Write to the Basel Desk

How we handle enquiries

Alpenroute Editorial AG is a small, editorially independent travel-research office based at Gerbergasse 14 in the heart of Basel's Kleinbasel district. Our team of three writers and one researcher covers Swiss destinations full-time — and unlike many travel publishers, we accept no press trips, no sponsored listings, and no affiliate commissions from transport operators or hotels. That independence is what makes our advice worth asking for.

When you write to us, your message is read by a human being, not sorted by an auto-responder algorithm. We answer every substantive enquiry personally. If you ask about a specific train route, we check current timetables and elevation profiles before replying. If you ask about glacier conditions, we consult our seasonal notes from the most recent field visit before making a recommendation. This takes time, which is why our target reply window is one to two business days rather than a few minutes.

For readers on a Full Itinerary plan, we reserve dedicated response time and commit to a 24-hour maximum turnaround on weekdays. Route Plan subscribers typically hear back within two business days. Free Reader accounts receive responses to general questions when workload allows, with a maximum of five business days.

The form below accepts enquiries in English. We also read French and German, though all replies are issued in English. Please be as specific as you can — naming your travel dates, your departure city, your budget range and the kind of experience you are after (scenic train ride, glacier hike, cultural city day, lake circuit) helps us give you a precise answer rather than a generic list.

Opening hours

Our desk is staffed Monday to Friday, 09:00–17:30 Central European Time (CET / UTC+1 in winter, CEST / UTC+2 in summer). We are closed on Swiss public holidays, including the August 1st national day, Ascension, and the Basel-Stadt cantonal holiday in late June. Messages sent outside office hours are read on the next working morning.

We do not offer telephone support for general enquiries. The phone line listed below is for administrative and billing matters only — specifically for subscribers with active paid plans who need to discuss invoice corrections or account access. Please do not call to ask about train routes or glacier conditions; the written form produces a much more useful reply because it lets us attach maps, timetable excerpts and linked references.

What happens after you send the form

Once you submit your message, you will see a confirmation page. Your enquiry is logged in our internal queue under the email address you provided. Our standard workflow is: read and triage on the same business day; research and draft reply within one to two business days; send. For Full Itinerary enquiries that require route-building from scratch, we may follow up with clarifying questions before issuing the full response — this is normal and does not reset the clock.

We never share, sell or forward enquiry data to third parties. Details about how we handle your personal data are set out in our privacy policy. If you prefer not to use the form, you can email us directly at [email protected]. The email arrives in the same queue as the form, so response times are identical.