During my semester abroad in Paris, I took advantage of my week off of school for fall break and ventured outside of France ...

The ranges and valleys of the Swiss Alps stand out in this image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission in December ...

Mesmerising and hypnotic: a waterfall tumbles from forested cliffs into Lake Oeschinen ... in the Bernese Alps. But swimming isn’t confined to the rural outdoors. Most Swiss cities are built ...

The wild narcissus flowers that cover certain areas above Lake Geneva are a tourist ... carpeting some places in the pre-Alps of canton Vaud in western Switzerland. Narcissus lovers can find ...

massagers. Views from the pool, which is triple the size it was pre-renovation, are noteworthy, too: The pool is set amid the Swiss Alps, overlooking the shimmery waters of Lake St. Moritz.

The Swiss Alps are attracting a growing number of investors, prepared to pump hundreds of millions of francs into vast tourist complexes. But at what cost?

With its breath-taking Alpine scenery, exceptional services and sumptuous accommodations, Switzerland offers the ideal setting for a unique and luxurious vacation.