Luzern

 (or Lucerne) is a city in Switzerland. It is located on the A2, the main route between Germany and Italy.

North towards Zürich, Bern, Basel
The motorway starts at Militärstrasse and there is plenty of space to stop. Cars will see you rather late, but it still works pretty good. The next bus station is Kasernenplatz but you can also walk from the town center. Best option is to stand in front of the bus stop area (the one before "Kasernenplatz", after the corner); cars are certainly more willing to stop there than further straight.

You can also take any bus from Kasernenstrasse to Emmenbrücke Sprengi. Leave the bus and head north for 200 m and you find a gas station in all directions: http://maps.google.at/maps?hl=de&ie=UTF8&q=luzern+emmen+sprengi&fb=1&gl=at&hq=emmen+sprengi&hnear=Luzern,+Schweiz&cid=0,0,740151577626375699&ll=47.081608,8.274218&spn=0.006371,0.016512&t=h&z=17

South towards Lugano
Take a bus to the stop Grosshofstrasse on Obergrunderstrasse and stand by the bus ramp with a sign. The problem is that lanes split quite early before getting onto motorway A2, the outer lane going to Bern or Zurich and the inner lane going southwards. It will be difficult for cars on the inner lane to pull out and pull in when the traffic is busy. It is better to follow the motorway direction, get to bus stop Wiggenhof on Grabenhofstrasse'' and hitch southwards from there.

Public Transport
Lucerne has a dense network of buses and trolley buses. Inside the city, a ticket is 2 CHF. Depending on where you go, you might consider taking a boat on the lake, which is just a little more expensive.

Places to Avoid
The various restaurants and pubs are terribly expensive. Expect to pay twice the price of other Western European countries.

Accommodation and Sleep
There is a camping site right at the lake at Lidostrasse. The next bus stop is Verkehrshaus. It's be about 15 CHF per person and night, but very clean and modern.

There is plenty of places to freely camp little outside of Luzern but make sure you hide yourself because the Swiss don't like free campers.

isin: Switzerland