3 days Switzerland based in Lucerne with 1 yr old
A traveler is planning a three-night trip to Zurich in the second week of July with their 1-year-old child. They seek advice on traveling to Lucerne, Interlaken, and Jungfraujoch and want to confirm if their itinerary is reasonable, especially with a toddler. They also ask for suggestions on must-visit attractions and chocolate factories near Lucerne.
- Avoid visiting Jungfraujoch with a 1-year-old, as high altitudes are not recommended for infants.
- Consider using the Swiss Travel Pass for convenience and flexibility within Switzerland.
- Mount Rigi is pram-friendly and offers good views, making it suitable for families with young children.
AI-generated summary-
Hi all,
We are planning a three night trip to Zurich in the second week of July and will be taking our 1 year old child on his first Euro trip. I would like any advice / tips on what can or cannot be done with an infant.
Rough plan as of now –
Day 1 – Land in Zurich and travel straight to Lucerne which will be our base for the 3 nights. Explore Lucerne in the evening.
Day 2 – Travel to interlaken and Montreux via the golden pass panaromic express. We would like to visit Jungfraujoch and visit one of the towns such as Wengen or Murren but is this adviceable with a 1 year old? Or will we be wasting too much time travelling?
Day 3 – Visit railway museum, perhaps a chocalate factory, cheese store to sample fondue, glacier garden.
Day 4 – Return to Zurich and some sightseeing before flying out.
Would also like to visit Bern for a visit but do not want to cramp too much travel.
Does the itinerary sound realistic? Is there any other must visit places for sightseeing or views? Any recommendations for chocalate factories near Lucerne?
Thanks and appreciate the help.
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Hello Swisschoc and Welcome to MySwissAlps,
Day 2. A return trip to Montreux from Luzern is a long day of travel and certainly not capable of including a trip to Jungfraujoch. I’d suggest you drop Montreux and confine your Golden Pass excursion to just as far as the Jungfrau Region.
Use the timetable on the SBB website (bit.ly/2HH1U7B) or the highly-recommended SBB Mobile app (bit.ly/2ICIUHi) to plan your travel, find fares* and buy tickets if required. If you are not familiar with using the timetable it will pay to first read the instructions on this page – http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable. *SBB website shows half-fare prices by default, mobile app allows you to nominate full or half-fare and is also smart enough to offer you the Saver Day Pass (http://www.myswissalps.com/sa verdaypass) if that offers the best fare.
For things to do around Luzern (there is plenty) see http://www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne/activities.
See also http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/chocolate-factories-nearby-lucerne-or-zurich.
There have been several posts lately about taking infants to high altitudes like Jungfraujoch. I don’t recall details, but a 1 year old is not recommended for such a trip. To find these posts, enter “infant to Jungfraujoch” (without quotes) in the search bar in the upper right of this page. Here’s one such post…
http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/travel-with-infant-of-11-months-to-interlaken
With time in hand you can focus on 1 city base. Either it can be lucerne or Interlaken. You can do a day trip to bern from lucerne or Interlaken. From your itinerary sightseeing goal is not clear. 4 days swiss pass will be a no brainer for its convenience and flexibility. Pl read my blog http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/trip-report-switzerland-may-2017 and visit Switzerland and swiss itinerary for brainstorming. Pl be patient while reading since it is detailed but lengthy
Thank you all for your very useful advice and suggestions.
We are ruling out visiting Jungfraujoch and Montreux, would you suggest we can take a 1 year old toddler to Pilatus or Titlis? Or not adviceable due to altitude?
Hello Swisschoc,
Nice you’re coming along with your little one to Switzerland!
I’ll attach the official “medical recommendation” of the Jungfraujoch to my post. It’s recommended not to go above 2’000 – 2’500 meters above see level with a toddler.
Mount Pilatus is just 2’000 meters and Mount Titlis just over 3’000. From my experience on tour toddlers are normally fine on both these mountains.
– http://www.myswissalps.com/pi latus
– http://www.myswissalps.com/ti tlisI personally am a big fan of the Golden Roundtrip on Mount Pilatus, but if snow is a must, you have to go to Mount Titlis, as it’s the only one (now in your selection) that has snow all year round.
Get back to us anytime for further input.
Best,
Steph
Thank you for your advice Steph.
Having gone through a few posts on the forum, I can see a lot of people advising Rigi as a child friendly venue especially if you have a pram / buggy. I am now thinking of Rigi instead of Pilatus / Titlis.
Would you say Rigi has good views? Regarding golden round trip on Mount Pilatus, can we take a buggy along or will this not be possible?
Both Mount Rigi and Mount Pilatus are do-able with a small child incl. pram, no problem!
Mount Rigi is slightly more pram-friendly on the peak, as Mount Pilatus includes quite some steps.
Follow your heart and I’m sure you’ll be happy with your decision, in any case!
Enjoy.
Best
Steph
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