Bern - the jewel in our Swiss Holiday

Advantages: lovely historic city
Disadvantages: may be limiting if you want a big city scene

...Earlier this year, we were searching for somewhere new to go for our annual 2 week holiday. In previous years we have mostly stayed in Dorset (UK) and France, and I have travelled a lot elsewhere in Europe. My son goes to football practice every Saturday and one of the other Dads suggested Switzerland. Immediately I could think of many reasons not to go there - its too upmarket, too expensive and surely its not going to be as hot as say the Mediterranean or the Costas? However I got a guide book and it seemed Switzerland had got a lot to offer - the Alps obviously, cycling and walking countryside, loads of Lakes (where the weather looked promising), culture, shops, historic cities and loads of scenic railway routes which would appeal to my son. We booked a self-catering chalet about 10 miles from Bern, and decided to take the car...

mark-southside 04.08.2006 · Read review
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Review of Bern (Switzerland)

Summer Break In Bern

Advantages: Good value, compact,safe and lots of places of interest
Disadvantages: Might not suit someone wanting exciting night-life

...Bern must be one of the best kept secrets in Europe when it comes to selecting a destination for a city break. Transferring from Zurich Airport was simplicity itself, as the airport station has a direct,express service to Bern which takes about 75 mins.Even with an 8 month old baby and buggy, the journey was stress-free, as our luggage was delivered directly to our hotel from the airport and vice-versa on the return journey. Our package on a 6 night stay with Kuoni was tremendous value, considering we were staying in one of the city's 5 Star Hotels, The Schweizerhoff, which is within easy walking distance of Bern's subterranean railway station. Bern is clean, safe and easy to get around. If you buy a travel pass, this covers transport on bus, tram , train and even steamer, if you wish to travel further afield. Contrary to...

sonnyrock 12.07.2000 · Read review
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Review of Bern (Switzerland)

Summer Break In Bern

Advantages: Good value, compact,safe and lots of places of interest
Disadvantages: Might not suit someone wanting exciting night-life

...Bern must be one of the best kept secrets in Europe when it comes to selecting a destination for a city break. Transferring from Zurich Airport was simplicity itself, as the airport station has a direct,express service to Bern which takes about 75 mins.Even with an 8 month old baby and buggy, the journey was stress-free, as our luggage was delivered directly to our hotel from the airport and vice-versa on the return journey. Our package on a 6 night stay with Kuoni was tremendous value, considering we were staying in one of the city's 5 Star Hotels, The Schweizerhoff, which is within easy walking distance of Bern's subterranean railway station. Bern is clean, safe and easy to get around. If you buy a travel pass, this covers transport on bus, tram , train and even steamer, if you wish to travel further afield. Contrary to...

sonnyrock 12.07.2000 · Read review
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Review of Bern (Switzerland)

Laying the ghost?

Advantages: an intriguing storyline
Disadvantages: disappointing characters

...I knew I was taking a bit of a risk reading ?A Ghost at the Table?, as it does not fit in with the usual books I read. However, I like to extend my reading horizons at times, the blurb on the back of the book was quite intriguing and it had received a number of good reviews so there was a good deal of promise. I?m not going to say that I disliked the book, because I didn?t, but it just didn?t grab me in the way that lots of books do and as a consequence, I admit to finding it hard going. I hate to give up on a book though so I did stick with it but it was a bit hard work at times! The Ghost at the Table is set in the US and is written by Suzanne Berne, who has won the Orange Prize for another of her novels. It takes place one Thanksgiving and focuses on a highly dysfunctional family as they get together to celebrate. The story is told...

kingfisher111 15.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of The Ghost at the Table - Suzanne Berne

Great for a City Break

Advantages: Luxurious, Excellent Service, Close to Everything
Disadvantages: Only one restaurant and no gym or swimming pool

...My mum and I booked this hotel via Travelbag's online site. We were a little apprehensive as we had paid upfront using a debit card and receieved only an email/electronic receipt, which we had to print off and take with us. We travelled for a 4 night stay at the beginning of December 2005. My mum, sister and myself arrived at Bern SBB (Station) and decided to walk to the hotel as it was not too far. It was about 10-15 minutes walk from the station; we were a little slow as we had trolley cases. Most people who arrived at the hotel used taxis or had cars, so we did get a few surprised looks when we turned up on foot and with our luggage. The staff at this hotel are extremely polite and helpful. Unlike many 5 * hotels, they were not stuffy and didn't look down on "regular" people who had decided to stay there. We had booked...

vlal21 06.01.2006 · Read review
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Review of Hotel Bellevue Palace, Bern

Going to the zoo zoo zoo, how about you you you?

Advantages: Nice range of animals, good vivarium, cheap/free
Disadvantages: Unhappy animals, lack of signing

...My mother has recently visited and obviously wanted to see as much of Switzerland as she could whilst she was here. Having trailed around mountains, lakes and cities we decided to visit the Tierpark (or zoo) in Bern, to appease our two year old who had been dragged around the aforementioned mountains, lakes and cities. We found a lovely place to park by the river on the road (Thormannstrasse) leading to the zoo. This area has the most parking spaces and a smaller hill to climb to get to the zoo, so aim for this area if you are coming in by car. If coming in by foot or by bus, the Tierpark is about 1.5 km south of the centre of town but I am assured that it is a pleasant walk along the river to get there. You can also pick up the number 19 tram from the centre of town which takes you there much quicker! At the bottom of the hill are...

historywitch 17.08.2007 · Read review
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Review of Tierpark Dählhölzli, Bern

Driving with Berne by Toby Doan

Advantages: 1st draft and I'm enjoying it!, feedback
Disadvantages: 1st draft, never done this before, feedback

...Foreword This is my log for my journey into Transactional Analysis (TA) and is written to demonstrate my understanding of self and others using knowledge and experiences gained whilst studying. As my journey in to TA started before The Berne, I have therefore intended to start two stops before my foundation year. To you the reader, I hope you enjoy reading my log as much as I have enjoyed writing it. I hope you understand and appreciate the mixture of information, comedy and realities of my discovery. The humor within this log is intentionally there for enjoyment and not to discount the seriousness of the subject. I make no apologies for the swearing and language in some of the dialogue. Time to buckle up and read on?.. Introduction In my eyes Life is not a box of chocolates, that is for films, fairy tales and Forest...

dboyton 31.10.2004 (14.11.2004) · Read review
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Review of Fiction

The City of Bären.

Advantages: Beautiful Historical City with all facilities and amenities
Disadvantages: The PRICES in the shops. Autobahn access can resemble "death race 2000".

...Bern is the capital of Switzerland, surprisingly few people know that. It is also a stunningly beautiful, and relatively quiet, city. The centre of Bern is in a small valley, the old city is built on an even smaller hill, the result is that the sprawling suburbs might as well not exist. The style of the city is Italianate, tall houses of golden sandstone built in high terraces. Most of the shops are tiny and set back behind the vaulted arcades at ground level. Bern is the perfect city to explore on a rainy day. There is much to explore. The earliest parts of the present city date back to the 17th century, but the cellars are much older still. Bern was built on an earlier city. Some of the excavations are preserved in the modern Banhof. My impressions of Bern are heavily laced with the scent of geraniums, which are...

mechanima 03.07.2000 · Read review
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Review of Bern (Switzerland)

A new experience...- Strasbourg and Bern

Advantages: Clean, cheap and can be well located
Disadvantages: none

...a credit card receipt - and it said DON'T LOSE! Next bit of fun was getting the main door open - tried several times, boyf got v v v cross with me and door and eventually with help of French old couple the door opened and room was found. From that point all was fine. Breakfast the next day was basic - tea/coffee, bread, marg, jam and croissants. No fancy fruit or ham like at IBIS. Bread was a little stale.... Moved onto Etap at Bern - this is again easy to find. Follow the straight ahead signs to the Wankdorf stadion (yes the name is correct - i have pictures to prove it) and the Etap is located with a Novotel and IBIS in one huge building. Right opposite on Mingerstrasse (yes - I have pics to prove this as well) is the tram to the city centre. This was a much posher Etap. You park in the £9 a night car park (yes a little steep...

eljacko6276 15.08.2004 · Read review
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Review of Etap Hotel, Strasbourg

A Dark Novel

Advantages: Great story line
Disadvantages: The changing time scale

......

stonea 21.07.2000 · Read review
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Review of A Crime in the Neighbourhood - Suzanne Berne