[Anonymous]

25 December 2019 at 6:26:08 #824716

I’ll be travelling to Switzerland during mid of January for a 14days 12 nights. First arrival at Zurich Airport. and was just thinking if I can get some information about the journey arrangement. I’ll be staying for 12nights. My initial plan is to stay 3 nights in Grindelwald, 3 nights in Bern, 3 nights in zermatt, 3 nights in Lauterbrunnen. So my questions are:

1. If I have to choose 4 mountains to visit from. Which one should I choose or is it possible to cover 4 of them together. Will it be too much of the same things? I’m looking to do some activities outdoor but not skiing.

2. With traveling to all these places mentioned above. Will it be better for me to have a Swiss travel pass or a Swiss half price pass? Which among the 2 will be more worth it?

Any suggestions or advises to my trip is very much welcome and appreciated.

Thank you

Yee Ling

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[rockoyster]

Reply 1 of 3 • 25 December 2019 at 6:38:37 #926894

Hello Yee Ling and Welcome to MySwissAlps,

I don’t know that there is such a thing as a best mountain.

Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen are not that far apart so you might want to reconsider staying at two separate locations in the Jungfrau Region.

Have you considered Luzern as a base? It is only 1 hour from Zurich and Pilatus, Rigi and Titlis are all easily accessible from there. If you are interested in mountains then it is a better base than Bern I would say. You can easily do a day trip from Luzern to Bern.

I strongly 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). If you are not familiar with using the SBB timetable it is worth first reading the instructions at http://www.myswissalps.com/timetable.

* 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 (or website) 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.

[User]

Reply 2 of 3 • 25 December 2019 at 14:14:50 #926895

Hello Yee Ling,

I belive there is no such a thing like best mountain, as they are all different and unique. Also it is up to you, what do you prefer: rocky ones, forest, mountain lakes, snowy summits etc.

14 days is enough to visit the Lake Lucerne region (http://www.myswissalps.com/lakelucerne/activities), Zermatt (http://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt/activities) and also the Jungfrau region (http://www.myswissalps.com/jungfrauregion/activities). I do not think it is too much. My favorite mountains are Gornergrat (http://www.myswissalps.com/gornergrat/gettingthere) and First (http://www.myswissalps.com/grindelwald).

Regarding the Swiss rail passes, use the link and the downloadable spreadsheet, Rockoyster gave you. If you stuck anywhere in the calculation let us know. You find all information about the Swiss Travel Card at http://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass and for the Swiss Half Fare Card at http://www.myswissalps.com/swisshalffarecard.

If you do not want to ski, you can still try tobogganing or just simple winter hikes. Read more about the snow fun at http://www.myswissalps.com/activities/snow.

Also see:

• Hiking routes: http://www.myswissalps.com/hiking
• Accommodation in Lucerne: http://www.myswissalps.com/lucerne/hotels and http://www.myswissalps.com/lucerne/rentals
• Accommodation in the Jungfrau area: http://www.myswissalps.com/jungfrauregion/hotels and http://www.myswissalps.com/jungfrauregion/rentals
• Accommodation in Zermatt: http://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt/hotels and http://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt/rentals

I hope this helps.

[Mark]

Reply 3 of 3 • 25 December 2019 at 22:30:51 #926896

Hi Yee Ling

I agree with Rockoyster you don’t need to stay in both Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald. Instead a stay in Lucerne is good advice.

In the Jungfrau area my personal mountains of choice are First and Schilthorn but many choose Jungfraujoch ( very commercial and crowded in summer but maybe not in winter). The website Jungfrau. ch has a list of groomed hiking trails, snowshoeing trails, and sledding runs open in winter.

In Zermatt i would visit the Gornergrat summit for sure and probably the Klein Matterhorn as well.

Mark