New Glarus, Wisconsin: a girls weekend in America's Little Switzerland

New Glarus is a Swiss village in southern Wisconsin. The hills around it, the Driftless, roll the way the land does below the Alps, and the town never stopped being Swiss. The signs are in two languages. The chalets have carved woodwork. People call it America's Little Switzerland and they are not stretching.

It is a good weekend for a group because nothing is far from anything else. You park once.

When to go

Late April through May. The gardens are at their peak and the weather is mild enough to sit outside. Mid-April brings Burn the Boogg, the Swiss festival where a snowman is set alight to send off winter. Early June has the Spring Sip and Shop.

If you want the town quiet, come in May after the festival crowd has gone.

What a weekend costs

Plan on $165 to $410 per person per day. That covers a room, three meals and a tasting or two. The low end is real: The Blanc Chalet starts at $130 a night and Puempel's Olde Tavern serves bratwurst for $10.

Where you would stay

The Blanc Chalet is a retro Swiss motel with fire pits outside the rooms. King suites, $130 to $240. It is the easy choice for a group because everyone gets their own door.

Cameo Rose Victorian Inn sits on 120 acres. Spring herb-picking walks on the property, $180 to $250. This is the one to book if you want the trip to feel like a retreat.

Chalet Landhaus has the Swiss woodwork and a fireplace lounge, $120 to $180. It is in the middle of town, which means you walk to dinner.

Every decision, already made for you

Where to stay, where to eat, what to do, and a ready made 48 hour plan for every town. Pick one, send it to the group, go.

See the handbookOne time payment. Love it or full refund.

Where you would eat

Chalet Landhaus Restaurant does trout almondine and a seasonal asparagus risotto, $25 to $45.

Puempel's Olde Tavern has been there a long time and serves spring bratwurst with ramps, $10 to $18. This is the room where the town eats.

New Glarus Bakery opens early and makes orange-blossom scones, $3 to $6. Go before the walk.

What to drink

New Glarus Brewing Company pours $8 flights of wild ale. It is the reason a lot of people know the town's name.

Bailey's Run Vineyard does veranda tastings of Riesling and rose looking out over the vines, $15.

Whiskey Run Distilling Co. runs guided tastings of small-batch gin and lavender cocktails, $20.

The parts most visitors miss

Hidden Cellar Art Vault is an underground space with spring art installations. It is not signposted the way the brewery is.

Hollanders Bluff Overlook has wildflower meadows and migrating songbirds in spring.

Glarner Trail is a woodland walk full of trilliums in April and May.

Sugar River Kayak Launch lets you paddle before the leaf-out, when you can still see through the trees.

What the weekend looks like

Friday is arrival, the Art Vault and a long dinner. Saturday is the farmers market in the morning, the Heritage Village tour with the costumed guides, a cocktail workshop in the afternoon and a garden dinner. Sunday is outdoor yoga at Fireman's Park, a vineyard picnic and the boutiques on the way out.

The hour-by-hour version of that weekend, with the bookings in order and who to call, is in The Girls' Trip Handbook.

This town is one of 80 on the Feels Like Europe Index, all of which pass the same five points.

Frequently asked questions