Survival Tips for Studying Abroad in Switzerland

Studying and living in Switzerland isn't kind to the wallet. I studied in Winterthur, the German part of Switzerland, so I went to Konstanz for groceries regularly, and I also spent a bomb on transport within Switzerland because I took numerous day trips. Here's some pointers to help you save some pennies.

1. Train concessions

If you are planning to travel a lot within Switzerland, purchase the Half-fare and Track 7 concession passes from SBB. SBB is the train operator in Switzerland. The Half-fare travelpass offers you discounts on your train and bus tickets, while the Track 7 pass allows you to ride on the train for free after 7pm. These 2 passes are valid for a year, and only for those below 26 years old.

2. Budget flights

There are 3 airports in Switzerland, located in Zurich, Geneva and Basel. Note that budget flights like EasyJet frequent the Basel airport, so choose this airport to fly from if you want to save on flights.

To get to Basel from Zurich, you can either take the SBB train or FlixBus. The SBB train is definitely more reliable (Swiss trains are known to be very punctual), but more expensive, at about 27 CHF (~ 38 SGD). It takes roughly 1 hr 20 mins, Flixbus would cost about 10 euros (~15 SGD), and the journey takes about 1 hr 30 mins.

I'd personally take the bus option to save money, but it is less reliable since the journey is subjected to traffic conditions. Depending on the time, if it's in the morning or evening, traffic would be heavy and I think it's better spending more money to take the train than risk reaching the airport late.

3. Prepaid Phone Plan

You'll need a working number if you want to connect to the free WiFi at the train stations. There are a couple of mobile providers, such as one that requires you to pay 15 CHF for each month.

I bought a prepaid card by Swisscom with a value of 20 CHF (20 CHF is the minimum amount for this prepaid card, and that's about 28 SGD) for and it will deduct the money accordingly when I make a call or send a SMS. I usually call or sms when I need to contact the Airbnb hosts. You can use the data whenever you need, and it costs 2 CHF (~ 2.80 SGD), until 11.59pm the same day you switch the data on.

Just... be less dependent on your phone.

4. Free toilets

Sorry, free toilets aren't easy to find in Switzerland or anywhere else in Europe. Unlike in Singapore where you can easily find free toilets in shopping malls and train stations, you'll need to pay about 0.70 CHF (that's 1 SGD!) to use the toilet at the train station. Though toilets on the SBB trains are usually not very clean, try to use them before alighting.

5. Cook and pack your own meals

Restaurant meals cost at least 20 CHF (that's about 27 SGD)! The fast food restaurants are also much more pricey than anywhere else on earth. You can buy meals at Migros Takeaway, which could be your best bet. Be your own chef and cook, you'll save a lot more money.

If you are on a day-trip within Switzerland, skip the restaurants or cafes. Pack some sandwiches, wraps, drinks and fruits and have a nice picnic while enjoying the scenery.

6. Groceries

If you stay in the Northern parts of Switzerland, do your groceries shopping in Konstanz, a German town that lies on the border of Switzerland. Things are cheaper here, especially meat. In Switzerland, a pack of 400g minced meat costs about 4 CHF, while it cost approximately 2-3 euros in Konstanz. Get your groceries from the supermarket, Aldi, located at the basement of Lagos, the shopping mall. Lagos is only 3-5 mins walk from the train station. It's really convenient to head down to Aldi, but it's quite small. For a larger selection of dried products and fresh food, you can choose to go to Kaufland, 30 mins' walk away.

If you need personal care items and toiletries like shampoo and make-up, go to dm (also in Lagos) / Müller (about 5-7 mins walk from the train station). Müller has a huge selection and it's 4 times bigger than dm.

Here's a little tip: If you are heading to Konstanz to get your bottles of shampoos and a week's worth of groceries, bring a luggage or a hiking bag, or additional groceries bag. It's more manageable. (That's what we did, we brought a hiking bag!). You'll need to pay for each plastic bag, so better to bring a shopping bag.

#Workout