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Hi,
We are planning 3 days trip to Lucerne area in July 2019 with 2 kids 9 and 14-years old. Our base will be Lucerne for the entire trip. Below is what I have planned. I know it may be little hectic. Please advice is it doable. Any suggestion is highly appreciated. Thanks.
Day 1
- Reaching Zurich airport early morning. Take train from ZHR airport/Flughafen to Lucerne Hotel. Drop luggage, get fresh.
- Visit Bern and Zurich HB
- Train from Lucerne to Bern. Spend couple of hours to see just Old Town
- Train from Bern to Zurich HB. Spend couple of hour to see Bahnhofstrasse
- Train from Zurich HB to Lucerne
Day 2
- Mount Rigi (1/2 day)
- Mount Titlis (1/2 half day)
Day 3
- Panaromic Round Trip train (Lucerne-Interlaken-Lauterbrunnen-Lucern)
- Take segment of GoldenPass Line from Lucerne to Interlaken.
- Visit Lauterbrunnen area for couple of hours
- Back by 4p
- Spend evening in Lucerne and see Chapel bridge, Lion Mountain
Day 4
- Morning flight to back home
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Hi Sukunag,
Day 1 may not be entirely impossible but it is very hectic I think. You’d easily spend 4 hours on trains getting from one town to the other. I would rather drop the luggage in Zurich and explore the town immediately after arrival. Then take a train to Lucerne to check in and freshen up, and enjoy the city for the rest of the afternoon/evening.
Day 2 is possible, but it will be quick visits. You can find details here:
Day 3 is possible as well. It could be a long day depending on your plans around Lauterbrunnen. A visit to S chynige Platte or Schilthorn would be wonderful.
Hi Arno,
Thanks for your advice. The reason I planned both Bern and Zurich for Day-1 is that I was looking on sbb.ch/en for train time and it’s 1 hr from Luzern-Bern and Bern-Zurich HB. So I thought 2 hrs in each town+1hr train, so total 6 hrs. Even if I start at noon I should be done by 6p.
For Day 3 – I was looking on suggested one day combined scenic train journey for part of Goldenpass and Gotthard Panoramic at
http://www.myswissalps.com/go tthardpanoramaexpress/ gettingthere , should we do that OR it’s too much hassle And just stickwith doing Goldenpass from Lucerne-Interlaken and spend some time at Lauterbrunnen. I have heard there is a beautiful fall inLauterbrunnen area and am interested to see that. Could youtell me what is that fall name and how to get to that?Thanks.
Back in 1989, I visited Switzerland with the family. The children were similar ages. What surprised me was that the children did not get the “wow” factor from the magnificent scenery. But we had a great time nevertheless.
I appreciate I may be 30 years out of date but to be honest I think you’re trying to do too much in such a short time.
My approach (and we are all different) is to spend more time in fewer places.
And perhaps to visit some of the wonderful but lesser known locations not often mentioned in these pages. Right now I’m planning a 10 day TellPass adventure in August.
I wonder if your plans will end up being an endurance test. Travelling with family is a wonderful experience but there are always a few, and inevitable, stresses and strains within the overall enjoyment.
Have you thought of a “walk” on one of your days? Not necessarily a mountain hike but there are some lovely footpaths that can be used to link up public transport modes. A leisurely stroll of an hour or so may appeal to the young people? A bit of variety from being inside trains and other public transport vehicles.
Seems it’s a “fly in fly out” holiday. You don’t mention your origin. Maybe jet lag to consider?
Whatever you end up with I’m sure you’ll have a great time as we did in 1989.
Hi Sukunag,
The fall is the Staubbachfall, about 15 minutes on foot from the train station of Lauterbrunnen. I would stick to that, you don’t have time for the Gotthard Panorama Express I’m afraid. Just come back another time for more 😉
Thanks Arno for all the helpful suggestions. One last question: are all these places open 7 days a week OR close any particular day of the week. We haven’t booked our flight yet and are pretty flexiable. Any advice on booking around any particular time of July or early August.
Thanks Gunzel for sharing your experience. May be we’ll come for a slow-pace leisurely vacation in future. For now, I just want to get feel of Switzerland for once.
You’re welcome! July and August are high season and everything will be open. No problem there!
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