When we picked up our bikes at the Zurich headquarters of Swiss Trails, who organised our four-day activity break in Switzerland, the women in our group opted for ebikes, which are battery power assisted.

As a former racing cyclist I went for the road bike but three hours later as I was sweating and panting up a steep climb on our first day of biking on one of the Lakes cycle routes I regretted my decision. Eventually I had to swap my road bike for an ebike to cope with the terrain and coast along the flat at a cool 30kph.

Swiss Trails is run by Ruedi Jaisli and his wife Prisca, and operates under the aegis of SwitzerlandMobility, a national project set up in 2008 to provide a comprehensive network of national and regional routes for cycling, hiking, mountain biking, skating and canoeing. Switzerland is the ideal destination for these activities primarily because of its sheer beauty. And one of the best ways to see it is from a bike saddle.

The route chosen on our first day was 34 miles of rolling countryside from the town of Boltigen down the Simmental valley following the river Simme to Interlaken. This area is famous for its chalets of exquisite beauty nestling in verdant fields populated by cattle and their tinkling bells with snow-capped mountains forming a continuous backdrop. It’s a fairytale landscape. We reached Interlaken after four hours in the saddle where the Swiss Trails mini-bus picked us up and delivered us to our first hotel stop in Iseltwald Hotel Strand, right on the Brienzersee, a beautiful lake where the two fearless press guys went for an icy early morning dip the following morning.

Swiss Trails organises a luggage transfer service so you don’t have to worry about taking much with you on the day excursions. It’s there waiting for you on your arrival. Hotel Strand is a standard three-star hotel providing clean accommodation and a fine restaurant. I had a little balcony to view the mountains behind the hotel and part of the lake.

Breakfast the next morning was standard European, meats, cheeses, croissants, boiled eggs and coffee to set us up for morning rafting down the river Aare to Bern, the nation’s capital.

From the bank the river seemed like a raging torrent but once we were going downstream it was a perfectly relaxing journey. There were a couple of white water sections where we got a bit wet but other than that it was quiet and contemplative.

Three hours later we were in Bern and had lunch in an outdoor restaurant by the weir with tourism PR manager Isabel Furrer. Bern, though preserved and protected as a world heritage centre is nevertheless a thriving modern capital and that evening Isabel was off to see 80s electro-goths Depeche Mode at the football stadium. Exeter stadium pyrotechnic rockers Muse were playing the following week. After a lunch of local char we had a quick guided tour around the city to see the famous clock and had a quick peek at the cathedral with its impressive stained-glass windows. We missed the famous bears, whom the city is named after, but it was getting late in the afternoon and we had to get astride our bikes again.

Once free of the busy city at rush hour another scenic cycle route took us right by the river Aare to Aarberg, where you enter the town over an impressive Medieval wooden bridge and our overnight stay at the Hotel Krone. That night, which coincided with my birthday, the town was hosting a celebratory gathering for a 100km running race which passed through the main square just after 10 o’clock. More proof that the Swiss are really keen on extreme sports.

Logically they should be the least healthy nation on earth consuming vast quantities of chocolate and cheese, but this country, one of the richest in Europe and inured to the economic recession, are sports mad. But they have the best country for it with an unequalled varied landscape. There are the mountains for winter sports and trekking; pristine rivers for canoeing and rafting; tranquil lakes for water sports and swimming; and a dense network of some of the best cycle trails you’ll find anywhere in the world.

The following day we were led on a gruelling five-hour trek in the Gruyere Alps climbing up to 1400 until there was snow by the side of the trail through some of the most spectacular scenery I have ever witnessed.

Our stop that night was in Gruyeres where they make the world-famous cheese. Our hotel, the Hostellerie des Chevaliers, was fabulous. We ate out at the Hotel de Ville in the picture-postcard preserved town and I ordered a rump steak which had to be cooked on a sizzling slate stone. My colleagues had a little barbie going on a gas grill and were cooking all manner of meats, lamb, horse (not a problem here), beef and chicken.

Cheese was on the menu the following day and we visited the factory where the world-famous Gruyere is made and watched the production process behind glass screens.

Gruyere town is a rather sleepy little place. Only 150 people actually live in the pedestrianised cobbled streets. Yet nestling in one of the ancient buildings is an astonishing museum. It was created by HR Giger, the creative Swiss genius and Oscar-winner behind the Alien film which terrified cinema-goers when it was first released in 1979. His museum is full of the most bizarre imagery and the models of the original Alien.

Across the road from the museum is the Giger bar which has been designed like the interior of a cathedral but with a skeleton forming the arches and seats like the spine of the Alien.

A classic Swiss cheese fondue rounded off our visit in the most perfect way.

There is no doubt that Switzerland is the ideal destination for an activity break and Swiss Trails the best organisation to make the holiday run smoothly and take you through some of the finest scenery on the planet.

Getaway

  • SwissTrails offers various activity packages throughout Switzerland. Packages can be booked via the Switzerland Travel Centre, STC and similar packages start at £535 per person based on 5-day packages including flights and 3-star accommodation. To book call 020 7420 4938. For more information on Switzerland and the ‘Outdoor. Swiss made’ product visit MySwitzerland.com/outdoor
  • SWISS offers up to 31 daily flights from London Heathrow, London City, Birmingham and Manchester to either Zurich, Geneva or Basel. Fares start from £98* return, including all airport taxes. For reservations call 0845 601 0956 or visit: www.swiss.com