What was a novelty for the first group of tourists to visit Switzerland has now become an everyday affair: in 1863, Thomas Cook the excursionist, embarked on his first conducted tour of Switzerland with a group of British tourists. They travelled from Geneva via Chamonix to the Valais district, visited the wonders of the Bernese Oberland, climbed the Rigi and returned to England by train from Lucerne via Neuchâtel. The ViaCook is a tribute to this pioneering journey: on foot, and by boat and train – exactly as in Thomas Cook’s time.