[Anonymous]

6 December 2019 at 12:16:03 #824610

Hi – we are family of 4 including 2 kids (6 and 10 years) planning to travel Switzerland from April 4 to April 10. This is how we have planned itinerary:

April 4th – from Lugano to Tirano by Bernina bus and then train to St Moritz: overnight stays

April 5th – glacier express from St Moritz to Zermatt; overnight stay

April 6th; Gornergrat and Matterhorn and in the afternoon departure to Interlaken; overnight stay

april 7th: Jungfrau, Grindelwald etc overnight stay at Interlaken

April 8th: nearby places in Interlaken and afternoon travel to Lucerne with Goldenline express; overnight stay or may be travel to Zurich; overnight stay at Zurich

April 9th- Zurich lake, city, Rhine Falls etc and overnight stay

april 10th- flight time Singapore at 1.30 pm

what help is needed:

1. Overall tour plan and if this needs adjustment and if yes what is that

2. any critical factor that I should keep in mind as I would be having kids

3. How would be the overall temperature during these days and sunset/sunrise timing

Grateful for your opinion and suggestion s

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[rockoyster]

Reply 1 of 8 • 6 December 2019 at 21:54:48 #926152

Hello Nitya Singhaand Welcome to MySwissAlps,

How are you arriving in Lugano? If from Milan see http://www.myswissalps.com/traintickets/italy.

I recommend using the SBB Mobile app (bit.ly/2ICIUHi) for checking train, bus, boat and cable way timetables, finding fares* and buying tickets on-line if required. In the unlikely event you don’t have a device capable of running the app then you can use the timetable on the SBB website (bit.ly/2HH1U7B).

* The SBB website shows half-fare prices by default, the mobile app allows you to nominate whether to show full or half-fares (by editing the passenger details in settings) and is also smart enough to offer you the Saver Day Pass (http://www.myswissalps.com/saverdaypass) if that offers the best fare. The app can also display a platform map (at least at the larger stations) to help you make connections. You can also easily filter modes of transport (eg bus or ship).

The app will always show the fastest, most direct routes unless you tell it you want to go a longer way round by including other stations to go VIA. For example, if you wanted to follow the Golden Pass route you would need to search the SBB app looking for Luzern to Montreux via Interlaken and Zweisimmen.

Based on your personal itinerary you should read “How to choose the best travel pass” (http://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses/practical/chooserailpass), download the handy spreadsheet calculator and do the math. The spreadsheet also includes links to the “Where it’s valid” page for all available passes. Be sure to check those pages for each pass you are considering. Study the map AND read all the text on those pages to fully understand what is covered by the respective pass.

You need reservations for the Bernina and Glacier Express trains. Reservations are not covered by any pass.

it will be cold in the mountains in April. See http://www.myswissalps.com/weather. You can Google sunrise/sunset times for the places you are visiting.

[Anna]

Reply 2 of 8 • 6 December 2019 at 22:51:25 #926153

Hi Nitya Singha,

Welcome to MySwissAlps!

Your itinerary is rather packed but not impossible. Travelling with children could be a challenge but fun too if you are flexible with your plans. Personally I would recommend picking out maximum 2 bases if you’re visiting for a week. But if you don’t mind packing and unpacking every day, then spending the night at every stop shoudn’t be a problem.

For the purpose of your travel, I would recommend getting the Swiss Travel Pass and the Swiss Family Card for your family. Full details of these are outlined in the links below:

• Swiss Travel Pass: http://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass
• Swiss Family Card: http://www.myswissalps.com/swissfamilycard

June is a good time to visit Switzerland. Around this time, you can expect the weather to be warm as summer begins. In general, sunrise is roughly at 5.30 am and sunset about 9pm. For information about the best time to visit, see here: http://www.myswissalps.com/besttimetovisit

Other useful links for your trip:

• Bernina Express: http://www.myswissalps.com/berninaexpress
• Glacier Express: http://www.myswissalps.com/glacierexpress
• Golden Pass Line: http://www.myswissalps.com/goldenpass
• Lugano: http://www.myswissalps.com/lugano
• St Moritz: http://www.myswissalps.com/stmoritz
• Zermatt: http://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt
• Gornergrat: http://www.myswissalps.com/gornergrat
• Matterhorn: http://www.myswissalps.com/kleinmatterhorn
• Interlaken: http://www.myswissalps.com/interlaken
• Grindelwald: http://www.myswissalps.com/grindelwald
• Jungfraujoch: http://www.myswissalps.com/jungfraujoch
• Lucerne: http://www.myswissalps.com/lucerne
• Zurich: http://www.myswissalps.com/zurich
• Rhine Falls: http://www.myswissalps.com/rhinefalls

Be sure to download the SBB timetable app to help you plan your journey. http://www.myswissalps.com/timetable

Best regards,

Anna

[rockoyster]

Reply 3 of 8 • 7 December 2019 at 0:34:38 #926154

Hi Anna,

I agree, June is a good time to visit. But our friend is planning to visit in April! 😇

Sunrise is 7:00am and sunset 8:00pm: http://www.myswissalps.com/time.

ps Nitya, while you are downloading the SBB app also get the MeteoSwiss app to keep and eye on weather forecasts when travelling.

[User]

Reply 4 of 8 • 7 December 2019 at 4:32:29 #926155

Thanks for your suggestion.

[User]

Reply 5 of 8 • 7 December 2019 at 4:33:28 #926156

Thank you very much. Yes, I am planning to take swiss family pass for 8 days which I think would allow free rides for the kids

[Anna]

Reply 6 of 8 • 7 December 2019 at 6:49:17 #926157

Oops, sorry for the error Nitya. Thanks for pointing that out Rockoyster. Must’ve mixed up my post then. Need more coffee 🙂

Nevertheless, anytime is a good time to visit, Nitya. April usually marks the beginning of Spring and the weather is neither too cold or hot, but if you plan to hike in the mountains, some trails may still be inaccessible.

Regards,

Anna

[Anna]

Reply 7 of 8 • 7 December 2019 at 6:54:58 #926158

Hi again Nitya,

Good to know you are considering getting the 8-day Swiss Travel Pass. You can get the Swiss Family Card free of charge while ordering a Swiss Travel Pass.

You can purchase the rail pass at any of the recommended resellers from this link: http://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass/price

Be sure to download the validity map and read the how to use section before you start your trip.

Regards,

Anna

[User]

Reply 8 of 8 • 7 December 2019 at 10:20:27 #926159

Hi Nityasingh –

Anna wrote:

<<“April usually marks the beginning of Spring and the weather is neither

too cold or hot, but if plan to hike in the mountains, some trails may

still be inaccessible.”>>

The first part is certainly true at lower altitudes.

But, as you go to higher altitudes, such as the villages ( around 1100 to 1600 meters) and trails near the Jungfrau , Spring is really delayed until late May or June. It gets colder as you go higher. Nice trails at around 2000 meters don’t open until mid-June. April usually still may have some skiing at the beginning of the month, during the time you are there. After that, there are fewer visitors, and some of the tourist facilities close for holidays or maintenance. Just to illustrate with one typical example, April 12th, 2020 is the last day that the Hotel Schonegg in Wengen is open until May 29th. Others remain open, but in the high Alps, you will be at the tail end of Winter. Winter hiking trails exist in the Jungfrau region, but they tend to be maintained only until late March, as the snow conditions deteriorate after that.

At low altitudes – places such as Luzern, Zurich and Interlaken itself, will indeed see the start of Spring in April.

I’ve not been to Zermatt or St. Moritz at that time, but the areas in the mountains around Zermatt (1616 meters for the town) are at higher altitude than those near the Jungfrau. Gornergrat is at about 3000 meters. You cannot visit the Matterhorn, but there are great views from Riffelalp and Gornergrat.

St. Moritz is at around 1820 meters. You’ll almost certainly have snow there. Not sure about the exact conditions on the valley floor, at about 1770 meters. Trails on the valley floor will usually be maintained.

http://www.engadin.ch/en/winter-hiking-trails-in-the-valley/

So, with you itinerary, you’ll experience some conditions more like Winter,as well as the beginning of Spring, depending on altitude.

Slowpoke