If you’re dreaming of an incredible Swiss ski experience, Zermatt, home of the Matterhorn, delivers. Insane mountain scenery paired with an old-style European village transport visitors to a winter paradise.

Winter and summer months alike, I always urge friends and family enjoying Swiss vacations to experience Zermatt, at least for a night or two. Located just a few hours via car or train from both Geneva and Zurich, Zermatt is surprisingly easy to access given the remote location.

Navigating a ski resort in Europe is not an intuitive experience. Many of the resort areas are vast and comprised of multiple ski areas within a single destination. Language barriers create additional complexity.

Last week’s Photo Friday post featured Grindelwald in the Jungfrau Region of Switzerland. Grindelwald is a stunning winter destination and the ultimate Swiss Alps ski experience. Due diligence, however, is required to ensure you experience more pleasure than pain. It’s worth it!

When you ski in the Alps, you’re skiing mountains not runs. The sense of open space is incredible and one of the things that makes skiing in Switzerland so epic.

Here’s a shot of our 9-year-old Devon skiing in Grindelwald, Switzerland last weekend. Believe it or not, this was taken on a bluebird Saturday, i.e. where are the other people?

If you didn’t know better and arrived in the city of Lugano on Lake Lugano, you’d think you were in Italy. You hear Italian, it looks Italian, and it tastes Italian. Surprise, surprise — the city of Lugano is part of the Ticino region of Switzerland.

We had an parents-only getaway to Lake Lugano this fall. The scenery is very striking with rugged mountains that rise right out of the lake.

I have yet to meet an expat in Switzerland who is familiar with Adelboden at first mention, although I know the resort is popular with Swiss ski fans as it hosts the FIS Ski World Cup in January (2012 dates are January 7-8).

Adelboden is in the Bernese Oberland, a mountainous area packed with natural beauty. I’ve covered Mürren and Grindelwald on the blog; Adelboden is in the valley before the Lauterbrunnen/Mürren/Grindelwald exit as you head down the motorway towards Interlaken.

Our last stop on my recent Jungfrau Region tour in Switzerland was Grindelwald, home to a huge range of summer and fall activities (not to mention world-class skiing).

Unfortunately, mother nature was not our friend for our overnight in here — it absolutely poured almost every minute we were there. The highlight of this area is the epic mountain views, and we saw none of them.

The reality of mountain vacations …

Last week for Photo Friday I covered glorious Mürren in the Jungfrau Region of Switzerland. Our itinerary included a stop at Trümmelbach Falls.

The Michelin Guide gives the falls one of their coveted 3 star ratings. We discovered the reason for this — Trümmelbach Falls is quite simply astounding as visitors witness …

One of the best summer activities in Switzerland is hiking through the Alps. You see people of all ages and abilities enjoying the endless jaw-dropping mountain scenery on foot.

It’s easy to set off with babies and toddlers in carriers or backpacks — more challenging is motivating school-age kids to go for any consequential distance. Fortunately, our Swiss friends have thought through this …

Every once in awhile we do a Photo Friday post that has nothing to do with traveling with kids. This week is one of them. For a good reason … I’m a moon junkie and will drive long distances to watch the full moon rise. This week I didn’t have to go far to get a dose of moon magic.

We are lucky enough to live on the shores of Lac Leman (Lake Geneva) and have a view of France (Evian) from our bedroom window. The full moon setting across from us was so bright that it woke me up.

We’ve had an unbelievably warm and sunny spring in Switzerland this year. So much so that the flowers are blooming a few weeks earlier than usual.

I’ve been waiting all year for the fields of Narcissus in the mountains around Lac Leman (Lake Geneva) to bloom. Hooray, they are finally here and do not disappoint! Two of the best known places for Narcissus viewing are in the mountains above Montreux — Glion and Les Avants.