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Sweden or Switzerland? Swedish tourist board launches campaign to explain the difference

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They are both countries in Europe that begin with S and 120,000 people a year mix them up, Google searches show.

Sweden’s tourist board has decided it is time to make it clear that the nation is not, in fact, the same country as Switzerland.

According to Visit Sweden, the two countries are constantly being mixed up.

To dispel confusion, the tourist board has launched a humorous new campaign.

Here’s how you can tell the difference between the two European countries.

Sweden launches video to show tourists it is not Switzerland

Visit Sweden’s campaign video is titled ‘Welcome to Sweden (not Switzerland)’ and was circulated on social media this week.

Each year, 120,000 people Google whether Sweden and Switzerland are the same country, according to news site SwissInfo.

A study conducted by Visit Sweden in the US found that half of the respondents were not sure if there was a difference between the two nations.

Even global leaders have made the blunder. During a NATO summit speech last year, US President Joe Biden erroneously referenced Switzerland while discussing Sweden’s bid to join the military alliance.

In the satirical video, an official representative standing at a podium between two Swedish flags addresses the “leaders and citizens of Switzerland.”

She declares that it is time to make the distinction between the two nations clear by deciding “who talks about what.”

Switzerland can talk about mountain tops, yodelling and watches, for example, but Sweden has a communication monopoly over rooftop bars, silence and forgetting about time.

“As long as both tourism organisations stick to this division in all communication with the outside world, the confusion should come to an end,” Sweden proposes.

How is Sweden different from Switzerland?

To make the distinction clear between the two countries, Visit Sweden has also detailed some ways in which the two countries differ on their website.

While Switzerland has one of the world’s largest gold reserves, Sweden has ‘forest gold’. Each autumn, Swedes forage for Chantarelles, a type of mushroom with a gilded sheen.

If you like historic banks, head to Switzerland, but if you prefer strolling down beaches and sandbanks, you should visit Sweden, the tourist board says. Sweden has 48,000 kilometres of coastline and wild archipelagos that jut out into the Baltic sea.

In Switzerland, you can “enjoy some spectacular light shows made with projections and LEDs,” Visit Sweden says, but “in Sweden there’s no need for electricity to put on a show.” The Nordic country has its own natural spectacle – the Northern Lights.

Finally, the tourist board reminds visitors that while Switzerland is a country of “many interesting sounds” like yodelling and cowbells, Sweden is a place of peace and quiet where the soundscapes will help you “wind down and connect with nature.”

Author

  • Daniela Daecher

    Daniela Daecher is a twenty-something bookworm and coffee addict with a passion for geeking out over sci fi, tv, movies, and books. In 2013 she completed her BA in English with a specialization in Linguistics. In 2014 she completed her MA in Linguistics, focusing on the relationship between language and communication in written form. She currently lives in Munich, Germany.

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Budget sightseeing: The most scenic bus routes in Britain for less than €3

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The discount fares can be purchased this week, until 21 April, on journeys up until 12 May.

If you fancy seeing some of Britain’s top sights on the cheap, this is the month to book some leave.

Travel tech company FlixBus is celebrating its 3rd anniversary in the UK by offering £2 (€2.34) tickets for coach services across England, Scotland and Wales.

The discount fares can be purchased this week, until 21 April, on journeys up until 12 May.

This year, FlixBus added connections to the city of Inverness as part of its Scottish Network, which will be included in the deal.

The company says it aims to make coach travel “as sustainable and affordable as possible”.

It recently launched an electric, long-distance, zero-emission route between Newport, Bristol and London.

Here are five of the best journeys available on the £2 offer.

Escape to the Scottish Highlands

Visitors seeking bracing air and epic scenery can take a four-hour bus from Glasgow to Inverness, stopping on the way in Perth.

The city of Inverness is considered the gateway to the Scottish Highlands.

From here, you can strike out into the countryside and lose yourself in heather-carpeted glens and granite mountains.

Journey back in time to the historic city of York

This route takes travellers from the city of Manchester to the historic heart of York in northern England. The journey takes two hours and 40 minutes, stopping at Bradford and Leeds on the way.

York is one of the UK’s cultural hotspots, home to the UNESCO-designated York Minster, a Gothic behemoth from the 13th century with medieval stained glass windows.

If it’s a sunny day, take a walk around the city walls – a reminder of York’s Roman past.

Harry Potter fans should leave time to stroll down the Shambles, a street of charmingly crooked half-timbered houses that bely its macabre past as a slaughterhouse.

Visit the vibrant city of Manchester

This route travels between the city of Birmingham and the city of Manchester passing through Stoke On Trent and stopping at Manchester Airport.

The two-hour and 45-minute trip gives travellers access to one of the UK’s trending tourist destinations.

Once the hub of the Industrial Revolution, Manchester is now home to a buzzing music scene, warehouses transformed into popups and co-working spaces and the unmissable Gay Village along Canal Street.

Chill out in the Cairngorms National Park

A three-hour bus from Glasgow takes travellers through the attractive Scottish towns of Perth and Pitlochry to Aviemore in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park.

Nature lovers will find ancient forests, secluded lochs and a funicular whisking you up to sublime valley views.

Author

  • Daniela Daecher

    Daniela Daecher is a twenty-something bookworm and coffee addict with a passion for geeking out over sci fi, tv, movies, and books. In 2013 she completed her BA in English with a specialization in Linguistics. In 2014 she completed her MA in Linguistics, focusing on the relationship between language and communication in written form. She currently lives in Munich, Germany.

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‘An excess of tourism’: Lake Como to introduce daytripper fee to curb visitor numbers

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This Italian lakeside city wants to impose a daily visitor fee.

Lake Como is glitzy, glamorous and engulfed by tourism.

The third largest lake in Italy, it sees as many as 1.4 million visitors a year descend on its shores.

The tourist numbers are proving overwhelming for the holiday hotspot in northern Italy, and one city is now considering introducing a tourist tax.

Mayor of the lakeside city of Como Alessandro Rapinese says he is mulling a Venice-style daily charge with suggestions that it could come into force soon.

Lake Como to introduce a daytripper fee

Rapinese has lambasted Lake Como’s overtourism saying it is “difficult to be mayor when you are fighting tourism”.

“We are already discussing the idea[ofa[ofatourist tax]. Revolutions begin with concrete measures and we are ready for this long journey,” he told UK newspaper The Times.

The fee would apply to daily visitors to the city of Como.

The mayor has not shared any further details about how much the fee will be, who will have to pay and when it will come into force.

If he uses the Venice model, the charge will apply to daytrippers (not those who have booked overnight accommodation in the city) and may be levied only on busy days like weekends and public holidays.

Lake Como battles overtourism

The chic lake has been struggling with soaring tourist numbers in recent years.

Crowds have boomed since several celebrities including George Clooney purchased multi-million euro properties along the shoreline and the lake provided a backdrop for films including Casino Royale and House of Gucci.

“I visited Lake Como last year and said I would never go back. Standards had dropped. Restaurants were disappointing in quality and price. Too many people to enjoy anything about the resort,” one visitor wrote on X.

Last summer, one lakeside villa which appeared in James Bond and Star Wars films was forced to limit visitor numbers.

Villa del Balbianello cut daily entries from 2,000 to a maximum of 1,200 to protect the historic house.

The Italian Fund for the Environment (FAI), which runs the property, called it “a drastic decision” but essential to counter the effect of “an excess of tourism that has an ever greater impact on Lake Como”.

Author

  • Daniela Daecher

    Daniela Daecher is a twenty-something bookworm and coffee addict with a passion for geeking out over sci fi, tv, movies, and books. In 2013 she completed her BA in English with a specialization in Linguistics. In 2014 she completed her MA in Linguistics, focusing on the relationship between language and communication in written form. She currently lives in Munich, Germany.

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Istanbul, Dalaman, Izmir: Where to go with Türkiye’s new digital nomad visa

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Applicants are accepted from most EU countries as well as the UK, USA and Canada.

Türkiye has become the latest country to launch a digital nomad visa for foreign remote workers.

The Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry has created a dedicated website where those interested can complete the first application stages.

The country hopes to lure digital nomads to destinations including Istanbul, Dalaman on the southwestern coast and Izmir on the west.

“Thousand years old ancient cities, unique bays hidden between forests, turquoise seas, dynamic people, big cities; Türkiye has all,” the visa promotion reads.

“In addition, this beautiful country is one of the biggest countries of the world in terms of economy and business, with strong infrastructure services.”

Who is eligible for Türkiye’s digital nomad visa?

Those interested in Türkiye’s digital nomad visa need to be aged between 21 and 55. Applicants are accepted from most EU countries as well as the UK, USA and Canada.

Additional prerequisites include holding a university degree, having an employment or business contract and being able to prove a monthly income of $3,000 (€2,800) or an annual one of $36,000 (€33,800).

Applicants can register and upload their documents – including a passport with six-month validity and a photo – on the dedicated Digital Nomad GoTürkiye website.

If the application is accepted, you will be issued a Digital Nomad Identification Certificate which you can then take to a Turkish visa centre or consulate in your place of residence.

The best locations for digital nomads in Türkiye

The digital nomad website also promotes destinations around the country as prime spots for remote workers.

Istanbul is “a business centre with large companies and small start-ups, a metropole of 20 million inhabitants, a meeting point of different cultures [and] a historical centre where the paths of millennia-old civilisations converge.”

Digital nomads will find a strong transportation infrastructure with several metro and bus lines, and ferry journeys between its European and Asian sides, according to the website. It also says it is easy to find fully furnished apartments to rent.

Dalaman, on the Aegean coast, “offers great transportation options, an easy escape from the crowds, an impressive variety of free-time activities, and a strong infrastructure for those who want to work from this paradise on Earth.”

Izmir, also on the Aegean Sea, is ideal for those seeking year-round warmth and Blue Flag beaches.

Author

  • Daniela Daecher

    Daniela Daecher is a twenty-something bookworm and coffee addict with a passion for geeking out over sci fi, tv, movies, and books. In 2013 she completed her BA in English with a specialization in Linguistics. In 2014 she completed her MA in Linguistics, focusing on the relationship between language and communication in written form. She currently lives in Munich, Germany.

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