The Swiss school holiday calendar is posted well in advance by school authorities, and shows the staggered school breaks by canton. Cross it with the French school holiday calendar to avoid traffic and tourist jams, especially for the February snow weeks and Easter vacation.

Fall, Christmas and summer school holidays all happen at the same time in France. But for the two-week winter and spring breaks France is then divided into three zones, each with different dates, so do check the school holiday calendar. The Jura and Alps areas are located in zone A. In winter and spring, one vacation week is shared by two zones, and roads and slopes can then become very crowded. The school calendar can be printed.

The Know-it-all Passport book, which comes out every two years, provides a substantial collection of addresses and information about where to find things in the Lake Geneva region. It’s now part of a larger offer, with the web site providing information and calendars for activities, events, and local businesses, with companies invited to submit their own information.

The book began life as a guide for mothers in the area, written by Lisa Cirieco, who grew up in Geneva in an American family. It has been expanded over the years and a special strength, also reflected on the web site, is some of the smaller community groups and activities that are hard to find elsewhere.

The English Forum is Switzerland’s largest social network, with forums/discussions on numerous topics.

Use the search engine to find what you’re after. A strength is that it is active in all parts of Switzerland, although this can make it harder to find information for a particular region until you’re used to using the site.

The site is managed by a company based in Sweden. It added news, thelocal.ch, in 2011: this is part of a chain, based at the same company in Sweden, managed by a business staff rather than an experienced independent editorial team.

The Swiss postal service, La Poste, bissued the Basel Carnival commemorative stamp 5 January 2009. You can order them online, in English. Great for collectors, or even as easy gifts for non-philatelists: these are particularly charming stamps. Background story on GenevaLunch

This could be the perfect solution to getting your French up to the next level: a free conversation cafe every Thursday night in Geneva, led by someone with a degree from the Arts faculty at the University of Geneva. You pay for your drinks, and talk. If you can’t quite manage to get your sentences out correctly, the organizers will help you. Reserve your place by phoning +41 76 504 8955. Details: Interknowsys

Easy to understand, nicely illustrated, quick to download: the WWF pocket guide to climate change gives you the basics, painlessly, of a subject that will remain in the headlines for the rest of 2009 in the weeks leading to the Copenhagen meeting to replace the Kyoto Protocol on carbon emissions (if you aren’t sure you follow this, you need the guide!)

A handy pocket guide from the Swiss government, published 1 September 2009, with Swiss environmental statistics and information on 17 environmental topics.

Geneva-based Inter Soccer gets boys and girls onto the playing fields, in English, with several options, from after-school to vacation camps and school holidays, for all levels including beginners.

The official member organization for Swiss private schools in canton Vaud, with information for the general public.

Swedish-language primary school in Geneva.

Bilingual primary school for children age 2-12. Children are given the opportunity to master both French and English at an early age.

American school in Leysin, Vaud, for students age 9-19. Offers preparation for American universities, as well as the International Baccalaureate.

Offers language courses, including summer programmes, in addition to a French-language secondary education programme, and further education courses for adults (in French).

Provides a K-13 education with a central campus in the city of Lausanne.

Provides a K-13 education leading up to the International Baccalaureate or the Swiss matu. Students can also choose to do English IGCSEs and American SATs. Three campuses – two in Geneva (Nations and La Grande Boissiere) and one in Vaud (La Chataigneraie).

This French school offers an English-language programme for primary students.

Bilingual French-English. The school welcomes students from age 3-18. All students are taught in both languages. The school uses the International Baccalaureate programme.

English-language primary school. The school is a not-for-profit day-school for children age 4-11. Education is on British lines.

Provides a bilingual (French/German) education for students. Only offers the Swiss matu. Campuses in Geneva, Nyon, and Berlin.

Offers K-13 education in German, as well as German language classes.

This school offers programmes in a range of languages, including English, French, Swedish, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, and German.

Private K-13 school. Based on the American system, it also offers the International Baccalaureate and a French-language programe. Boarding and day-school.

Founded in 1882, this K-13 school offers boarding and day student options.