Salsa at Lounge Schwellenmatteli, Bern

Salsaare is DJ Saltho's weekly salsa night at Lounge Schwellenmätteli, set right on the Aare river in Bern. Held on Wednesdays from 20:00 to 24:00 with a 10 franc entry, it has been a fixture of the Bern scene for years. As the name promises, the night is 100 percent salsa: DJ Saltho (Thomas Heiniger) plays son, chachacha, timba and latin jazz, drawing on salsa from New York, Miami, L.A., Puerto Rico, Colombia and beyond, so the floor leans toward dancers who love the music.

The riverside lounge setting is one of the nicest places to dance in Bern, with the Aare just outside, and the early-evening Wednesday timing makes it an easy midweek outing. Because it is a pure salsa night without bachata or a class, it rewards dancers who already have some basics, though the friendly regular crowd is welcoming to newcomers willing to jump in. Dates and any schedule changes are posted on saltho.ch and DJ Saltho's Instagram.