Visitors to Bern should consider an excursion to Solothurn (website: www.solothurn-city.ch), a picturesque baroque town. The Old Town is gorgeous, with its baroque facades along medieval streets, and the views from the cathedral tower are splendid. An old-fashioned chairlift takes you from Oberdorf up Solothurn's own mountain, the Weissenstein, where at 1,284m (4,213ft) above sea level you will find the Kurhaus Weissenstein hotel in Jugendstil (German art nouveau) style.

A trip to Brienz is also worthwhile, mainly because of the Brienz-Rothorn Railway (tel: (033) 952 2222; website: www.brienz-rothorn-bahn.ch), Switzerland's only steam cog railway, leading up the summit of Brienz Rothorn, 2,350m (7,710ft) above sea level).

Cheese lovers should visit the Emmenthal Exhibition Cheese Dairy, Affoltern (tel: (034) 435 1611; website: www.showdairy.ch), where there is a modern cheese-manufacturing plant, a restaurant, cheese shop and numerous events and exhibitions taking place all the time. You can also learn about old cheese-making techniques here. For instance, in the cowherd's cottage from 1741, cheese is made in a cauldron over an open fire.