Virtually every museum and public attraction in the country is open on Sundays and closed on Mondays; a few also take Tuesdays off.

If you’re planning to visit even a handful of museums in Switzerland, you’d do well to pick up a Swiss Museum Passport (Schweizer Museumspass, Passeport Musées suisses, Passaporto Musei svizzeri) which gives free entry to some 250 museums, galleries and castles around the country. You can get one from Switzerland Tourism before you go, from larger tourist offices in Switzerland or over the counter from any of the museums in the scheme (all of which display a sticker). The pass, plus a little booklet giving addresses and opening days of all the places included, costs Fr.30 for a month (students Fr.25), or you can pay Fr.5 extra to have up to five children included on the same pass. Covering virtually every significant attraction in the country, it can easily pay for itself in a weekend of gallery-hopping; there are just a few unmissable institutions which aren’t part of the scheme (Zürich’s Kunsthaus and Basel’s Fondation Beyeler stick out like a sore thumb by their absence). We’ve indicated those museums and attractions offering free admission with the museum pass as “SMP” in the guide. For more information, contact the administration at Hornbachstrasse 50, CH-8034 Zürich (01/389 84 56, www.museums.ch/pass).