Basel

In summer, the people of Basel stuff their clothes into a waterproof bag shaped like a fish, jump into the Rhine, and let the current carry them through the city. A city break in Basel, where Switzerland borders Germany and France, combines this laid-back lifestyle with a density of museums that is hard to match in Europe, an Old Town on the river, and the largest Fasnacht carnival in the country.

Humanists and Trade at the Rhine Bend

Basel sits at the Rhine bend, where the river turns north, and was already an important trading and episcopal city in the Middle Ages. Switzerland's oldest university was founded here in 1460, and the humanist Erasmus of Rotterdam lived and died in Basel and is buried in the Minster. Printers made the city an intellectual center of Europe. Silk ribbon weaving and chemicals followed, giving rise to the major pharmaceutical companies. At the Dreiländereck (Tri-Border Point) in the Rhine port, the borders of Switzerland, Germany, and France meet.

Sights in Basel

The red sandstone Minster with its two towers towers over the Rhine; from the Pfalz terrace behind the choir, you look out over the river and across to Kleinbasel. On Marktplatz, the red Town Hall gleams with painted facades and a courtyard full of frescoes. The Mittlere Brücke (Middle Bridge), one of the oldest bridges across the Rhine, connects Grossbasel with Kleinbasel, and below it ferries shuttle back and forth powered only by the current. In Grossbasel's Old Town, lanes lead to the Spalentor, one of Switzerland's most beautiful city gates, and to the St. Alban Valley with its paper mill, where you can make paper yourself.

Museums and Architecture

The Kunstmuseum Basel holds the world's oldest public art collection, acquired by the city in 1661, with works from Holbein to Picasso. The Museum Tinguely on the Rhine shows the artist's clattering machine sculptures, while the Fondation Beyeler in the suburb of Riehen, a building by Renzo Piano, presents modern classics in a park. Across the border in Weil am Rhein lies the Vitra Campus, with buildings by Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, and Tadao Ando. Basel is home to the architects Herzog & de Meuron, whose buildings, such as the Messe Basel, shape the city's skyline. In June, Art Basel takes place, the world's most important art fair.

Fasnacht, Food and Nightlife

On the Monday after Ash Wednesday at four in the morning, the lights go out for the Morgestraich, and thousands of masked drummers and piccolo players parade through the Old Town with lanterns. The "three most beautiful days," as the locals call them, are part of UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage. During Fasnacht, people eat Mehlsuppe (flour soup) and Zwiebelwähe (onion tart), and all year round Basler Läckerli, a honey gingerbread. In the evening, people gather along the Rhine bank in Kleinbasel and in the bars around Rheingasse.

Getting There and Best Time to Visit

EuroAirport sits on French soil and can be reached by bus in 20 minutes. Hotel guests receive a card for free public transportation. The best time to visit is summer for Rhine swimming, as well as during Fasnacht. Fall is also lovely, when the Herbstmesse, one of Switzerland's oldest fairs, fills the city's squares.