9 Days itinerary suggestions for kids and seniors

  • Rpskainth
    Participant
    2 posts
    27 June 2016 at 8:40:22 #809546

    we would be travelling with 6 Adults (2 seniors in that ) + 4 kids aged 6-12 years in July for 9 days . I would ask the opinion of the fantastic members here as what they would suggest considering the time and the age of the kids / Seniors.

    3 Nights in Lucerne.

    Day 1 Sat, Reach 7.30 AM, at Zurich and and go directly to Lucerne .

    Day2 Sun,

    Day 3 Mon .

    Mt Tiltis -The cable car to the Titlis departs from the town of Engelberg, about 45 minutes from Lucerne.

    Mt Pilatus – ‘

    Take the boat from Lucerne to Alpnachstad. Change to the cogwheel train to the Pilatus. Then take the cable car down to Fräkmüntegg and change to the gondola to Kriens. It’s a 10 minute walk to the bus stop called ‘Kriens, Zentrum Pilatus’. There, you can take bus line 1 to the Lucerne rail station (15 minutes).

    Day 4 Tues Go to Lauterbrunnen, 5 Nights in Lauterbrunnen.

    From Lucerne to Lauterbrunnen take the train via Bruenig pass and Meiringen and from Bern to Montreux ride the train via Zweisimmen and Gstaad. Both form the Golden Pass Panoramic train route. Which one is more easy with the kids ?

    Day 5 Wed

    Day 6 Thur

    Day 7 Fri

    Day 8 Sat

    from the base in Lauterbrunne you can make the following day trips:

    *Stechelberg – Gimelwald – Muerren – Schilthorn (Piz Gloria in a James Bond movie) – Muerren – Winteregg

    *Grindelwald – Kleine Scheidegg – Wengen

    *Interlaken – Spiez – Kandersteg – Brig – Visp – Zermatt (scenic route) and back in a direct train from Visp to Spiez via Loetschberg Base Tunnel. In Zermatt we can go to Gornergrat by cogwheel train or Klein Matterhorn by cable car

    If these can be covered in a day, we will have 2 days extra which we kept as buffer for weather. Will this be too hectic for the kids and what can be suggested for the time that we have or any other opinion.

    Since the day 4 ( first day in Lauternbrunnen will be short after we reach there about 12. which of these 3 trips needs shortest time

    Day 9 Sun Late check out and in the afternoon take the train back to Zurich to take back the flight home @ 22.00

    Thanks a lot

    Ravi

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    Annika
    Moderator
    7104 posts
    28 June 2016 at 6:52:23 #853524

    Hi Ravi, welcome to MySwissAlps!

    The Golden Pass route is Lucerne – Meiringen – Interlaken – Zweisimmen – Montreux, and does not include Bern. Please see http://www.myswissalps.com/go ldenpass. If you want to do all of that and end up in Lauterbrunnen in one day, it will take 9 hours of traveling. Probably too much for you, but that’s for you to decide. My suggestion would be to just include the first half to Interlaken and go to Lauterbrunnen from there. This will take 2.5 hours.

    The rest of your plans look fine to me. You’ve prepared well. More about things to see and hiking trails around Lauterbrunnen can be found here: http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfrauregion/activitie s.

    I’m not sure whether you have purchased your rail passes already. If not, be sure to print them at home or have them delivered. It takes quite some time to buy them in Switzerland for 10 people. All passes and purchase options are listed here: http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses.

    Slowpoke
    Participant
    7567 posts
    30 June 2016 at 20:28:10 #853525

    Hi Ravi –

    I’ll add my compliments to those of Annika about how well you have prepared.

    She has noted the mix- up on the Golden Pass route.

    If you go from Luzern to Lauterbrunnen. the most scenic direct route is via the Brünig and Meiringen.

    An alternate fast route is to go via Bern and Spiez.

    If you wish to go out of your way , and take a longer route, which will include the especially scenic portion of the Golden Pass route, you can go from Luzern to Bern to Montreux ( which, as Annika noted, is not the Golden Pass route). Then you can come back east to Spiez via Zweisimmen, as you mentioned, which is the Golden Pass route.

    Since all of your other planning is well quite done, it is likely that is what you were asking about, and both Annika and I did not understand your question.

    To make that decision, use the timetable:

    http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable

    If you choose to go via Bern, consider taking the old route ( slower, through the scenic Emmental farmland) between Luzern and Bern. Route via Langnau im Emmental.

    The default fast route, which uses stretches of new fast track, goes north from Luzern, almost to Olten , and cuts the corner at Zofingen before heading south down the mainline to Bern. Pleasant scenery, but the Emmental has special charm.

    Use the timetable to decide.

    This map may help:

    map.search.ch/?pos=647808,219776&z=4.

    <<” From Lucerne to Lauterbrunnen take the train via Bruenig pass and Meiringen and from Bern to Montreux ride the train via Zweisimmen and Gstaad. Both form the Golden Pass Panoramic train route. Which one is more easy with the kids ?

    Day 5 Wed

    Day 6 Thur

    Day 7 Fri

    Day 8 Sat

    from the base in Lauterbrunnen you can make the following day trips:

    *Stechelberg – Gimelwald – Muerren – Schilthorn (Piz Gloria in a James Bond movie) – Muerren – Winteregg

    *Grindelwald – Kleine Scheidegg – Wengen

    *Interlaken – Spiez – Kandersteg – Brig – Visp – Zermatt (scenic route) and back in a direct train from Visp to Spiez via Loetschberg Base Tunnel. In Zermatt we can go to Gornergrat by cogwheel train or Klein Matterhorn by cable car

    If these can be covered in a day, we will have 2 days extra which we kept as buffer for weather. Will this be too hectic for the kids and what can be suggested for the time that we have or any other opinion.”>>

    I think that you have 2 easy day trips and one full day trip to Zermatt, in 4 days, leaving one buffer. All are reasonable day trips. Schilthorn will leave some slack in that day, depending on when you go. So will Grindelwald – Kleine Scheidegg – Wengen

    You could probably include Griondelwald/Kleine Scheidegg/Wengen in the same day as Schilthorn, if you work out your schedule. It helps a lot that you are starting from Lauterbrunnen. Then, indeed, you will have two buffer days.

    If you go up to Jungfraujoch, at considerable cost, make sure you have checked the weather with local sources and don’t buy your ticket for the last leg (KS to JJ) until the day you travel.

    The weather is very difficult to predict far in advance.

    You are doing a lot of train riding. Those are nice rides. You might want some walking mixed in. At Luzern, please see the Lion. My eight year old granddaughter spent a lot of time looking at. It really caught her attention. I have attached a page from a photobook that I prepared of our trip in 2009.

    She also enjoyed the nearby Bourbaki Panorama. So have all the adults I have taken there.

    Not sure about the ability of your older members to do this so-called “Grannies’ Walk”, above Wengen, specifically in the direction Männlichen to Kleine Scheidegg, but it is very easy and wonderfully scenic:

    http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/maennlichen-kleinescheidegg

    Slowpoke

    Rpskainth
    Participant
    2 posts
    1 July 2016 at 2:26:57 #853526

    Many thanks to Annika and Slowpoke for taking the time out to write and your valuable suggestion is much appreciated.

    As i understand the route Brig – Visp – Zermatt will include the Glacier Express. Do you think we can include any other scenic route while in Lucern and Wengen?

    where in July we can find the snow for kids to play in and for skiing.

    thanks

    Ravi

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    1 July 2016 at 6:23:37 #853527

    Hi Ravi,

    Brig to Zermatt is indeed (a small) part of the Glacier Express route, but you can take any local train there as well. You’ll save the reservation costs.

    July is summer and places with snow are limited. You’ll find snow on Mount Titlis, Jungfraujoch and Klein Matterhorn. Can you ski? If so, you can do so around Klein Matterhorn (or a lift from Saas-Fee, but that’s not in your itinerary), particularly in the morning. If can’t ski, don’t bother, and come back in winter for a week of lessons.

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