Questions regarding Via Jacobi : lodging and language

[Guylaine]

Bonjour

I am planning to do Via Jacobi in July 2014. I speak French and English .. how is it to make the way without speaking Deutsch ? Also, regarding the lodging ... the cheapest along the way ... do we have to reserve in advance or is it ok to reserve the same morning that we plan to arrive. Where can we find a lodging list ? Many thanks.

 

[Kitsambler]

The eastern half of the Swiss route lies in the German-speaking (well, Schweizer-Deutsch speaking) zone; so you will find all the written signage, menus, groceries etc in German. The lodging hosts for the hebergements may or may not speak English; if they speak High German they are more likely to speak english than to speak French. Likewise, the French-speaking Swiss in the western French-speaking zone are more likely to speak English than High German. The main guidebooks are in German. There may be some in French, but I haven't come across any (so far). The less expensive lodgings are the hiker's dormitories (herbergements) maintained by local associations. Generally these cannot be reserved in advance; rather, you make contact on the day and arrange an opening. This practice does vary with location, as is true of so many things in Switzerland.

Lodging list is available at: http://www.jakobsweg.ch/eu/ch/gastgeber-am-jakobsweg/unterkunftslisten/

 

[gittiharre]

Hi, have just done the Via Jacobi and you are welcome to check out my blog on www.gittiharre.blogspot.co.nz
To keep costs down stay at the Pilgerherbergen, there are a few and Rapperswil and Heitenried and Brienzwiler are exquisite and very reasonably priced.
Schlafen im Stroh, sleeping in the straw in farmhouses is also a great way to get under the tourist price radar.
Kits ambler has filled you in beautifully on the language front.
Once you get to Lausanne all attempts to do the trail on a budget failed miserably as the accommodation lists were totally out of date and the cheap options no longer seemed to exist.
I would take the boat from Lausanne to Geneva.

 

[newfydog]

The main guidebooks are in German. There may be some in French, but I haven't come across any (so far). /

We used a French guidebook:

http://www.amazon.fr/chemins-saint-jacques-travers-suisse-p%C3%A9lerinage/dp/B00C8990XO/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385305944&sr=1-2-fkmr2&keywords=chemins+st+jacques+Suisse

It is a bit out of date now for lodging, but pretty good for trails.

Here's some German words to work on:



I went to school in Switzerland, and learned German before I learned French. I would say just about all Swiss Germans speak French and French Swiss speak German but they won't admit it. I would politely ask at a store or train station if they spoke German, and the same person who said yes one day might say no the next, depending on the mood they were in. The younger people tend to be quite good with English and prefer that to their other Swiss language.

 

[Guylaine]

Thank you so much to all of you. You have shared great info.