Hiking early November – Lucerne, Grindelwald
A couple is visiting Switzerland from November 5-9, planning to stay in Grindelwald after arriving in Lucerne. They seek accessible hikes with lake views in the Bern Oberland area, aiming to maximize their outdoor experience despite the challenges of the off-season.
- Check out the Swiss Path around Lake Lucerne for a beautiful hike, especially the Bauen to Seelisberg section combined with a boat trip.
- In the Jungfrau region, consider hiking to Pfingstegg or taking the train to Kleine Scheidegg for scenic views.
- A day trip to Zermatt is possible, but plan for limited daylight and consider simpler walks to make the most of your time.
- Regardless of altitude, stunning lake views can be found along paths beside Swiss alpine lakes like Thun and Brienz.
AI-generated summary-
Hello! Me and my husband will be in Switzerland for a short trip November 5-9, 2022 we’ll have 4 full days to explore the mountains! Starting in Lucerne November 5 evening and will be staying in Grindelwald the rest of the time. We’re interested in hiking/walking and are interested in nature and outdoors.
We have been having a hard time finding mountains with lake view hikes that are available during this time.
So far on the to do list is:
Top of Europe, Harder Kulum. But we’re having a hard time finding hikes that are up to 3-4miles in the Bern Oberland area that is accessible November 5-9. We are open to rails and trains to access viewpoints.
Do you have any suggestions on must see places available during this time? Trying to fit in as much beautiful scenery as we can in this little amount of time!!
Thanks for the help!
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Hi Parachutears,
Welcome to MySwissAlps.
November is considered an off-season as most mountain transportation stop operation and undergo maintenance. But no worries, there are still plenty of hiking trails accessible during this period. In Lucerne, a local favourite is the Swiss Path (Weg der Schweiz), which takes you around various sections of Lake Lucerne, covering almost 35km. One of the more popular section is the trail from Bauen to Seelisberg. You can combine this hike with a boat trip on Lake Lucerne. If you prefer hiking in the mountains, you can find easy to moderate trails on Mt Rigi.
In the Jungfrau region, from your base in Grindelwald you can hike to Pfingstegg, or take the train to Kleine Scheidegg and hike down to Wengen. Also you can take the public transport to Mürren and hike down to Gimmelwald and Lauterbrunnen.
For more information about activities in Grindelwald: http://www.myswissalps.com/grindelwald/activities
Hope this gives you some ideas for your trip.
Regards,
Anna
Thank you so much for your detailed help Anna!
We are considering doing a day trip from Grindelwald to Zermatt for some mountainous views, do you recommend any hiking options that is around 3-4miles, not too extreme that is accessible during Nov 5-9?
Or should we skip Zermatt and spend the majority of our time in the Jungfrau region?
Thanks again!
Hi Parachutears,
The Jungfrau Region is beautiful enough to keep you busy for weeks. A day trip to Zermatt can be done, but keep a few things in mind:
- Day light will be short during your visit (see https://www.myswissalps.com/time), so if you want to enjoy views along the way you should’t leave too early or return too late.
- A single journey Grindelwald-Zermatt takes about 3 hours via the quickest route (see https://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt). This means you won’t have much time left in Zermatt.
- If you want to travel on the scenic RegioExpress Lötschberger (see https://www.myswissalps.com/lotschberger), traveling time will be even longer.
- Will you be having a rail pass https://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses? If so, check whether the journey to Zermatt is covered or discounted.
If you opt for a day trip from Grindelwald, I recommend to keep it simple in Zermatt. This town walk can be nice: https://www.myswissalps.com/hiking/zermatt. More suggestions are at https://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt/activities
By implication from your wording it seems you are thinking of higher altitude hiking. Unfortunately early November is not the best season for ‘hiking’ which is normally a spring/summer/autumn activity .
However do remember (often forgotten by tourists from outside Europe’s mountain regions) that you do not have to go up mountains to see beautiful views. It is just as easy to see fabulous mountain views from low altitude.
Based on your original question, the simplest way to hike and see lakes and mountains is to walk along the paths beside the main Swiss alpine lakes, including all the luzern lakes, thun and Brienz, and other lakes, including Sarnersee which never get mentioned on this forum!.
Use the wanderland.ch web site to see the network of walking paths : map.schweizmobil.ch/?lang=en&land=wanderland&route=all&layers=Wanderland&photos=yes&logo=yes&detours=yes&season=summer&resolution=250&E=2631750&N=1189000&bgLayer=pk
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