With cows grazing peacefully on the hillsides and Lake Lucerne -- or Lake of the Four Wooded Cantons as it is known locally -- shimmering in the distance, the village of Weggis appears the perfect spot for Switzerland's pre-World Cup training camp.
The Swiss will spend ten days in the idyllic lakeside resort before heading off to Brazil where they open their campaign against Ecuador on June 15.
Unusually, the Swiss have also opted to open their training sessions to the public, with up to 1,700 people allowed to watch the players go through their stretching routines. An autograph-signing session on Monday also helped win over the public.
It is a refreshing contrast to the likes of England, who have headed off to the Algarve to train in absolute secrecy, and Germany, who are living a hermetic existence in the Italian Alps.
Yet, at the risked of being branded a party-pooper, it has to be asked whether this is a particularly good idea.
It is not just about the training sessions. The local authorities have turned the whole 10 days into a football festival. A "party mile" has been set up, lined with food and drinks stalls, while various music shows will take place in the afternoon once training has finished.
Eight years ago, Brazil came to exactly the same village to prepare for the World Cup in Germany. They stayed in the same lakeside hotel as the Swiss and their training sessions were also open, so much so that at one point a female fan ran onto the pitch to hug Ronaldinho.
Brazil, favourites to win the title with the so-called Magic Square of Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Kaka and Adriano, never lived up to their billing and went home in the quarterfinals after a lacklustre performance and the name Weggis has become synonymous in Brazil with that failure. Carlos Alberto Parreira, their coach at the time, later said that he threatened to resign over the situation but backed down.
Switzerland have least toned things down. They will allow only 1,700 supporters to watch each training session, compared to around 6,000 when Brazil were present, and entrance will be free, which means that at least they cannot be accused of profiteering.
Brazil's training sessions were held in a carnival atmosphere with screaming fans and samba drums beating away. Switzerland's first sessions have been accompanied by gentle applause.
"It's nice to train in such as wonderful place in front of the public, it raises our spirits," said Stephan Lichtsteiner, who plays for Juventus. "It wouldn't be possible with Juventus, you would have 10,000 to 20,000 people wanting to watch."