[Anonymous]

30 May 2019 at 18:13:33 #821935

Hello. I am planning to take a trip to Switzerland this July. I Have never traveled in Europe. Hence, I am a bit puzzled about how to get around the country. I am planning to visit Zurich for a day, then head to the Swiss alps. I want to visit Lauterbrunnen, wengen and grindevald. I do not have idea how to get to those places. My main question is how do I Get to the alps and where in Alps do I go and How do I get around? I am confused about the whole travel system there as well as ticketing ideas. I would highly appreciate some thorough information and guidance. please. Thank you.

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[User]

Reply 1 of 3 • 30 May 2019 at 23:26:26 #913744

Switzerland is one of the least confusing travel systems in the world, the whole country is served by a totally integrated public transport network where everything connects more or less seemlessly with everything else.

For example, if you stayed in a hotel in Zurich and want to visit the heart of the Swiss alps, your trip might be something like this, with minimal walking between connecting modes:

1. short walk from your hotel to the nearest tram stop
2. tram from there to Zurich HB (Zurich’s main railway station)
3. inter city train Zurich – Bern – Spiez
4. local train Spiez – Interlaken
5. narrow gauge rural train Interlaken – Grindelwald
6. cable car Grindelwald – First
7. narrow gauge mountain train Grindelwald – Kleine Scheidegg – Wengen – Lauterbrunnen
8. Bus Lauterbrunnen – Stechelberg
9. Cable car Stechelberg – Mürren
10. etc

[User]

Reply 2 of 3 • 30 May 2019 at 23:29:20 #913745

http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfrauregion

http://www.myswissalps.com/wh eretogo

and a good intro is the hard copy book by Anthony Lambert:

http://www.bradtguides.com/sh op/switzerland-without-a-car-3301.html

[User]

Reply 3 of 3 • 31 May 2019 at 8:33:35 #913746

Hello lovely2486-

Welcome to My Swiss Alps! You will find your travel in Switzerland on public transport to be an amazing and pleasing experience.

1960man’s encyclopedic knowledge of the Swiss Transport System is legendary among the members of this forum. He has provided many tips that have been useful for me. His example of the connectivity is very good.

I can add a few things to his posts that may point you to additional help that is particularly suitable for novices:

First…this link:

http://www.myswissalps.com/tr avel

and, in particular, the sub-link:

http://www.myswissalps.com/tr avel/inswitzerland

The timetable is a wonderful tool….see some useful tips that are definitely worth a careful read on how to use it here:

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

Once you have learned the tricks, you can go directly to this website:

http://www.sbb.ch/en/home.htm l

All kinds of useful stuff at that site buried in layers and of information.

When I am planning a trip, I find a map to be extremely helpful. Actually, necessary. Some use Google Maps, and I find it useful, particularly for facilities near a particular location. But my preference for planning train travel in Switzerland is to use this map:

map.search.ch/

There are a few reasons:

If you zoom in far enough..to zoom level 32 ( last number in the URL) the train lines are very clear, as are mountain transport facilities.

map.search.ch/?pos=641623,163584&z=32

In the menu, under “Points of Interest” ( the circle with a star)/Traffic you can turn on icons for various transport modes:

map.search.ch/?pos=641623,163584&z=32 &poi=bergbahn,halteste lle,mobility,zug

If you zoom in a bit to make them more clear, then mouse over or click on an icon, you get more information. One item is very useful. It give the exact official name of the station or stop. You can then use that in the timetable to pinpoint exact travel destinations or starting points…even bus stops in cities.

In the simplest terms, open the timetable, enter your starting point – Zürich, Zürich HB or Zürich Hbf (main station, Hauptbahnof) and your destination – Grindelwald. (Watch the spelling).

You will get the fastest route, at various times.

Click on one of the route lines with small circles shown.

The entire route details open up. You can see platform numbers, etc. Look that page over carefully. There is a lot available.

Scroll way down and you have choice of maps of the start and finish stations.

That’s a start.

Let us know if you have more questions

Slowpoke