Climate & Seasons
The diversity of Switzerland is reflected in its climate, despite its small size. The Alps are an important factor here. They act as a barrier, so the weather in the north is often quite different from that in the south. It is noticeably milder in winter in the south than in the north.

The seasons are clearly defined. In spring (March to May) the trees blossom and the meadows become green. In summer the temperature rises to 25-30 degrees (77-86 degrees Fahrenheit). In autumn (September to November) the fruits ripen, then the leaves turn brown and fall. In winter the snow changes the landscape.

Transportation
Swiss public transport is of high quality. This applies to both the public service vehicles and the punctuality of the time table. Lots of places can be reached through a network of trains, buses, ships and gondolas. This network is also referred to as the 'Swiss Travel System', which can be used if you posses a Swiss rail pass. Major cities are connected by InterCity trains which usually run every hour. Busy connections often provide at least two trains per hour. Buses play an important role as well. Bus services are often provided by the Swiss post services Die Post. Generally speaking, transportation to small villages starts early in the morning and ends early in the evening. These buses or trains usually run once per hour, but this can be less as well. It is recommended to take that into account when planning your trips. The Swiss timetable helps you planning.

Winter Sports
People living in Switzerland don't have far to travel to one of the many resorts which also attract foreign tourists to the country in winter. But sport never stands still, and in recent years there has been an explosion in new sports and in new ways to practise traditional ones.

Even such a traditional winter sport as skiing has evolved thanks to the use of new technology. One popular development is carving, which makes use of new materials and a radical new design - short skis, narrow at the waist and wide at both ends - to enable skiers to imitate the tight turns made by snowboarders. A variant of carving is snowblading, where the skis are curved at each end. More controversial is heliskiing or heliboarding, where visitors are flown to inaccessible high mountain regions from where they can ski down glaciers. But there are moves to ban the sport - already forbidden in several European countries - on the grounds that nature should be left undisturbed.
Although skiing is regarded as the prime winter sport, tobogganing and skating have an even longer history in Switzerland and are widely practised. Snowshoes have become more and more popular in recent years, with many resorts laying on trekking and races. They offer an ideal opportunity to non-skiers to enjoy the winter landscape. Here too the designers have been busy, finding ways to make the shoes equally good for going uphill, downhill or on the flat.

The region Graubünden
This is the canton of 150 valleys. It reflects the diversity of Switzerland on a small area. From the Rhine valley to the Bernina pass, the idyllic alpine scenery with mountain lakes, deep and wild gorges, and wide valleys, all enjoy a southern climate. Apart from the reputed ski resorts such as St. Moritz, Davos, Arosa, Flims and Lenzerheide, new resorts have been developed that can fulfill the wishes of the most demanding sports enthusiast.

The southeast canton of Graubünden covers 7,100 km2 (2,741 square miles). Its rivers flow into three different seas: the North Sea, the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. It has a population of only 186,000. The canton of the Grisons has 3 official languages, which are German, Romanisch and Italian and each region still follows their traditions.