Thu evening drive to Besançon/Belfort, remote-work Friday there for free, then push on to Schaffhausen for the thundering Rheinfall, a real boat trip to the rock in the middle of the falls, and two of Switzerland's prettiest medieval towns.
The Rheinfall at Schaffhausen is Europe's largest waterfall by water volume: 150m wide, 23m high, with average flow of 250 m³/s in winter and 600 m³/s in summer (peak recorded flow 1,250 m³/s in 1965). Real boats actually ferry you onto the rock in the middle of the falls — you stand a few metres from the main curtain of water while it thunders around you. Schaffhausen's own Altstadt is a genuine, little-visited medieval old town with oriel windows and frescoed façades, and 20 minutes away, Stein am Rhein is one of the most photogenic medieval riverside towns in Switzerland — timber-framed, painted house-fronts right on the Rhine.
Switzerland requires a vignette (motorway sticker) for any car using motorways/semi-motorways — no daily or weekly option exists. The 2026 vignette costs CHF 40 (~€42–44), valid 14 months (1 Dec 2025 – 31 Jan 2027), sold at the border, petrol stations, and now as an e-vignette tied to your plate. Buy it before you cross — driving without one risks a CHF 200 fine on top of the sticker cost.
Drive out after work, arrive late evening. Free night at your host's place.
Full remote workday. No driving today, free night again — this is the free waypoint stay the whole trip pivots around.
Buy the vignette before crossing the border. Arrive Schaffhausen Friday night or Saturday morning. Head straight to the falls: walk both promenades (northern side is free; southern side via Schloss Laufen is CHF 5, including the panorama lift, viewing platforms, and the Historama exhibition). Take a real boat out to the rock in the middle of the falls — several real operators run from the base:
| Operator / trip | Price |
|---|---|
| Schiffmändli — 30-min basic tour | ≈ CHF 10 pp |
| Schiffmändli — "Big Tour" | ≈ CHF 17 pp |
| Rhyfall Mändli — short crossing | ≈ CHF 10 pp |
| Rock boat tour (landing on the rock itself) | ≈ CHF 22.50 pp |
Parking at the falls: CHF 5 for the first hour, CHF 2/hour after — free from 18:00 to 09:00 (except lot P4), so an evening arrival costs nothing to park.
Morning wandering Schaffhausen's medieval old town — oriel windows, painted façades, the Munot fortress ring wall above town. Afternoon at Stein am Rhein, one of Switzerland's most beautiful medieval riverside towns, with frescoed timber-framed houses lining the Rhine — genuinely worth the detour even on a tight schedule. Treat-yourself meal here or in Schaffhausen: a proper Swiss/Rhine-valley dinner as your comfort splurge for the trip.
Head back the way you came, with an optional second night at the Besançon/Belfort waypoint to split the drive and avoid a long single push home.
Bike stays inside the car (front wheel off) per the Car Camping & Bike Guide — no range penalty, unlike a roof or hitch rack. The Rhine towpath between Schaffhausen and Stein am Rhein, and the Randen plateau's 130km of marked trails, are both genuinely good riding once you're there.
| Category | How it's calculated | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Swiss vignette | Mandatory, valid 14 months — reusable on future Swiss trips | ≈ €43 (CHF 40) |
| Charging | ~1,220 km round trip × ~0.17 kWh/km ≈ 207 kWh × ~€0.40/kWh | ≈ €83 |
| Lodging | 2 free nights at waypoint host + 1 free falls-side parking night + 1 paid Camping Schaffhausen night for showers | ≈ €50 |
| Falls promenade + boat | Schloss Laufen CHF 5 + rock boat CHF 22.50 | ≈ €29 |
| Parking at falls | Evening arrival (free 18:00–09:00) + one paid daytime session | ≈ €10 |
| Groceries + 1 splurge dinner | Self-cooked most days + one Rhine-valley restaurant meal | ≈ €50 |
| Total | €165–220 | |