Missing Piece · Map quiz · Series
Missing Piece #3: name the country in 3 clues
Three clues, four options, one piece of the world: completely landlocked, over 1,500 lakes, and four national languages. Watch the film and lock in your answer before the piece drops. The answer, and how to actually go there, is below. Spoilers from here on.
The places in this film
- 1
The answer: Switzerland
No coast, but more than 1,500 lakes, and four national languages: German, French, Italian and Romansh. The film cuts to the Lauterbrunnen valley, where waterfalls drop straight off the cliffs beside the village, and to Lucerne with its covered wooden bridge. Trains, boats and cable cars are timed to meet each other, so the whole country works without a car.
- 2
Lauterbrunnen
A flat-floored valley between vertical walls, with Staubbach Falls beside the village. Trains and cable cars climb to car-free Wengen and Mürren.
- 3
Lucerne
The Chapel Bridge, a lake steamer and a mountain railway in one compact stop. The easy first night after landing in Zürich.
- 4
The mountain railways
The journey is the sight here. The train from Interlaken up the valley to Lauterbrunnen takes about twenty minutes.
Plan it
- Best time
- June to September for hiking and open passes. December to March for snow. May and November are quiet, with some lifts closed.
- How long
- Five days gives you Lucerne plus the Bernese Oberland. A week adds a second region.
- Getting around
- Trains reach nearly everything, and a rail pass often makes sense if you move every day or two. No car needed.
Good to know
- Mountain weather changes by the hour. Check the summit webcams before paying for a cable car.
- Supermarket picnics keep costs down in one of the most expensive countries in Europe.
- Base yourself in one valley and take day trips rather than changing hotels nightly.
Frequently asked
What is Missing Piece? +
Missing Piece is a short 3D map quiz by Drift Vistas. A country is lifted out of the globe, you get three clues and four options, and the piece drops back into place to reveal the answer. Then the film cuts to real footage of the country.
Is the map real? +
Yes. The globe and terrain are built from Sentinel-2 satellite imagery and Copernicus elevation data, with borders from Natural Earth. The height of the mountains is exaggerated so the relief reads on a phone screen, but the shapes are the real ones.
Where can I watch the next one? +
New episodes go up on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok at @driftvistas. Every episode also gets a page here with the answer and a short guide to visiting the country.
