yeah it's going to be busy here because of the euro cup. it's probably going to be a little tough to get a hotel room in the bigger cities, especially the ones that are hosting the games, but you can still give it a shot. you might consider staying at a hotel in one of the outer-lying cities or smaller towns that are only a few minutes from the city by train.
it really depends what you want to see, though. in a week's time you can easily do a "big city" tour and an alps tour from pretty much any region of switzerland (german, french, italian). the city i obviously know best is zürich, since i live around here, but there are a lot of other great places to see too (bern is absolutely beautiful, and i haven't been there yet, but geneva is supposedly breathtaking). my mother swears by luzern -- it has a reputation for being gorgeous, and it's also pretty central and not far from the mountains. if you look around online you'll easily find a place to stay that suits you.
and yeah, it is pretty expensive here for tourists. what is going to hurt the most, probably, is the hotel. drinks are also really expensive so if you're looking to hit the bars, you'd better check your wallet first. you can eat pretty cheap as long as you don't go to a lot of sit down restaurants -- fast food, pizza, and delis aren't very expensive. authentic swiss food can be had all over the place and isn't usually too expensive.
oh yeah, and expect traffic to be maddening during the euro (they have signs up all over the place at the main station saying this). avoid taxis when you can anyway, they are expensive. opt for the train/bus/tram, public transportation is really nice here and it's easy to find your way around.
maybe jarosh will have something to add if he sees this thread. i've only been here for a year
but it's an awesome country
