[rockoyster]

16 July 2019 at 3:15:57 #917263

The aerial cableway Wengen-Männlichen is closed from 28 October until 13 December 2019 due to maintenance.
The gondola cableway Grindelwald-Männlichen remains closed until 13 December 2019 due to reconstruction.

The brand new Grindelwald Grund-Männlichen (GGM V-Bahn) is schedule to commence operation 14 December.

[Removed user]

16 July 2019 at 5:17:54 #917264

Thank you Anika, Slowpoke, and Rockoyster for the useful info and suggestions!

Rochers-de-Naye indeed is a good option for Day 5.

And yes, I intend to go to Grinderwald or Wengen at the end of Day 7 so I can have a full day at Day 8 before going to Basel in the evening.

Btw, what about Vevey? Is it worth a visit after Montreux? If yes, I might cut 1 day either at Lucerne (go to Pilatus/Rigi at Day 1) OR Zermatt (only 1 day at Zermatt and go to Gornegratt on that day). Is there any excursion/sightseeing around Vevey? I might still use Montreux as a base.

[Removed user]

16 July 2019 at 6:32:12 #917265

I found there’s a Tobogganing Park at Lesin. This sounds fun especially for my 2 teen boys. Does anybody know if they open already in late November? I tried to check their website, but there is no English page.

[rockoyster]

16 July 2019 at 7:24:51 #917266

I’m afraid it says “TOBOGGANING PARK CLOSED – OPENING FROM DECEMBER 22, 2019 TO MARCH 22, 2020”. 😞

[Removed user]

16 July 2019 at 8:40:02 #917267

Thanks Rockoyster. It’s a pity that it’s not open.

What about in LES PLÉIADES? Their website is also in French only, but I found in Montreux website it opens starting December 1: http://www.montreuxriviera.co m/en/P5128/sledging-slope-les-pleiades?group=246

But seems like it a smaller one? Probably better to visit the toboggan in Gornergrat? The Gornegrat website still doesn’t have information on the opening date of the toboggan though.

[Slowpoke]

16 July 2019 at 8:43:58 #917268

Hi Melzaxh03 –

<<“Btw, what about Vevey? Is it worth a visit after Montreux? If yes, I

might cut 1 day either at Lucerne (go to Pilatus/Rigi at Day 1) OR

Zermatt (only 1 day at Zermatt and go to Gornegratt on that day). Is

there any excursion/sightseeing around Vevey? I might still use Montreux

as a base.”>>

I did a search for Vevey on My Swiss Alps. Very little information showed up. That is a clue.

There is a festival of winemakers in August.

Montreux and Vevey are similar in that they get a lot of sun, hence vineyards abound. And, they’ll be a bit warmer other places at that low altitude, because of the sun exposure. Otherwise, I don’t remember many reasons that I ever stopped in Vevey, except to make a connection for somewhere else.

Montreux is normally a better bet for a base the region.

http://www.myswissalps.com/mo ntreux

However, they are so close to each other that it doesn’t make much difference from a geography point of view.

Personally, I certainly would not cut short either Luzern or Zermatt just to go to Vevey,

Here a few things I can think of nearby:

1.- There is a nice short train ride from Vevey to Puidoux with good views over the vineyards and the lake. Best in Fall in the late afternooon sun, but still nice at any other time.

http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/how-to-buy-tickets-for-lavaux-wine-train

http://www.lavauxexpress.ch/e n/

2.- Mountain transport – A funicular from Vevey goes up to Mt. Pelerin:

http://www.region-du-leman.ch/en/P546/funic ular-vevey-mont-pelerin.

Nice, but not as spectacular as Rocher de Naye.

A cog wheel train to les Pleiades goes a bit higher:

http://www.region-du-leman.ch/en/P636/star-train-vevey-les-pleiades

3.- The Olympics Museum in Lausanne is nearby.

http://www.olympic.org/museum

http://www.myswissalps.com/la usanne

4.- You can walk in the vineyards:

http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/lutry-epesses

If you keep naming places, it is likely that there is something interesting to do nearby, anywhere in Switzerland.

If I were doing what you did with your question in this post, for any name, I would search My Swiss Alps.

Then, I would use a good map to see what is near by.

Google maps works, but for figuring out travel. I find this Swiss map to be quite useful, because of the menu items under “Points of Interest (star in a circle) /traffic.”

Zoom in to zoom level “32” ( last number in the URL) and the train lines become very visible.

map.search.ch/?pos=560800,146568&z=32

Turn on various means of transportation from the menu as noted above, and icons appear. Mouse over them for the exact station name and available transport services. Click on them for more information:

map.search.ch/?pos=554648,146462&z=12 8&poi=bergbahn,haltest elle,zug

That link gives the map at zoom level 128, and the URL includes names of the services shown, in German.

Zug is “train.” Bergbahn is “mountain transport or train.” Haltstelle is ” station or stopping place.”

English is also available.

Slowpoke

[rockoyster]

16 July 2019 at 9:29:23 #917269

Snow activities arealways going to be marginal late November, early December and will be entirely dependent on the latest effect of climate change. Gornergrat (http://www.myswissalps.com/go rnergrat) will be your best bet.

[Removed user]

17 July 2019 at 3:39:08 #917270

Thank you Slowpoke for the detail suggestions. I was asking about Les Pleiades just when mentioned i in your suggestion! Would be one of the alternatives for us. And the map suggestion would be very useful as well.

Thanks also Rockoyster. I’ll probably keep Gornergrat for our toboggan activity.

Also can I confirm that all the cable car rides to Titlis, Pilatus, First, Gornegrat are only discounted and not fully covered by Swiss Travel Pass?

[rockoyster]

17 July 2019 at 3:48:13 #917271

“Also can I confirm that all the cable car rides to Titlis, Pilatus, First, Gornegrat are only discounted and not fully covered by Swiss Travel Pass?“

Yes. Have your studied the map and read the text (scroll down) at http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpass/validity?

[Removed user]

18 July 2019 at 10:02:01 #917272

Thank you once again Rockoyster!

Can I check between Titlis, Pilatus, and Rigi, which one is taking the longest time and which one the shortest if I’m based in Lucerne considering the travel time and time to be spent on the mountain? Since I have 3 full days, I’m considering to go all three, but would like to spare a bit of time exploring the town as well. At the end of Day 3, we will leave to Montreux, maybe by 6pm. So the trip on Day 3 can’t be too long.

[rockoyster]

18 July 2019 at 11:02:55 #917273

You should work on spending half a day each visiting Pilatus and Rigi. Titlis maybe a little longer. You will have plenty of city time if you have 3 days.

[Removed user]

19 July 2019 at 9:37:26 #917274

Thanks Rockoyster.

I’m pretty much settled now to visit Pilatus, Rigi, Titlis for my 3 days in Lucerne, Rochers-de-Naye on Day 5, and Gornergrat on Day 7.

What I’m still undecided is whether still worth to go to First on Day 8 when I’m at Grinderwald or Wengen considering I’ve covered quite a few mountains. I have actually moved going to to Grinderwald/Wengen to Day 8 to catch the First cable car which only starts operating on Nov 30. If I’m not going to First, I will move this back after leaving Lucerne, so stay at Grinderwald/Wengen and explore Lauterbrunnen and maybe visit Trümmelbach Falls? I read that it opens until November, so if we want to visit, I need to move it to after Lucerne (Day 4, 27 Nov).

Any suggestion?

[Slowpoke]

19 July 2019 at 10:34:21 #917275

Still thinking about Luzern.

<<” You will have plenty of city time if you have 3 days.”>>

I don’t believe that anyone so far in the thread has linked to the transport museum. Teen ageboys would likely find it interesting:

http://www.myswissalps.com/mu seumoftransport

http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/swiss-transport-museum

Lots of interactive exhibits as well as trains and other transport.

Slowpoke

[Arno]

19 July 2019 at 14:21:23 #917276

Hi Melzach03,

Unfortunately the Trümmelbachfälle close for the winter in early November. First can be a good idea if the hiking trails up there are still open, e.g. http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/bachsee.

[Removed user]

29 July 2019 at 4:16:24 #917277

The transport museum sounds interesting and yes, I didn’t know about this until you mentioned it. Thanks Slowpoke for the suggestion!!

Hi Arno,

Thanks for the info and suggestion. On that Day 8, we still would like to visit Lauterbrunnen, heard that it’s one of the most charming Swiss town! So wondering if we can still visit Lauterbrunnen after we went to First via cable car from Grinderwald and hiking from First to the Bachsee as you suggested?

I also saw another hiking trail at the Lauterbrunnen valley to Stechelberg where we can see Staubbach Fall. We like waterfalls hence this trail sounds interesting as well.

Can we maybe go Lauterbrunnen, do the hike to Stechelberg and still go to First via cable car within 1 day?

[Slowpoke]

29 July 2019 at 9:25:19 #917278

Hi Melzach03:

<<“Can we maybe go Lauterbrunnen, do the hike to Stechelberg and still go to First via cable car within 1 day?”>>

On July 15th, I gave partial generic advice for each new thing you are interested in. Use the maps noted there to look at the geography, then the check the time table for your specific date –

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

The wil let you understand travel times, such as a train from Zermatt to Lauterbrunnen or bus for the return trip from Stechelberg to Lauterbrunnen if you walk there, and time to travel to Grindelwald ( watch the spelling!) The Mapsearch map can give you some idea of how long a walk might take, because you can look at distance and optional transport stops to shorten that trip.

So can a listing under “Hiking” here, which gives hiking times: http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king

If you are interested in understanding the altitude changes, check that “Hiking” list, and/or use this rather detailed topo map, set for First to Bachalpsee:

map.geo.admin.ch/?topic=swisstopo&lang=e n&bgLayer=ch.swisstopo .pixelkarte-farbe&layers=ch.swisst opo.swisstlm3d-wanderwege&catalogNode s=1482,1476,1462,15073 ,1459,1436,1430&E=2645 080.00&N=1169125.00&zo om=7

If you are at Zermatt to start the day, it will take you just under 3 hours to get to Lauterbrunnen. If you start early, you can go to Lauterbrunnen, look around, then go to Grindelwald and up to First. If the trail to Bachalpsee is closed, you have plenty of time to do as you suggest. You could find time to walk to Stechelberg. If you also want to hike to the Bachalpsee, you’d better work the timetable very carefully on your date.

If you are staying in Grindelwald on the night of day 7, It should be possible, although the trip to and from Lauterbrunnen… would takea big chunk of time. Note that it gets dark fairly early in November, and also, that if the cableway to First from Grindelwald is running, it may not run very late in the day.

Finally, Grindelwald is a long town. If you are staying some distance from the cableway to First, allow time to get to the Talstation ( valley station).

Slowpoke

[Removed user]

30 July 2019 at 5:24:53 #917279

Hi Slowpoke,

Thanks again for your detail reply, very much appreciated!

Yes, altitude is a consideration for our hiking. We’re not used to hike in high altitude plus we’re going to do it in late Nov / early Dec. Living in tropical country, not sure if we can do this although my 2 teen boys would be excited for the challenge 🙂

The info for First to Bachsee hike says the elevation is 2149 – 2300 m. Although the difficulty is easy, I’m not sure if this is a good idea for us. Hiking time is 2h30 and total distance 5.8km (First – Bachsee – First, I’m assuming it’s a round trip?):

http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/bachsee

In contrast the Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg hike, the elevation is only 800 – 925 m, difficulty: easy, hiking time 1h45 and total distance 6.7km. But it only says Lauterbrunnen – Stechelberg, so is this just a one way?

http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/lauterbrunnen-stechelberg

We’re leaving Zermatt at end of Day 7. If we’re going to go Lauterbrunnen, do the Stechelberg hiking, then go to First via cableway (it’s operating from 10AM – 3:45PM only), is it better to be based on Grindelwald or maybe in Wengen? So maybe go to Lauterbrunnen first thing in the morning, hike then go to Grindelwald and First in the afternoon? Seems a little bit too tight?

[Arno]

30 July 2019 at 5:59:45 #917280

Hi Melzach03,

Yes, the first one is round trip because it starts and ends at First, and the other one is one way. Most hikes in Switzerland are one way, and our pages explain the transport options at both ends. The timetable offers travel times to and from all locations: http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable.

[Slowpoke]

30 July 2019 at 9:48:47 #917281

Hi Melzach03-

<<“So maybe go to Lauterbrunnen first thing in the morning, hike then go to

Grindelwald and First in the afternoon? Seems a little bit too tight? “>>

It is good to see that you are learning the altitudes and hiking information, as well as the timetable, which is critical later in the day.

You are wise to be concerned about hiking at high altitude. You may find that you tire a bit more easily, and may need to pause to catch your breath on the climb up from First. And, it will be cold.

Here are two other useful sources of information:

In Grindelwald, sunrise on December 1, 2019 ( day 8) will be at 0751. Sunset at 1641.

http://www.sunrise-and-sunset.com/en/sun/swit zerland/grindelwald/20 19/december

Daily average high and low temperatures at Grindelwald on December 1 are about +2 and -3 degrees Celsius.

weather-and-climate.com/average-monthly-Rainfall-Temperature-Sunshine,grindelwald,S witzerland

Sunset is not as sudden as it is in the tropics. Grindelwald, and more so, First(at 2149 meters) with open exposure to the sunlight in the latter parts of the day will have lingering twilight. Lauterbrunnen, in a steep sided valley, will tend to have a bit less lingering less twilight, as the walls cut of the direct sun light to some degree.

First will be colder than Grindelwald, due to altitude… I forget the usually quoted approximation, but it will be several degrees colder. And, it will be exposed to wind…it is a wide open space. Lauterbrunnen and Stechelberg will have less wind if it is a windy day at First.

The bus to/from Lauterbrunnen/Stechelberg runs every half hour as late as 2306 on December 1, 2019.

This map shows intermediate bus stops:

map.search.ch/?pos=637344,158232&z=32 &poi=haltestelle

It is an easy walk, and you can bail out and grab a bus if you wish to walk only partway. Or, you can simply wander around Lauterbrunnen ( it is small) and not even go to Stechelberg.

At first.there is no “bail out” on the walk to the Bachalpsee. However, you can always walk partway and return, and, if the Ciff Walk is open, it is reached partway up the hill on the beginning part of the climb of the first part of the trail. Picture here:

http://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/grindelwaldfirst/

You could, for example, walk only partway to the BachAlpsee. The views are nice near Gummihitta (Gümmi-hutte), just after the trail levels out.

map.geo.admin.ch/?topic=swisstopo&lang=e n&bgLayer=ch.swisstopo .pixelkarte-farbe&catalogNodes=139 2,1538,1396,1430,1436& layers=ch.swisstopo.im ages-swissimage-dop10.metadata,ch.swis stopo.swisstlm3d-wanderwege&layers_visi bility=false,true&E=26 46586.75&N=1168209.43& zoom=8

So, based on those data, I’d stay in Grindelwald, go up to First in the morning, come down and go to Lauterbrunnen. First is more spectacular, even if you do not go far from the last cableway stop. Lauterbrunnen is more flexible, so that you can return to Grindelwald almost any time. Two trains per hour to Grindelwald as late as 2032, then once per hour until 2230 (with a long wait at Zweilütschinen with those late trains).

That is the way I would approach it.

Slowpoke

[Removed user]

30 July 2019 at 11:12:15 #917282

Thank you so much Arno and Slowpoke for the detail information (as always)! This is very useful for me in deciding for my Day 8.

Another information that I haven’t mentioned is that we’re going straight to Basel at the end of our Day 8. So after Lauterbrunnen in the afternoon, we may not go back to Grindelwald, but go straight to Basel in the evening. Question is can we leave our luggage in Lauterbrunnen station? Or where can we find information about luggage storage in the train stations in every town?