Let me guess — you’re coming to Switzerland but have no idea what to pack? You’re in luck! We’ve spent more than 2 years traveling Switzerland and now we get to call this lovely country our home!
So we’re gonna open up our suitcases and show you exactly what we pack for a Swiss vacation in every season of the year.
Before we show you what’s inside our closet on wheels, let’s talk about what you actually need to buy. Because going on a Swiss vacation is already expensive enough. So what’s really worth splurging on before your trip?
Follow along using our FREE SWITZERLAND PACKING LIST!
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What To Buy Before Your Trip to Switzerland
1 | Invest in a good suitcase
Invest in a good suitcase, not just so it won’t fall apart on you, or so the handle won’t get stuck, or so the zippers don’t bust. (We’re speaking from experience!) But because you’re going to be hauling that suitcase on and off a lot of trains and buses.
Most people who come to Switzerland will ride the public transportation. It’s super convenient and can take you just about anywhere, and sometimes it’s the only way to get up into the Swiss Alps. Not to mention that a lot of travelers book a scenic train ride like the Bernina Express or Glacier Express!
Unfortunately, there are no porters to load your luggage for you, which means you will be hefting your bag up all the steps, throwing it onto a luggage rack, sliding it between seats, and dragging it off again at the next stop. So a sturdy suitcase is essential.
By the way, if you wanna see how to ride a train with luggage, read this next!
And if you like to keep things clean and tidy like Jana, then you’ll want to opt for a hard shell suitcase so you can easily wipe it down during your trip. We both use and recommend the Away Carry On because it’s compact enough for airlines and easily fits our necessities.
By the way, a new suitcase makes a great gift, so add it to your birthday or Christmas wishlist!
2 | Buy packing cubes
I’m honestly not sure how we lived without packing cubes! They’re just little zippered bags to keep your clothes organized, but to me, they feel more like a Mary Poppins bag because they hold way more than you’d think!
The method is simple: partially unzip the packing cube, roll your clothes, stuff inside, zip up a little more, stuff more clothes inside, then zip closed. For context, I’m an extra small and can fit approximately 10 t-shirts in here. Brett’s a medium and he can fit 6-8 in his.
We’ve used eBags slim packing cubes since 2016 and love how they nest perfectly in our suitcases. Plus they have a lifetime guarantee, which is always nice.
3 | Bring laundry detergent sheets
The biggest hack to packing light? Doing lots of laundry. We know it takes a little time, but to us, it’s still worth it for the space we save. And we skip the hassle of liquid or powder laundry detergent by using these incredible laundry detergent sheets.
They don’t weigh a thing and easily squeeze into our suitcase. Oh, and they don’t require translating directions or converting measurements, which is something we always appreciate when traveling internationally.
You just toss one sheet into the washing machine with your clothes. Or if you need to hand wash, you simply tear off a small piece and dissolve it in the sink or rub it straight onto wet clothes.
You might have to get creative by hanging your clothes all over your hotel room or airbnb to let them dry, but many airbnb hosts will let you borrow a drying rack, and at least you won’t be airing out any more of your dirty laundry!
We’ve used this Breezeo brand for years now. They get the job done but do have a strong scent.
(Once these run out, Jana wants to try Ecos next since they’re made with more natural ingredients.)
Download our All-Season Switzerland Packing Guide!
By the way, you can shop for these items, and everything else we’re about to mention, using the links in our free Switzerland Packing List.
What to pack for Summer in Switzerland
And now, let’s get packing! Here’s what we pack for a summer vacation in Switzerland.
Jana’s list
- 2 pairs of pants. I prefer one pair of blue jeans and one pair of hiking pants.
- 2 pairs of shorts. I have one jean and one athletic pair.
- 1 skirt and 1 dress. These aren’t essential, but I like to dress up when we’re in the city or when we eat out for dinner. I just bought an athletic skort last year and love how it can be packed without getting wrinkled, and it’s sporty yet can be dressed up too.
- 2 undershirts, 4 tank tops, 2 short sleeve shirts, 2 long sleeve shirts. I prefer tank tops, but you could easily swap these to be 5 or 6 short sleeve shirts.
- 1 cardigan, 1 sweatshirt, 1 jean jacket. The sweatshirt is essential for cold mornings on the trails, while a cardigan and jean jacket are best for days in the city and can even be layered together.
- 1 lightweight down jacket and buff. It might be summer, but you still need a jacket!
- 1 rain jacket
- 1 pair of sandals, 1 pair of sneakers, 1 pair of athletic shoes. Keds are my ideal everyday shoe, while my Solomon trail runners are great for hiking or exercise. My Chaco leather sandals are both stylish and supportive.
- 5 to 7 pairs of socks, underwear, and bras, swimsuit, plus a pair of pajamas
Brett’s list
- 2 pairs of pants. I usually have 1 pair of hiking pants and 1 pair of khakis.
- 2 pairs of shorts, one of which is athletic (and doubles as my swimsuit).
- 2 undershirts, 5-6 short sleeve shirts, 2 long sleeve shirts. Undershirts and long sleeve shirts are perfect for layering on cold or damp days. One of my long sleeve shirts also has built-in UV protection.
- 1 nicer collared shirt
- 1 sweatshirt
- 1 lightweight down jacket and buff. It might be summer, but you still need a jacket!
- 1 rain jacket
- 1 pair of casual shoes, 1 pair trail running shoes, 1 pair of sandals. As far as shoes, my casual shoes are Sperry’s, I love my Altra trail running shoes, and only pack my Chaco’s if we’re gonna be swimming somewhere with rocky terrain.
- 5 to 7 pairs of socks, underwear
A few extra thoughts about what we pack:
I know, a blue jean jacket is really bulky, but it’s one of my favorite items to wear and therefore I wear it a lot when we travel. So here’s your permission to pack one splurge item that you just really love!
It’s important to make sure that nearly all of your shirts match all of your bottoms. That way you truly have endless outfits!
Our undershirts are merino wool so we can wear them multiple times. And since they’re the closest layer to your body, you can re-wear your actual shirts twice before they need to be washed.
You still need a jacket even if you’re visiting in the summer! One of the biggest reasons people visit Switzerland is to see the Swiss Alps. And the Swiss Alps are, well, mountains which means colder weather, even in the summer. For context, Jungfraujoch hovers right around freezing all year long and you can ski 365 days a year at Matterhorn Glacier Paradise. Trust me, you’ll want to stash a jacket in your bag!
And it’s best if your jacket packs pretty small and light. We pack our down jackets in a space saving bag or stuff sack so they take up less room.
A buff is a great multi use item that acts as a scarf, headband, hat, and sun shield. Ours even have built-in UPF protection, perfect for hiking in Switzerland.
If you prefer an umbrella, you can bring that in lieu of a rain jacket. But we like to always keep our rain jackets in our day backpack in case of rain, because they double as a windbreaker, warmer layer, and even a temporary picnic blanket. Plus, it’s nice to be able to get out no matter the weather, and we rarely see the Swiss hiking with an umbrella!
Remember that you’re wearing one of your pairs of shoes so you’re only squeezing 2 pairs into your suitcase! But you can eliminate the sandals if you need extra space.
Oh, and an extra little tip. Wear bulkier items on your travel days. For example, your bulkiest shoes. This helps you fit more in your suitcase!
Nearly all of our clothes fit on the right side of our suitcase.
Don’t forget that you can pack just like us using our free Switzerland Packing List.
And before we flip to the other side of the suitcase, let’s talk about what we’d change if we were coming in Spring or Fall or Winter.
Weather in Switzerland
First, I have to give you a warning. Don’t trust your cell phone weather app! If you’ve seen our other videos, then you know we’re big fans of MeteoSwiss because it’s the most accurate weather website we’ve found for Switzerland, and it’s particularly helpful when you start packing before your trip.
Secondly, we have a whole blog, video, and free download about the month-by-month weather in Interlaken you can check out next if you’ll be heading to the Jungfrau Region.
Third, we may be YouTubers but you won’t find any tech stuff in our suitcases. That’s because we have a separate backpack for that, and a separate video all about it too. Watch that here!
What to pack for Spring and Fall in Switzerland
- I, Jana, would trade one pair of shorts for an extra pair of pants.
- I’d still bring 1 dress, but leave out the skirt.
- I would also swap two tank tops for two more long sleeve shirts. That looks like 2 undershirts, 4 tanks or short sleeve shirts, and 4 long sleeve shirts.
- Depending on the weather, I might consider upgrading my sweatshirt for a warmer fleece, or swapping my jean jacket for another sweatshirt.
- I would also nix the sandals to just bring 2 pairs of shoes.
- And I’d probably toss in a light beanie and pair of gloves as well.
What to pack for Winter in Switzerland
And if I, Jana, was coming to Switzerland in Winter, I would basically pack completely differently 🙂 And since we recently hopped around to a handful of Swiss Christmas markets, this is fresh on my mind.
- I’d bring 2 pairs of pants and 2 pairs of leggings to layer under my pants. And maybe a pair of lined snow pants if I was planning to do any winter sports.
- I’d bring 2 or 3 base layer shirts, and make sure one of them was long sleeve.
- I’d pack 5 or 6 long sleeve shirts or sweaters, including at least one fleece pullover as an extra layer when it’s really cold.
- I’d pack 2 thin wool socks and 2 extra fluffy and warm socks.
- I would still bring 2 pairs of shoes, except one would be an ankle boot and the other would be a lined, taller boot. Thankfully you can wear one of these so you’re only packing one pair in your suitcase.
- I’d wear a warm jacket. Sometimes I just wear my fleece-lined snow jacket, and sometimes I wear both my down jacket and my pea coat. It just depends on the activities we will be doing!
- And of course I’d wear a warm hat and mittens, and maybe a scarf too.
What about the other side of our suitcase
The other side of our suitcase pretty much stays the same no matter what season of the year we’re traveling. Shoes, toiletries, makeup (for Jana), and vitamins. By the way, don’t forget to stuff your shoes with small items like socks to maximize the space in your bag!
As for toiletries, we have the same stuff as everyone else: toothbrush, hair brush, contacts, etc.
Jana also has a makeup bag and never travels without her SPF makeup. Brett doesn’t wear makeup, but his sensitive skin lives in sunscreen when we’re in Switzerland!
And of course we wanna be healthy when we travel, so we both have a small bag of vitamins too.
We also stash a mini first aid kit and sewing kit in Jana’s suitcase. (Although now that I think about it, it’s probably a better idea to keep the first aid kit in our hiking backpack!)
I also have collapsible containers, a few zipper bags, and chip clips on the side of my suitcase. They are perfect for carrying picnic food or snacks when we’re on the go. Because we pretty much always have food with us so we don’t get hangry.
There are always a few blank note cards in my bag too, because I love to write handwritten thank you notes to our hosts or people we meet during our travels.
What to Pack for Switzerland
If you’re planning your first trip to Switzerland, check our our video where we share 50+ essential things to know before you go.
Or watch this one next to see the month-by-month weather averages mentioned earlier! Thanks for finding our suitcases so interesting. We’ll see you in Switzerland!
Don’t forget to snag our free Switzerland Packing Guide for all seasons!
