40 Best Sights in Eastern Switzerland, Switzerland
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Kathedrale
Mt. Säntis
Recommended Fodor's Video
Münster zu Allerheiligen
This beautiful cathedral, along with its cloister and grounds, dominates the lower city. Founded in 1049, the original cathedral was dedicated in 1064, and the larger one that stands today was built in 1103. Its interior has been restored to Romanesque austerity with a modern aesthetic (hanging architect's lamps, Scandinavian-style pews). The cloister, begun in 1050, combines Romanesque and later-Gothic elements. Memorial plates on the inside wall honor noblemen and civic leaders buried in the cloister's central garden. You'll also pass through the aromatic herb garden, so beautiful that you may feel you've stepped into a tapestry.
The centerpiece of the main courtyard, the cathedral's enormous Schiller Bell, was cast in 1486; it hung in the tower of the cathedral until 1895. Its inscription, vivos—voco/mortuos—plango/fulgura—frango ("I call the living, mourn the dead, stop the lightning"), allegedly inspired the German poet Friedrich von Schiller to write his "Lied von der Glocke" ("Song of the Bell").
Napoleon Museum Thurgau
Rheinfall
The Rheinfall is 492 feet wide, drops some 75 feet in a series of three dramatic leaps, and is split at the center by a bushy crag straight out of a 19th-century landscape painting. The effect—mist, roaring water, jutting rocks—is positively Wagnerian. Goethe saw in the falls the "ocean's source," although today's jaded globe-trotters have been known to find them "cute." A visitor center at the nearby Schloss Laufen includes a souvenir shop, restaurant, playground, and new bridge walkway that lets you see, hear, and get sprayed by the falls.
Stiftsbibliothek
Although the abbey was largely destroyed in the Reformation and closed down altogether in 1805, its library, built between 1758 and 1767, still holds a collection of more than 170,000 books and manuscripts. To visit the library hall, one of Switzerland's treasures, you are given gray felt slippers to protect the magnificently inlaid wood flooring. The hall is a gorgeous explosion of gilt, frescoes, undulating balconies, and luminously burnished woodwork, mostly walnut and cherry. Its contents, including 1,200-year-old manuscripts, constitute one of the world's oldest and finest scholarly collections. Also on display, incongruously, is an Egyptian mummy dating from about 650 BC. Not to be missed is the giant globe representing the world in 1570, with grossly misproportioned continents. The original was stolen by Zürich about 300 years ago, and in 2009 this reproduction was given to St. Gallen in lieu of the original.
Altstadt
Amden
Appenzeller Volkskunde Museum
Arbon
With a gravel beach, Strandbad Buchhorn in Arbon makes getting into the water a little rough on tender feet; the nearby swimming pool is much smoother. Amenities: food and drink; showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: sunsets; swimming
Arbon
Brauquöll Appenzell Visitor Center
Drei Weieren
Fronwagplatz
Gerberstube
Haus zum Ritter
Hohenklingen
Kloster St. Georgen
Kreuzlingen
This beach has some sand at the water's edge, though you'll be spreading your towel on the grass. If you don't want to swim in the lake, you can also swim in the lakeside 50-meter swimming pool. Amenities: food and drink; parking (free); showers; toilets. Best for: sunsets; swimming.
KrippenWelt Stein-am-Rhein
Mühleggbahn
Just a few steps from the abbey, at the end of the Old Town, is the Mühleggbahn, a self-service funicular that runs up the hillside, offering lovely views of St. Gallen and the Bodensee. Once at the top, take two immediate right turns to the wooden stairs leading to a paved path with park benches. For a single ride only, choose the "Kurzstrecke" button when you buy your ticket.
Mülenenschlucht
A 30-minute walk up the steep Mülenenschlucht takes you past the mossy Steinach Gorge, where St. Gallus allegedly befriended a bear in 612. To commemorate St. Gallus's 1,400th birthday in 2012, the city installed a public art exhibit here that includes a self-opening time capsule embedded in a river rock (by German artist Maria Eichhorn) and a haunting neon sign atop the gorge's railroad viaduct (by Welsh artist Bethen Hews). There isn't much signage along the gorge, so pick up a helpful audio guide from the tourist office.
Munot
Museum Appenzell
Museum für Appenzeller Brauchtum
Museum zu Allerheiligen
Rathaus
Romanshorn
The lakeside beach in Romanshorn includes a pool and a waterslide, as well as wide swaths of grass to lie on. Amenities: food and drink; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: sunsets; swimming.