Six-step guide to making a move to Switzerland easier

Step 1: Make a to-do list

A great place to start is with a good to-do list of everything you need to complete in the run-up to your move. It may sound like an obvious starting point, but you’d be surprised how many times it’s missed! 

Make sure to add every little detail and get everyone who is moving involved in all the tasks that need to be taken on. Once you have your list, assign them in order of priority: 1 for urgent, 2 for must not be forgotten and 3 for all the odd things that you should get round to before the move but have no urgency to them. 

This will help you focus and get all the urgent and timely tasks out of the way first. There are so many different parts to a move, a priority list will help to keep you on track. 

Step 2: Declutter

Take time to go through what you own, as moving is a perfect opportunity to declutter. Our suggestion is to review room by room, organising each into piles of “keep,” “donate” and “resell.” While it may be tempting to then group all your "keep" items together, keep them separated by room, it’ll be easier come packing day and will make sure everything is packed in order. 

Step 3: Packing and preparation 

Don’t make the mistake of jumbling all your items from every room together in one box. Pack and organise what you’ll be taking by room, making sure all your boxes are labelled. Perhaps a slightly longer process in the short term, but it will save you a lot of hunting through boxes when it comes to unpacking. Especially if, like us, you’ll be unpacking in stages and focusing on the essentials like kitchen supplies and bedding first!

Step 4: Admin day

Make sure to set time aside to cancel utilities and transition your mail to your new address. If you don’t have a permanent address set just yet, reroute your post to a trusted family member or friend who lives within the vicinity. You can then reroute your post to your new permanent address at a later stage. 

Step 5: Final clean

Once all your goods have been packed, it’s a good idea to have a final tidy and clean of your old home. As well as being a courtesy to the new homeowners, it will give you an opportunity to have a final check that nothing has been missed from your packing. 

Step 6: Settling in

Now comes the fun part, unpacking and settling into your new home! No matter how far you’re moving, it will be an adjustment and unpacking alone may take a lot of time. Moving into a new home is a big project, but if you break it down into simple steps and give yourself a realistic timeline, you should alleviate some of that stress that naturally comes from a big move.