https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Switzerland in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Peak travel season in the Swiss Alps usually falls between December and March, when tourists visit for the winter sports. But record-breaking heatwaves mean this year is different. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260803/this-summer-switzerlands-hills-are-alive-with-the-sound-of-tourists Mon, 03 Aug 2026 11:11:19 +0200 this-summer-switzerlands-hills-are-alive-with-the-sound-of-tourists AI watermarking and deepfake labelling will soon be required by law in the EU as the transparency part of the bloc’s sweeping AI Act comes into force on August 2nd. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260727/explained-eus-new-rules-on-ai-deepfakes-and-chatbots Mon, 27 Jul 2026 11:38:09 +0200 explained-eus-new-rules-on-ai-deepfakes-and-chatbots Several EU countries have caused a stir when they called to shut Spain out of the EU's visa-free Schengen travel zone after the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in Morocco was overwhelmed this week by thousands of migrant arrivals. Is that possible? https://www.thelocal.ch/20260731/can-an-eu-member-state-be-kicked-out-of-schengen-zone Fri, 31 Jul 2026 15:18:33 +0200 can-an-eu-member-state-be-kicked-out-of-schengen-zone There is a kind of 'duality' about Zurich: on one hand, the quality of life there is very high, but on the other, living in Switzerland's largest city is expensive. Does the former compensate for the latter? Share your views in our reader survey. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260730/tell-us-is-the-quality-of-life-in-zurich-really-worth-the-high-cost-of-living Thu, 30 Jul 2026 16:16:19 +0200 tell-us-is-the-quality-of-life-in-zurich-really-worth-the-high-cost-of-living If you are not yet fluent in any of the Swiss national languages, you may not know whether another heatwave is on the way this summer. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260629/the-essential-heatwave-vocabulary-you-need-to-follow-a-swiss-weather-forecast Mon, 29 Jun 2026 13:11:22 +0200 the-essential-heatwave-vocabulary-you-need-to-follow-a-swiss-weather-forecast Edelweiss airline, which connects Zurich with dozens of holiday destinations around the world, is being criticised for urging travellers to escape Switzerland’s heatwave on one of its planes. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260730/swiss-airline-under-fire-for-its-insensitive-heatwave-ad-campaign Thu, 30 Jul 2026 13:55:53 +0200 swiss-airline-under-fire-for-its-insensitive-heatwave-ad-campaign As firefighters struggle to contain some of the worst European wildfires in living memory with reduced numbers of aerial water bombers, production of the iconic aircraft creaks along half a world away in a Canadian factory. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260730/why-europe-wont-get-any-new-canadair-water-bombers-any-time-soon Thu, 30 Jul 2026 13:23:51 +0200 why-europe-wont-get-any-new-canadair-water-bombers-any-time-soon Faced with the deteriorating security situation in Europe, the Swiss army is examining the possibility of reactivating its former military bunkers. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260727/switzerland-considers-reopening-its-old-military-bunkers Mon, 27 Jul 2026 14:57:53 +0200 switzerland-considers-reopening-its-old-military-bunkers Many foreign nationals in Switzerland – either by birth or descent – don’t have the same standard of living as their Swiss-citizen counterparts, but their situation is changing for the better, a new study has revealed. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260727/how-foreign-residents-in-switzerland-face-more-difficulties-than-swiss-citizens Mon, 27 Jul 2026 12:38:48 +0200 how-foreign-residents-in-switzerland-face-more-difficulties-than-swiss-citizens European holidaymakers worn down by recurrent heatwaves are currently snubbing Mediterranean destinations for northern climes in hopes of cooler temperatures, but it remains to be seen whether it is just a fad or a durable shift in the tourism market. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260726/will-heatwaves-push-european-holidaymakers-to-coolcations Sun, 26 Jul 2026 14:18:09 +0200 will-heatwaves-push-european-holidaymakers-to-coolcations Swiss people like to keep their streets spotless, but one city is taking this quest for cleanliness up a notch with a focus on dogs owners. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260724/swiss-town-mandates-owners-to-rinse-dog-urine-off-the-street Fri, 24 Jul 2026 13:13:35 +0200 swiss-town-mandates-owners-to-rinse-dog-urine-off-the-street A Swiss man, reportedly an executive at an assisted dying company, died after losing consciousness hiking up Mount Fuji, authorities said on Friday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260724/swiss-executive-dies-on-mount-fuji-as-99-year-old-rescued Fri, 24 Jul 2026 13:07:23 +0200 swiss-executive-dies-on-mount-fuji-as-99-year-old-rescued Due to continued drought conditions, many farms in Switzerland are running out of hay to feed their cows. Some are now raising money online. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260724/swiss-farmers-launch-crowdfunding-campaign-to-buy-hay-for-their-cows Fri, 24 Jul 2026 12:03:43 +0200 swiss-farmers-launch-crowdfunding-campaign-to-buy-hay-for-their-cows As the chairlift nears the Grand Chamossaire peak at the Villars ski resort in the Swiss Alps, screams of terror and delight suddenly pierce the air. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260723/giant-swing-on-swiss-peak-aims-to-boost-tourism-as-alps-warm Thu, 23 Jul 2026 09:35:12 +0200 giant-swing-on-swiss-peak-aims-to-boost-tourism-as-alps-warm What does it take for Switzerland’s most popular exports, such as watches, chocolate, and cheese, to be officially branded “Swiss”? Do they even need to be produced in Switzerland. https://www.thelocal.ch/20230222/when-is-something-from-switzerland-officially-considered-swiss Wed, 22 Feb 2023 16:09:31 +0100 when-is-something-from-switzerland-officially-considered-swiss Lawmakers in France are scheduled to vote on Tuesday to ban social media for under-15s -- one of 20 countries worldwide to have proposed or introduced such measures, with many of them in Europe. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260713/eu-to-limit-childrens-access-to-social-media Mon, 13 Jul 2026 12:02:47 +0200 eu-to-limit-childrens-access-to-social-media Researchers have copied massive quantities of publicly-available climate and environmental data from NASA onto a Swiss supercomputer to train artificial intelligence models -- and for safekeeping amid US funding cuts. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260721/swiss-researchers-hoard-vast-trove-of-nasa-climate-data Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:31:11 +0200 swiss-researchers-hoard-vast-trove-of-nasa-climate-data European airport bosses have warned that new EU border checks are significantly increasing waiting times for British nationals arriving in the bloc, in some cases tripling the average. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260720/airport-bosses-warn-eus-new-border-checks-triple-waiting-times-for-brits Mon, 20 Jul 2026 14:22:17 +0200 airport-bosses-warn-eus-new-border-checks-triple-waiting-times-for-brits Weeks of heatwaves and drought have impacted Switzerland’s waterways and, in turn, its dams as well. Just how dire is the current situation? https://www.thelocal.ch/20260720/swiss-rivers-and-lakes-at-lowest-levels-in-20-years Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:36:11 +0200 swiss-rivers-and-lakes-at-lowest-levels-in-20-years To gather support for its bid to strengthen Switzerland’s neutrality, which will be voted on in a referendum on September 27th, the Zurich section of the populist Swiss People’s Party (SVP) is relying on traditional costumes from... abroad. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260716/swiss-hard-right-promotes-neutrality-with-german-costumes Thu, 16 Jul 2026 09:46:35 +0200 swiss-hard-right-promotes-neutrality-with-german-costumes