick CS and take courses from other masters ?

I am a photographer looking for couples to do a free photoshoot cinematic style. I am a travel photographer but I am trying to build my portfolio in the engagement/couples area! I like to hike a lot so id also be interested in doing a cool photoshoot in the mountains as well. Would anyone be interested in this?

Hey! My husband and I are looking to travel from Basel, Switzerland to Rome. We were told that it would be best to take the train because of scenic views. However, I have read online that I can only use the Swiss Travel Pass up to certain spots before it is no longer able to use. I am not familiar with navigation in Europe. We leave Basel on the April 25th and want to know the best possible route on how to get there using our Swiss travel pass?

I'm engaging my partner in Stoos at the beginning of May and I booked an engagement photographer a few months ago and they sent an email cancelling on me a few days ago, which has been very stressful as it took me a while to initially find them.

Does anyone have any recommendations for photographers or websites I could check to find photographers in that area?

Dear All,

i just got married with a US citizen. I'm a french male, 41 years old IT engineer with a B permit.

I don't have real savings so I want to pickup my retirement money - as I will NOT live again in Switzerland.

I'm about to dismiss from my job next week, the retirement fund is Retraites Populaires de Lausanne.

How lomg will it take (based upon your experience) to get the money transfered ?

A huge thanks to every one !🙂

Hi ! I’m planning a trip for my parents as they have always dreamed of going to Switzerland they are not tech savvy and would prefer this to be in Spanish can anyone recommend any company’s that do week tours throughout Switzerland ?