Places to stay near Interlaken and itinerary

  • Removed user
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    72625 posts
    11 September 2016 at 6:50:15 #810074

    Hi,

    My husband and me are planning a five day trip to Switzerland from 9th to 13 October. After going through the myswissalps website we decided on this itinerary.

    we are reaching Zurich at 7am, taking the train to Grindelwald. Next day check out in the morning and go to Jungfrau and Trimmed back falls. Take a train to Lucern in the late evening. Next two days in Lucerne. We plan to go to Mt To and take the boat ride on lake Lucerne. Next day early morning take the Bernina express. From there we will proceed to Italy.

    We are taking the Swiss travel pass. We were wondering if Grindelwald is a good place to stay or murren or lauterbrunnen is better. We want scenic views, not much of night life.

    We are planning to stay at the Jungfrau lodge in Grindelwald. Also hope to see the autumn colors. We are staying in Lucerne for 3 days as the stay works out a little cheaper this way. Any better way to plan the trip? We are interested in making the most of the scenic locales and hoping that the weather will be good. Also please suggest what to do on the first day in Grindelwald. we were initially planning to stay in gimmelwald village the first day but changed as going to Jungfrau the next day and getting to Lucerne would take a long time. any suggestions are welcome.

    Thanks.

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    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    11 September 2016 at 10:09:59 #855873

    Welcome to MySwissAlps Anusha!

    I think you meant Trümmelbach Falls, right? In that case I’d recommend Grindelwald, Wengen or Lauterbrunnen. Mürren would be slightly less convenient in your case. Grindelwald and Wengen offer the best, but different, views.

    I am not sure what you meant by “Mt To”. Be sure to spell locations right when checking for schedules in the timetable.

    As for things to do: please see the Grindelwald and Lucerne pages.

    The Swiss Travel Pass can be printed at home, that will save you time. Please see myswissalps.com/ swisstravelpass/price.

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    12 September 2016 at 7:25:15 #855874

    Hi Arno,

    thanks a lot. Yes, I meant Trummelbach falls, Jungfraujoch and Mt Titlis. We were wondering whether we can do the Jungfraujoch on day one itself. Is Lauterbrunnen a better place to stay than Grindelwald? On day 5 we were planning to check out at 6am, go to chur and take the Bernina express to Tirano, from there proceed to Florence for the Italian part of our trip. Was wondering whether it is worth it, as it would increase our cost a little, as our other option is to leave Lucerne by 8.30 am and go to Florence. We were planning to buy the ticket to Jungfraujoch prior to the trip, or is it better to buy once we get to Grindelwald? On day two on our way to Lucerne can we talk the boat to Brienz, and then the train to Lucerne. Is it worth it? As we are taking the boat on lake Lucerne on day 3. Thanks a lot. Any suggestions would be welcome as this is our first trip to Switzerland which has been on our list from a long time and we may not be able to do it again.

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    12 September 2016 at 7:59:20 #855875

    Hi Anusha,

    You can visit Jungfraujoch the first day if you leave early. It takes 4h20 to get there from Zurich. Lauterbrunnen is different, not necessarily better than Grindewald: it’s smaller and in a narrow valley, so less views (but still wonderful). Both towns would work in your case.

    The Bernina Express is wonderful, and it won’t be much more expensive as it’s included in the Swiss Travel Pass. You only need to pay for seat reservations. Whether you can complete that entire trip in one day should be checked in the timetable. It would be too much for me to be honest 🙂

    The weather is important for a Jungfraujoch visit, so if you buy online tickets be sure they are open dates.

    Sure, the Lake Brienz boats are worth it: myswissalps.com/ boatlakebrienz.

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    12 September 2016 at 16:42:39 #855876

    Hi Arno,

    thanks a lot for your advice. We would be reaching Grindelwald by 11am, but our check is at 2, so I guess it rules out Jungfraujoch that day, so we may do some hiking. As you suggested willl do the Bernina express. You said it, the entire route would be too much for us too! :-). Also wanted to about some short hikes around a small River or so in Grindelwald. Thanks again.

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    12 September 2016 at 18:13:38 #855877

    Hi Anusha,

    I don’t know if there are lockers at the train station in Grindelwald, but if you drop your bags in your hotel you can still make it to Jungfraujoch. It’s a bit late but doable, and it would be a shame to skip it if the weather is perfect. Then check in when you get back.

    Have fun!

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    14 September 2016 at 13:10:08 #855878

    Hi Arno,

    Thanks a lot for your input. When I contacted my travel agent to make the required arrangements, he strongly dissuaded us from staying in Grindelwald and instead stay put in Interlaken and explore Interlaken the entire day that we reach. We will reach by 11. I wonder whether it’s a good idea. Also he is not taking the Swiss travel pass for us but doing it with the Switzerland railways directly as they are a Switzerland based company. But he said with that too we can take any train anytime. I wasn’t aware of this. Would you throw some light on this? And he dissuaded us from taking the Bernina express on day five as if we do it, we may reach Florence only by 8-9pm, so there goes that plan too! Kindly advise. Thanks again.

    Anusha

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    14 September 2016 at 14:20:14 #855879

    Hi Anusha,

    Please see our Interlaken page so you can compare the options yourself. If you want to stay in the Alps and close to nature, Interlaken isn’t the place to be.

    I can’t comment on the tickets or pass your travel agent suggested. He should be able to explain what he is offering, so you can compare that with the Swiss Travel Pass and other passes. A travel agent comes in handy if you let them design your itinerary and do all the booking. But you seem to do all the planning yourself. You don’t (generally) need a travel agent for that. A train pass can simply be purchased online and printed at home (see the link I provided before).

    The Bernina Express indeed takes a lot of time. You’d normally add at least one night en route somewhere if doing it from Interlaken. Please see the Bernina Express page. The route is wonderful though! Alternatively, you can consider the route Interlaken – Spiez – Kandersteg – Brig – Domodossola – Locarno – Bellinzona – Milan – Venice. Very different but also scenic. The timetable has all the details.

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    14 September 2016 at 23:45:54 #855880

    Hi Anusha, We just returned from our 9 day trip. Arno gave you some great suggestions. Travel agents might not be knowing the insider views. Personally I fell in love with Grindelwald, it is a nice little town with all facilities, they have hotels and nice restaurants. I made a mistake, we stayed in Lucerne and Interlaken mostly, I missed by not staying either at Grindelwald or Wengen (even Murren I loved). Even if you stay at Grindelwald, you can comfortably do Jungfrajoch next morning as it is close to Lauterbrunnen (anyway you have to go via Lauterbrunnen for Jungrajoch). Another thing you can do on the first day , you can go to FIRST from Grindelwald, http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/first-grossescheidegg/route Since your stay is not longer, may be you should stick to Grindelwald rather than Interlaken

    Removed user
    Participant
    72625 posts
    15 September 2016 at 16:47:33 #855881

    Hi Arno and Chandraks,

    Thanks a lot for your inputs. Yeah will now stay in one of those places. The agent was going to buy a Swiss transfer card, with which we would be put up in Interlaken for an entire day! So we now will not be taking it. We are taking the help of the agent as it’s too late for us to do everything on our own! Thanks a lot guys, really appreciate it.

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