Hi all,
I'm heading for Zurich in a couple of months time from Singapore. Never had to use any winter clothing ever here. Sunny weather all year through. I checked the forum, didnt find anything specific in regards to winter clothing.
Anything i need to pack from here? How cold does it really get? I plan to some fair bit of trekking as well. Any tips to be prepared?

Thanks.

Coming from Singapore you'll likely feel the cold a lot more than those who are used to it. Especially during the first winter. Prepare for some cold, wind and snow. If you are coming in the winter months, you'll need some warm sweaters, hat, gloves, carf, and a good winter coat. Also some warm shoes or boots. I always find that dressing in layers helps keep me warm. So I'll wear an undershirt or a t-shirt under my sweater.

What is also shocking is how hot you'll feel once you step inside buildings so the layers also help so you can get comfortable indoors.

I've lived in Malta for the past 3.5 years and in New Zealand and Florida before that so I'm really not looking forward to the winter but I'm in Ticino so it shouldn't be as bad as in Zurich. Best of luck to you! I'm sure you'll miss Singapore. It's a great place. I've spent a lot of time there.

A useful thread is Winter Clothing Question. Many more may be found by doing a forum search for "winter clothing" (no quotes in actual search).

Hi and welcome to Switzerland!

Winter can be very nice as well here, in Zurich and everywhere....I wouldn't miss it and, yes, I'm looking forward to this special time of the year. Could'nt imagine living in a country with only one season....

Expect a big change from Singapore, but that's why you come over here eh ...

One final tip, shopping is much cheaper in Singapore than in Switzerland, from what I recall, so you might want to stock up on a few things.

For generally hanging around town, you need layers: Houses, shops and offices are heated to around 45 degrees throughout the winter, in a nice contrast to the fog, rain and occasional snow outside. It's not really that cold in the most heavily populated parts of Switzerland, and public transport within the cities is so good that you might spend no more than ten minutes outside in a whole day.

For tramping around hillsides, however, you'll need to wear something a little more serious: Again, layers are the answer. You'll need decent waterproof boots (snowboots if you want to go up the mountains), warm trousers, long johns, a fleecy jacket with a waterproof windcheater over the top, and some nice woolly jumpers. And a hat and gloves. And sunglasses.

But don't worry too much - when it gets too cold, just go inside. There's always sausages and hot chocolate, whatever the weather...

I'd definitely recommend some kind of raincoat and also rain footwear just for wandering round town - crepe or rubber soled boots for example that will keep your feet dry are really useful. Trainers or leather shoes often aren't that waterproof.

As you mentioned, since Singapore is always warm, you might not find winter cloths to buy. That is not true. If you go to Mustafa center, you will fine tons of winter cloths. A lot of Singaporians travel during winter time to cold countries and so they are able to buy warm cloths there.
As someone mentioned, try to buy them there...much cheaper in Singapore.

Zurich as a city doesn't get as cold as you think. You might have a spell where the temperature drops below zero but mainly it hovers around 8-10C and has this perma-grey overcastness to the city.

If you get a period of high pressure over the country you can get some really nice cold, crisp but extremely sunny days where you can see the mountains and the air is zingy fresh.

I picked up a few Winter clothes bargains from Konstanz in Germany which is around an hour from Zurich. Sometimes you can find cheaper bargains over the border and their seasonal sales seem to incorporate a larger selection of cut price clothes than the Swiss equivalents.

Thanks a lot useful information, so i get lots of clothes from here then. If only the airlines are more understanding with the baggage limits.