Here are my impressions and tips from our December winter-wonderland travel on the Glacier Express, a trip that I wanted to do from the moment I heard it exists.

If you follow people who live in Switzerland through Instagram, you will without a doubt come across the classic picture of the Aescher Berggasthaus. Carved into the mountain, this little wooden house, with a pointy roof and a panoramic patio, looks too good to be true. But a pleasant 20-minute descent from the Ebenalp peak down the path that goes through fields and a cave, on the last curve, you walk right into this postcard view.

This tiny little village in the Italian part of Switzerland has been my tiny little dream ever since I found out that I’ll be moving to Zürich.

Who knew that just two hours by train from Zürich there is a little slice of southern paradise? Think palm trees, green hills, bright flowers, pink houses, lots of boats, narrow cobblestone streets and warm sunshine even when the rest of Switzerland is still doing the gray spring thing.