We are currently looking at housing and wondering if anyone can give us some information on living in Neuheim. I have done some research but its usually better to hear from those actually living there? I read that its a village with about 2000 people living. Do you enjoy living there? Are there both Swiss and expats living there? We will enrol the kids in the local schools. Are there private kinders for under 4s nearby or you have to go to Zug or outside? Any resources for bilingual info. Are shops nearby i.e coop or migros etc..
Do you have to go to bigger towns for shopping i.e weekly?
Hi Caroline! Did you move to Neuheim? We are considering moving in the area too and I would appreciate if you could share your experience so far? Is it a child friendly area? Any opinions on the public kindergarten/school? Thanks
I'd point out that this thread is incorrectly titled - there is no life in Neuheim!
I think you're unlikely to get many responses as there aren't all that many people living in Zug, and only a very small subset of those will be expats. Still, good luck!
I have never lived there, but considered it at one point. It is an interesting place if you are into cars/bikes. It has more than its fair share of garages and workshops, and some tractor racing festivals. Transport connection to Zug/Zurich seem to take an age looking at sbb.ch.
Hi Neviana, I work in Zug but live in Zurich. Plenty of my colleagues live in Zug or in the surrounding villages and they love it. There are a high number of expats in this area so I get the impression that the expat community is fairly strong. Although the "nightlife" might not be great ... if you have kids ... there is a strong network of expat mums in the Zug area.
Stadt Zug is really nice but expensive. Neuheim in contrast should be much cheaper because of the infrequent public transport, lack of facilities, also a dusty quarry pit, and presumably dust if you are in that end of the village, and slightly higher taxes than Zug. If you can get the right accommodation at the right price then then OK, go for it, it could be fantastic (if you are into horses, motorbikes, classic cars etc). Just make sure you are not getting ripped off by some landlord or seller trading on the Zug brand. Definitely visit the place by public transport at least once.
As others have already pointed out, Neuheim is relatively "far" as connections go. It looks like it's not that far from Zug but in reality it is. You will want to consider at least:
Travel time with public transport You might need a car Services available (can't help you there), you probably need to do your larger shopping elsewhere Schools and what they offer. I don't for instance know if the local schools there offer additional German lessons Community, chances of integration Personally I think it's a good idea to put your kids to a local school, just make sure they get the extra German lessons. I live in Baar with my family and we almost take the lessons for granted. With a large international population I find that the teaching staff is used to dealing with children who are not native.
What you say may be true for Neuheim but the second part is simply incorrect. Kanton Zug has a very high, if not the highest, percentage of foreigners: 26% out of the population. It's still not big (about 120 000 people living in the kanton, 30 000 in city of Zug and similar in Baar) but the expat community is great.
Thanks everybody for your input. Neuheim is not so appealing anymore. We switched our attention towards Oberägeri (after researching a bit on the forum it appears like a nice place to live with kids).
We plan to put our kids into public school and I am very keen into hearing about the quality of public schools in the area, and how easy it is to integrate into public life. If some of you have any experience (good or bad) I would appreciate if you could share it with me.
Oberägeri is definitely nice and also very sunny compared to rest of the canton. Driving through the main street I was surprised by the amount of shops in Ober- and Unterägeri. Rents can be quite high though.
On the logistics side there is only one road leading to Zug and with public transport (=bus) it takes a while to get there. If you work in Zug/Baar it can be an ok commute but if you need to transfer in Zug it's probably not ideal. By car it's probably ok, I don't know how crowded the road can get. On the upside, driving to the opposite direction from Zug, it takes 10-15 minutes to get to Sattel Hochstückli which will be your nearest ski resort with lots to do in summer as well.
I do not know about the schools there but there are a lot of expats and it is a fairly affluent area so one would hope the schools to match this.
Some people like to criticize Zug as a boring place. One of my colleague even joked that Zug is boring even by Swiss standards. I have not lived elsewhere in Switzerland but for our family it's just the right kind of boring. For a "boring place" there is a surprising amount of events throughout the year.
There is the dreaded fog in Oberageri. Wouldn't bother me I must say. Stump up the cash and rent somewhere central in Zug is my view, the town its self. There are lots of smaller apartments fairly central, that can be had. Also lots of blocks on short let as they are about to be demolished. When you are central you save so much time, money, integrate more easily, can get to the shops and water, etc. Your kids will soon make friends this way and it will be a big help... Once you know the score then you can move if you are not happy. It is important to get your kids integrated, it will make your life so much easier, then perhaps you can move out once integrated.
We are "up the hill" from Neuheim - in Menzingen. If your attention shifts this way send me a pm.
The Aegeri's are really lovely and there are tonnes of amenities there. Then again, Its an expat ghetto with a bit of a "keeping up with the Joneses" vibe - similar to what it sometimes can be in the international school community. Not my cup of tea but I can understand why others like it.
eh? This is confusing....stump up the cash, live central and you will save money? Integrate and then move?
Maybe I have misread...anyway, I'd really recommend Zug....you can't go wrong in this canton....take your pick....schools are no better or worse from area to area.
Not sure about the ex-pat community and the "strength" of it. Living in CH for almost 2 years and I still don't know what the ex-pat community is or does. But I don't care. I've made plenty of Swiss friends and if I wanted to hang out with people of my own nationality, I wouldn't have moved here.
I love Zug and it is far from boring. Ok, it's not Berlin, but it ain't Timbucktoo either.
Ermm, the Ägeris are actually higher than most of the towns in the canton. There's a lot more sunlight and less fog than around the Zugersee. If it is fog that you want, go to Rotkreuz - the dreaded fog lives there.
No you got it right. A cheaper central property in a boring block, where everyone knows everyone else, near schools, no car/bus needed. Kids make friends and join clubs. Then, if you must, move into a more luxurious place in a cheaper part of Zug once you know the place. It is too easy to fall for a luxury place in the kanton in the middle of nowhere, which then stops you and your kids meeting people and integrating.