Switzerland

Want a Weekend Getaway? Try These Cities

Published October 11, 2017 | By Clark Norton

Zurich, Switzerland, is ranked as the top city in the world for baby boomers. Photo courtesy of myswitzerland.com

Sometimes you can only get away for a weekend, and the folks at weekenGO.com (I like the name) commissioned a thorough study to find the best cities around the world in which to spend 48 hours.

They looked at criteria such as walkability, accommodations, dining, bars, cultural events, museums and galleries, green spaces, safety and security, tolerance, and more, surveying 1,000 cities in all.

And along with overall winners, they picked the best cities for three different groups: millennials, families, and yes, I’m glad to say, baby boomers.

The list is heavy on European cities, for good reason — they’re usually easy to get around, have lots of activities going on, are rich in historic and artistic treasures, etc.

Now, most Americans aren’t likely to jet off to London — the overall… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Bucket Lists, Cities, Europe, Foreign travel | Tagged England, London, Switzerland, top weekend getaways, WeekenGO.com, Zurich | Leave a comment

San Marino? Bhutan? My Quirky Bucket List

Published October 19, 2016 | By Clark Norton

Punakha monastery, Bhutan Photo by Dennis Cox/WorldViews

In our last two posts, we took a look at some of the most popular travel-related bucket list destinations and activities based on a survey of 1,000 travelers by the website TotallyMoney.com. You can view those results, and my comments, by clicking here and here.

While my own experiences with a few of the items — such as gambling in Las Vegas — were on the margins (in the case of Vegas, dropping a few quarters into slot machines), I had pretty much done all those on the list.

My own bucket list tends to be a little quirkier than most. Places that end up on my list are pretty far-flung, represent something I’ve missed in past trips, or are just items that fulfill my admittedly peculiar travel obsessions. (I suspect that a lot of baby boomer frequent travelers’ lists are… Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Baby boomer travel, Boat travel, Bucket Lists, Countries, Cruises, cultural travel, History, river cruises, South America | Tagged Angkor wat, baby boomer travelers, Bhutan, Bolivia, Burma, Cambodia, Italy, Jungfraujoch, Lake Titicaca, Laos, Myanmar, San Marino, Switzerland | 3 Comments

Top European Natural Wonders (Part 2)

Published February 25, 2016 | By Clark Norton

Santorini’s harbor is part of an ancient volcanic caldera that wiped out Minoan civilization. Photo from Visit Greece.

Here’s Part 2 of our two-part series on Ten Top European Natural Wonders, starring five more incredibly scenic spots on land, on water, and up in the sky:

The Greek Island of Santorini

If you bypass the often-crowded Aegean island of Santorini — also known as Thira or, in ancient times, Thera — due to its popularity as a sun-soaked tourist destination, you’ll also be missing one of the most memorable and expansive seascape panoramas in all of Europe.

Few views can compete with those from a terrace perched high atop the cliffs overlooking Santorini’s deep, seven-by- four-mile circle-shaped lagoon, formed from a mostly underwater caldera left by a titanic volcanic explosion some 36 centuries ago. One of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in history, it wiped out the island’s… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Countries, Europe, river cruises, Wildlife | Tagged Abisko Sweden, Alps, Atlantis, Aurora borealis, Austria, Chamonix, Denmark, Douro Valley, Eiger, Faroe Islands, France, Greece, Greek Islands, Italy, Jungfrau, Matterhorn, Mönch, Mt. Blanc, Northern Lights, Porto, Portugal, Santorini, Sweden, Switzerland, Thira | 2 Comments

Under the Spell of Switzerland’s Jungfrau

Published July 21, 2014 | By Clark Norton

On the hike up the Mannlichen. Photo from Swiss Tourism

Though it lacks the glitz and glamour of St. Moritz, Gstaad, or Zermatt, the Jungfrau region may be the most truly “Swiss” of any alpine resort area in Switzerland.

All the prototypical Swiss images are here: the towering snow-capped peaks, the glacier-cut valleys, the flower-blanketed meadows, the rushing rivers and thundering waterfalls, the neatly trimmed A-frame chalets, the colorful little cogwheel trains chugging up the hillsides.

If you encountered Heidi on your morning walk, you wouldn’t blink twice.

And while towns like Wengen, Mürren, and Grindelwald may not be household names in the U.S., the Swiss know them well. The Jungfrau was one of the first alpine resort areas in Europe, and the Swiss have flocked here for outdoorsy vacations for more than a century.

While no area of Switzerland is exactly a budget haven, the Jungfrau region – situated… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Countries, Hiking | Tagged Grindelwald, Jungfrau, Jungfraujoch, Männlichen, Mürren, Switzerland, Wengen | Leave a comment

According to government and private surveys:

Leading-edge baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1955) and seniors account for four out of every five dollars spent on luxury travel today.
Roughly half the consumer spending money in the U.S.--more than $2 trillion--is in the hands of leading-edge baby boomers and seniors.
Baby boomers (born 1946-1964) travel more than any other age group.
When asked what they would most like to spend their money on, baby boomers answered “travel” more than any other category, including improving their health or finances.