How to make friends in Switzerland
I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light. -Helen Keller
I’ve moved countries twice. The first time I moved to the UK when I was 19 years old for studies. I lived 3 years in Birmingham, 1 year in Coventry / University of Warwick campus and 2 years in London.
I’ve also lived for 6 months in Montreal, Canada. I was visiting my relatives while writing my Master's degree thesis.
And finally, in 2018 I moved to Zurich to live together with my then-boyfriend, now husband.
In the UK it was easy to make friends, as social life at uni was active, plus when I’ve started working in IT consulting, I was always meeting new people at work 😅 In Zurich it was more difficult because of the age, non-employment and different mentality of Swiss people 👇🏻
You can use my tips to make friends in another country:
1️⃣ make friends online and through social media;
2️⃣ join the local expat group or interest group on Facebook;
3️⃣ use dedicated event websites. (Find the full list below);
4️⃣ if you’re doing a course or training you get to meet people with the same interests as you. In October we are having our new Photo Tour, I’m sure you can meet friends there 😁 Check the Swiss School of Photography website for more information;
5️⃣ attend networking events, be open and kind to people that you meet.
Here is the list of websites I use to find events:
www.meetup.com
www.eventbrite.com
www.eventfrog.ch
www.internations.org *be careful with this website, as many people use it for dating :D
Here is my favourite networking group in Zurich:
www.swiss-social.com
What tips do you have? Write in comments 💡
