Why now?

Not just a hub for skiers heading to the Swiss Alps and a business city, Zurich is full of significant modern architecture, galleries and hip bars. There's an Art on Ice (artonice.ch) skating extravaganza 29 Jan-1 Feb, and an exhibition of Roman treasures at the Swiss National Museum (nationalmuseum.ch) until 22 March.

Getting there

Flights with Swiss, Air France, train with Rail Europe.

What to do: Take a stroll around Lake Zurich then check out the Museum Rietberg (Gablerstrasse 15, 0041 44 206 3131, stadt-zuerich.ch), a green glass emporium of international art, showing Hindu sculptures of Shiva until 1 March and Japanese "Surimono" printed art until 13 April. Kaufleuten (kaufleuten.com) is the club to hit.

Where to stay: Greulich (0041 432 434 243, greulich.ch, from £150 per night) in the once-grotty-now-hip Langstrasse district, for its minimal rooms and birch-filled courtyard.

Where to eat: It's not all savoyard sausage and melted cheese. The Theater 11 (theater11.ch) not only has an amazing building and cultural shows but a molecular cuisine menu in its restaurant.