(192 Dornacherstrasse, Basel. Tel. 061 333 0037) Some of Basel's best and most authentic Thai food comes out of this simple and friendly restaurant hidden away behind the train station. Indoor and outdoor seating available.

  (10 Rheingasse, Basel. Tel. 061 683 3325) There is no better spot to enjoy the evening sun than at this tiny Italian restaurant in Lesser Basel, with great views of the city.

  (2 Rue des Boulangers, Mulhouse. Tel. 03 8941 1465) A mid-priced option in the centre of Colmar if you want to sample grand Alsatian cuisine, from escargot to Munster cheese, with a fine selection of local wines.

  (26 Rue de la Sinne, Mulhouse. Tel. 03 8966 1222) Mulhouse's finest restaurant sports an art-deco dining room and a menu to make your stomach rumble: poached egg and caviar salad, steak tartare, grilled doe, among more traditional delicacies. It serves fine wines from near and far.

  (71 Petersgraben, Basel. Tel. 061 261 0718) One of the city's oldest bars is also one of its most loved. It's on the university quarter on the 'Spalenberg'.

  (46 St Johanns-Rheinweg, Basel. Tel. 061 321 0072) The tiny Cargobar, on the Rhine downstream from Basel, hosts many of the city's best up-and-coming jazz and rock bands, three to four nights a week.

  (54 Rue du Sauvage, Mulhouse. Tel. 03 8956 3498) This central and lively disco will keep you up till dawn.

The area around the Messeplatz (Basel Convention Centre) in Lesser Basel is bursting with shops selling Swiss Army knives, watches and other Swiss products, often with excellent discounts. Pop into Fritz Kobi (57 Clarastrasse).

The four Basel ferries—which have taken Baselers and visitors across the Rhine from Greater to Lesser Basel for centuries—cost just €1.60 and offer the best views of the city.

Rheingasse is the promenade along the north (Lesser Basel) side of the Rhine. In the spring, it's a great spot to enjoy a drink in the sun, a game of boules or (for the intrepid) a dip in the fast-flowing river.

The fantastic Tinguely Museum asks: is art still art if the artist is a machine? in its new exhibition Art Machines—Machine Art (ends 29 June. www.tinguely.ch). And don't miss the final days of Action Painting at the Fondation Beyeler. In a style pioneered by artists such as Jackson Pollock, artists throw paint upon a canvas on the floor. Makes for fascinating results (until 12 May. www.beyeler.com).

 – The views from Lucerne over the Vierwaldstättersee to the Alps have attracted tourists for centuries. See the beautiful lake and 14th-century wooden Chapel Bridge. It's an hour away from Basel.

Basel has the highest number of museums per resident and square kilometre of any city in Switzerland. Some, like the Kunstmuseum, Tinguely Museum and Beyeler Museum are world-class.