Quality of life
In Canton Schwyz, you live where others take their holidays. Whether physically active pursuits or relaxation – the opportunities are right on your doorstep. The canton’s topography lends itself to long cycle tours, refreshing dips in the lakes and challenging mountain hiking.
Canton Schwyz is extraordinarily diverse. Gersau enjoys a captivating Mediterranean climate. The delightful Muota valley is known not just for its weather prophets, but also for the Hölloch, one of the largest cave systems in the world. Exclusive lakeside cafés and traditional mountain inns invite visitors to relax, whilst those who long for the island life can take a trip to Ufenau in Lake Zurich or Schwanau in Lake Lauerz.
Schwyz Tourism offers extensive information on excursions, day trips and leisure activities of all kinds.
Culture
Formerly simple agricultural land, today Canton Schwyz is valued for its rich cultural heritage. The people of Schwyz foster a traditional, varied cultural life which is also open to new cultural forms. The canton’s broad cultural offering is complemented by those of nearby Lucerne and Zurich.
- Culture in Schwyz
- Einsiedeln Monastery
- Museums in Schwyz
- Museum of the Swiss Charters of Confederation
- Vögele Cultural Centre
- Culture in Lucerne
- Culture in Zurich
Living
Canton Schwyz is a natural paradise nestling between Lake Zurich and Lake Lucerne. With imposing mountains, rolling hills, picturesque shorelines and pristine pastures, Canton Schwyz offers an outstanding place to live amongst unsullied and easily accessible surroundings.
Education
Switzerland’s education and training system is rated as one of the best in the world. With public-sector and private schools, universities and universities of applied sciences, the education offered in Canton Schwyz and its neighbouring cantons encompasses the entire spectrum of the Swiss education system.
High standard of education
The school system is characterised by high-quality teaching and a comprehensive range of educational options. Each municipality in Canton Schwyz has at least one kindergarten and one primary school. Secondary and vocational schools are to be found in all larger urban centres. High schools are available in Schwyz, Pfäffikon/Nuolen, Einsiedeln, Immensee and Ingenbohl (Brunnen), whilst international schools are found in Pfäffikon and Wollerau.
High-quality vocational training
The Swiss economy is a beneficiary of the country’s solid vocational training. This not only gives young people an introduction to the world of work, but also aids integration and keeps companies supplied with a qualified workforce at all levels of the hierarchy. Around two-thirds of young people opt for vocational training after their compulsory schooling.
The vocational training system is very much oriented towards the labour market. It is defined and developed by the Confederation working alongside the cantons and relevant labour organisations. As a result, the qualifications gained by trainees in Switzerland are geared towards the needs of the economy. The excellent quality of the vocational training helps to reinforce Switzerland’s credentials as a place of work, of education and training, of research and of innovation.
Canton Schwyz offers vocational training centres in Goldau and Pfäffikon, together with commercial vocational schools in Lachen and Schwyz.
Renowned universities
Switzerland offers a broad range of educational and training opportunities on a tertiary level. The system distinguishes between two types of equivalent institutions, each with its own mandate – the traditional university and the university of applied sciences. The former tends to specialise in pure research and bases its teaching on the findings. The latter exhibits a stronger orientation towards professional training and focuses more on applied research and development.
All universities in Switzerland offer degrees at bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral level under an internationally comparable system of academic qualifications.
A variety of rankings (QS, THE) confirm the enviable reputation of Switzerland’s universities, with six of the country’s institutions in the world’s top 200. These include the University of Zurich and the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETHZ), both of which are just a short trip away from Schwyz.
