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Hi
I have roughly done the below itenary, want to know is this doable or is it too ambitious. Considering I have senior parents along with us.1 July reach Zurich at 10 pm
2 july Rhine fall and Constance lake along with mainau
3 day trip to Lugano
4 July checkout from Zurich and reach Lucerne. Lion monument and chapel bridge
5 July Mt Titlis
6 July transport museum and pilatus
7 July Bern
8 July Jungfrau and Interlaken
9 july flexible for any of the above excursion missed due to weather
10 checkout from Lucerne take Golden pass and reach Montreux and then check-in in lausanne. City tour
11 Gstaad Bollywood tour and chocolate and cheese factory
12 Geneva
13 Montreux
14 Zermatt
15 shopping at lausanne
16 checkout from lausanne and reach Zurich. Explore Zurich bahnstarsse
17 fly back to mumbaiKindly advise if any thing that we can skip or add.
Also we wanted to do Milan from Lugano but seems it’s difficult.
Awaiting suggestions.We will keep checking the weather and accordingly change the dates for visiting Jungfrau.
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H Slinternational –
First thoughts.
Please tell us the places you plan to stay at night.
Day 4 5, 6, and 7 have slack time. Good for relaxed sight seeing.
Day 8+9 could use more time.
Day 15- Perhaps shop in Zuerich.
Slowpoke
Hi
Thanks for your response.
We are in Zurich from 1 to 3 night and from 4 to 9 we are in Lucerne. Then 10 to 15 in Lausanne and last night in Zurich.
Accommodation is booked.I also have few more questions which are mentioned below:
1) I also want to check if anywhere we can fit in Glacier express.
I can amend my booking in Lucerne and reduce a day or 2 however do not want to have too many bases.2) With so much of baggage how do we travel?
3) Can we do any hiking as my kids are in their teens they want to do it?
4) Will swiss travel pass for 15 day be cost effective or should we take point to point tickets?
5) A day or 2 of doing nothing and just relaxing and observing the scenic beauty of Swiss.
6) Where can we have good cheese fondue, also can we call for 3 fondue for all 6 of us considering our parents might not be able to eat or like it much.
7) We are looking for good veg restaurants while we stay in Lausanne and do nearby places. We are placed in Ibis in Lausanne.
We are flexible with sight seeing as we don’t want to do trains everyday but want to see maximum. Please let us know if we can club few things and relax on few days.
We will have our meals cooked at the apartment from 2 to 9.
What do u mean by 4,5,6,&7 have slack time please give some more idea.
Many thanks in advance.
Malvika
Hi Malvika,
Nice to hear you’re three generations coming along to Switzerland!
1) You could maybe fit in the Glacier Express to your itinerary by adding a day in Zermatt from Lucerne and “combining” the Glacier Express with the Gotthard Panorama Express as suggested in the lower part of this link:
– http://www.myswissalps.com/gl acierexpress/gettingth ere
– http://www.myswissalps.com/ze rmattMake sure that you become familiar with the Swiss timetable in order to be able to plan your itinerary in detail.
– http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable2) You can either carry your luggage yourselves on the trains (this is no issue, train-wise) or use one of the transportation services of the SBB.
– http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/practical/luggage3) You will find some nice walks and hikes in all the areas you plan to visit. By typing them into the search bar of this page and then going to the “What to do” tab of each destination, you will find a nice selection of activities, incl. hikes.
4) Normally a rail pass is of great advantage when travelling longer in Switzerland. The options, however, are numerous and you first need to have a clear itinerary to find out which one suits you best.
– http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses
– http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses/prac tical/chooserailpass, you’ll find a fantastic spreadsheet for detailed calculations here, too.5) I totally agree that this is VERY IMPORTANT on a holiday!!!!!
6) You will find cheese fondue in practically all the locations, don’t worry about that! It is eaten out of “common” pots anyway (not each person gets his fondue pot), so YES, you can easily start with a smaller portion and order something else in case someone doesn’t like it. Warning – it’s very cheeeesy.. 😉
7) I’m not too familiar with Lausanne, but the cities in Switzerland nowadays offer a wide selection of vegetarian restaurants or at least vegetarian dishes.
– http://www.myswissalps.com/la usanneTibits is a very popular vegetarian restaurant, also to be found in Lausanne, I believe.
Hope this helps.
Best,
StephThanks Steph.
We will surely look at spending overnight in Zermatt.
Can you please also confirm do u think this itenary is doable and not really tiring.
Also, my son read about Grindlewald so do u suggest we change our base from Lucerne to some other base near Grindlewald.
Not to forget the Glacier3000. They want to do the ride.
I am really confused. There is so much to do and see in Swiss.
Initially I thought 16 days trip would be good, however, I now feel it’s less.
Please help to pick up best attractions which are must see doable and not really tiring.
Many thanks
MalvikaThis would be a great help.
Hello Malvika,
I can’t confirm that something is do-able for somebody I don’t know, I’m afraid. This very much depends on how much travelling time YOU want during your trips and how long days YOU think are comfortable.
But overall I think it is really nicely paced, with some longer days and some days allowing to explore more locally and in a slower pace! I would come along immediately.. 😉
Use the timetable provided above to find out in details about travelling times, etc.
You could consider adding a base in Interlaken somewhere between the 7th and 10th, leaving Lucerne earlier. Like this you would have additional time in the Grindelwald/Interlaken area and also avoid backtracking Lucerne – Interlaken when taking the Golden Pass route (as it goes via Interlaken anyway).
– http://www.myswissalps.com/gr indelwald
– http://www.myswissalps.com/go ldenpassThis would then mean four bases; Zurich – Lucerne – Interlake – Lausanne, which sounds quite fantastic to me.
Hope this helps getting a clearer picture.
Happy planning and get back to us anytime.
Best,
StephMany thanks Steph.
Is Germany Constance worth a visit by a car. I am planning to rent a car for a day and look around Rhine falls and Constance lake and Mainua and come back in aday.
Would there be any additional cost apart from fuel, car rentals, may be toll and parking charges.
Many thanks.
Malvika
Hi Malvika,
I think it’s a very nice change to your itinerary travelling a day by car. Make sure the car rental allows you to travel abroad with the vehicle, not all of them do!
I think you’ve mentioned all the costs involved, as normally rented cars have the Swiss motorway vignette provided.
Make sure to read:
– http://www.myswissalps.com/ca r
– http://www.myswissalps.com/rh inefallsBest,
Steph
<<“What do u mean by 4,5,6,&7 have slack time please give some more idea.”>>
The days as you wrote them are not full. So you can take some time for leisurely exploring or relaxing. Or spend more time at the places mentioned. Of those days, Day 6 is the most full, and can still have time to wander in Luzern. Or, you can pick a slower route to Pilatus…..boat to Alpnachstad, then cograil…..
Any of the places that you mention could be nice for a relaxed day or two (as noted in item 5 – “just relaxing”) ; my own preference would be for Luzern.
Take a train to Flüelen at the southern tip of the lake, and ride a lake boat back to Luzern…3 or 4 hours. Maybe get off and explore a town and catch the next boat…typically one hour later.)
Zürich is particularly nice for walking through the parks along either lake shore. I like to take a train or tram/bus to Station Tiefenbrunnen, then walk back through the parks to town.
The Jungfrau Region-
<<“Also, my son read about Grindlewald so do u suggest we change our base from Lucerne to some other base near Grindlewald. “>>
My advice is to read further – here:
http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfrauregion
Note the comments about each village on the right…scroll down..
Grindelwald has nice stuff nearby (First, Pfingstegg), but my own personal opinion is that it is excessively commercial, with a long string of restaurants, shops and hotels with pleasant views toward the Alps and the Männlichen prominence.
Children may not care for charm, but I find the other villages more appealing.
Slowpoke
When I read your first post, I too was wondering where you were planning to spend each night. Then I read your reply and that you have already booked 6 nights in Lucerne and 6 nights in Lausanne, with the other nights in Zurich. I suspect that with all this moving around the Swiss Travel Pass will be the best idea for you. If you buy the 15 day ones, you will have to think about when it would be best for your first day of use. I will leave it to the train experts to confirm that the 15-day STP is the best for you. These days I move around by car, but maybe when I get older I’ll get back to using the trains.
I also read that you would look into staying a night in Zermatt. Does this mean that you could change some of your reservations for some of the nights ? If so, some suggestions that others have made have merit !
Thanks Peter.
I can change in Lucerne and last night in Zurich.
Could you help me about the car rentals, if I want to rent it to go to Germany and back in a day.
I am thinking of using it from 2nd July to 16th, but was wondering about the last day when we are flying back home. Hopefully we will have shuttle service from the aparthotel to airport.
Many thanks
Malvika
Hello Malvika,
Find input about car rentals in below link:
– http://www.myswissalps.com/ca r/carrentalFor route planning I use
– http://www.viamichelin.comYou will normally have either a shuttle service, public transportation or taxis as the main options to get to the airport, depending on the departure time and hotel of course.
– http://www.myswissalps.com/ai rports/zurichBest,
StephThanks Steph.
Malvika
Good morning
Can my husband drive with Indian driving licence?
Hello Malvika,
I am getting more confused. I was thinking that you are planning on using the 15-day Swiss Travel Pass. But then I read the following from you: << Could you help me about the car rentals, if I want to rent it to go to Germany and back in a day.>> and then << I am thinking of using it from 2nd July to 16th, but was wondering about the last day when we are flying back home. Hopefully we will have shuttle service from the aparthotel to airport.>> I don’t understand what you mean about using “it” from July 2 to 16. Does the “it” refer to a rental car ?
As for your last question about an Indian driver’s license, you should check with the car rental agency. I imagine it would be a good idea to have an International Driver’s License, which you would purchase in India before leaving on your trip. I did find this on http://www.indiafilings.com: An Indian citizen planning to travel abroad and drive a car or motorbike in a foreign country can obtain an International Driving Licence or International Driving Permit from the local RTO office. … In all States of India, International Driving License is issued by the concerned RTO office or Motor Vehicle Department. I also found a list of countries where the Indian License is valid (see attached)
Attachments:Hi Peter,
Thanks for the information.
Apologies for the confusion, we are in Swiss from 1st to 17th which makes 17 days.
I was thinking if we can hire a car for 2nd day and start the 15 day swiss pass from day 3. Day 1 we will reach late evening and can take the shuttle to the hotel. I am still working on my itenary.
Hope this makes sense now.
Another question I have in my mind is about packing list. Could you please advise what should we must pack. What should be avoided.
Many thanks
Malvika
Hi Malvika,
If you’re in Zurich the first days I do not recommend a car. Public transport will be quicker and more relaxed, particularly in and around the city. You can read more about it here: http://www.myswissalps.com/zu rich/travel. Apart from the options mentioned there, there are also day passes for transport only (no museums) in the area, which can get you as far as the Rhine Falls.
Hello again,
I agree completely with Arno. It is far better to get a public transport pass to get around Zurich. Have you looked into the Zürich Card ? You can download the 72-page brochure at http://www.zuerich.com/en/vis it/your-city-travel-pass
You might be able to adjust your itinerary so that you start using your 15 day Swiss Travel Pass after you arrive in Zurich and then have a one-day or two-day Zürich Card at the end of your trip. It can even get you back to the airport. I suspect that the cost of the cards would be less than that of renting a car, not to mention not having to look for a place to park and then pay the parking costs. Also, if you consult the Zürich card brochure you will see that it has many other benefits (free and reduced admissions).
Hi
We did 16 days only Switzerland tour in the month of march and every detail was planned by me.
The trip was very successful, enclosed is my itinerary for your reference. We did Bernina express and 2 journeys by Glacier express.n its worth.
Just see my itinerary in the attachment
Thanks Ajit,
I believe you had Swiss travel pass for this itenary.
Also, can you please share when did you do the reservation of the scenic rail route?
Was your trip tiring or you were able to enjoy all scenic routes easily, I am worried as I have my mother-in-law and mother along?
How did you manage the baggage with few days every place?
What all you packed any tips to must carry from India?
How about food and accommodation?
Many thanks,
Malvika
Hi Malvika
We indeed had 15 days consecutive STP 1st class and we enjoyed all scenic trains. Booking of which was done on the opening day of reservation (I think 2/3 months in advance.)
The travelling was not tiring even while train change at 2/3 places also. As I had planned the Itinerary with minute details like dep/arr time, platform number on arr as well as that of connecting train. So everything worked out like clockwork. You need perfect planning for the trip.
We all 5 people are senior citizen n one member was 75 yrs but we were never tired.
Off course handling the baggage was tedious but we managed.
Our baggage was heavy due to dinnerware but My advice is to travel with 1 bag of the medium size per person so that every one can wheel it
.every station has a ramp n some station have elevators too
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