In Spain, when someone says they’re going for a walk in the hills, it usually means they’re setting off along a path they’ve known all their life, without a map, without signposts, and without much planning. In Switzerland, the equivalent has its own name, its own infrastructure and is enshrined in the Federal Constitution. It’s called Wandern, and it takes a while to realise just how seriously it’s taken.
Switzerland has over 65,000 kilometres of marked trails, which is equivalent to one and a half times the circumference of the equator. There are yellow signposts at every junction indicating destinations, distances and exact walking times. There are red and white signs for mountain routes, and blue and white signs for alpine routes. All of this information is available on official maps, apps and up-to-date websites. The Federal Hiking Trails Act of 1985 requires the cantons to plan, maintain and signpost these trails. Around 2,000 volunteers look after them. There is a national organisation, Suisse Rando, which coordinates everything. For a stroll through the woods.
What surprises visitors from Spain isn’t just the number of trails. It’s their density. It’s almost impossible to get lost because there’s a sign every two hundred metres. And if you head up into the Alps on a Sunday in July, you won’t be alone: 58 per cent of the Swiss population goes Wandern regularly. It’s just what people do. With the family, with neighbours you’d otherwise never see, with work colleagues on company outings. Since 2023, Wandern has been officially recognised as a living Swiss tradition. In Switzerland, many things aren’t forbidden. They’re simply regulated down to the last detail – including a walk in the woods.