The Rough Guide to Switzerland 2

FRIBOURG (Freiburg in German) is one of Switzerland's best-kept secrets. Its winningly attractive medieval Old Town, almost perfectly preserved, is set on a forested peninsula in a meander of the River Sarine.

Behind its visual charm, Fribourg is perhaps Switzerland's most amiable and easygoing town, thoroughly modern at heart despite the medieval appearance of some quarters. It's small enough to have attracted a lively, cosmopolitan mix of people to fuel the community atmosphere. One of the country's most prestigious universities - and its sole Catholic one - attracts a massive student body to Fribourg from all over the country, and especially from Italian-speaking Ticino, thereby generating a social dynamism that is tangible on the streets.

Within easy reach of both Bern and Lausanne, Fribourg is an understated town.