4 and half days in Switzerland in September

Travel Itinerary: First week of September 2023 (Already purchased 4+1 Swiss Travel Pass)

Day 1:

Arrival at ZRH at 10:25 AM.

Travel from Zurich Airport to Andermatt via train.

Take the 2:08 PM Glacier Express from Andermatt to Zermatt.

Arrive at 6:15 PM in Zermatt.

Check in at the hotel.

Day 2:

Morning: Travel to Gornergrat (Matterhorn).

Afternoon: Travel to Interlaken.

Check in at the hotel in Interlaken.

Evening: Consider taking a Lake Brienz cruise. Feedback and suggestions are welcome.

Day 3:

Morning: Travel from Interlaken to the Top of Europe via Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald.

Evening: Take a train from Interlaken to Lucerne.

Suggestions for additional sightseeing activities are welcome.

Day 4:

Visit Stanserhorn or Mt. Rigi. Feedback is required to determine if it's possible to visit both.

Any other lake cruises if possible? Suggestions for other sightseeing activities are welcome.

Day 5:

Visit the Chapel Bridge or enjoy a stroll in Lucerne.

Suggestions for other sightseeing activities are welcome.

Travel from Lucerne around 11:30 AM to Zurich to catch a 4:40 PM flight.

Your suggestions and feedback for this trip will be greatly appreciated.

Any other sight seeing activity can be added? Suggestions

Hi Sohigs,

Thanks for sharing your itinerary. This looks very packed with activities but it is fairly doable. On Day 2, you can certainly plan boat trips on Lake Brienz from your base in Interlaken. You can find planning tips here: www.myswissalps.com/boatlakebrienz. On Day 3, if you arrive in Lucerne in the evening, I recommend a stroll in the old town or take an evening cruise on the lake: www.myswissalps.com/boatlakelucerne. On Day 4, you can do Rigi in the morning and Stanserhorn in the afternoon. You can find more sightseeing options in Lucerne here: www.myswissalps.com/lucerne/activities

Hope this gives you additional ideas to add to your itinerary.

Regards,

Anna

Thank you Anna.

For Lake Lucerne boat cruise, Could you Please share the link for the boat cruise that is included in the swiss travel pass?

Hi Sohigs,

With the Swiss Travel Pass, all boat trips on Lake Lucerne are free (except for special culinary cruises where you might have to pay extra): https://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass/validity

You can find the link to more information here: www.myswissalps.com/boatlakelucerne

Regards,

Anna

Hi Sohigs,

If you are in Lucerne on either Thu, Fri, or Sat, you can go up to the Stanserhorn later in the afternoon, with the last descent being at 2300 hrs. This would allow you to visit Rigi in the morning/afternoon, and later visit the Stanserhorn. Perapse, even see the sunset from up there.) As Anna has mentioned, you can see both Rigi and Stanserhorn in the same day, but be aware that they are in two different directions. As such, again, if it's a Thu, Fri, or Sat, you can take more time at Rigi (perhaps even take a lake cruise towards Stans). Also you can take a stroll around the city of Lucerne at any time, as it's not terribly big and most things are fairly close to the chapel bridge. It's a great walking place to see. Have a great trip.

Regards,

Danielsan

Thank you!

What are best travel route options to see Top or Europe TO/from Interlaken?

Hi Sohig,

The are several ways to travel to Jungfraujoch from Interlaken. You could either go via Grindelwald or Wengen by cogwheel train, or take the Eiger Express gondola from Grindelwald Terminal. All option is possible with a return ticket. You can find details on how to plan your journey to Jungfraujoch here: www.myswissalps.com/jungfraujoch/gettingthere

Regards,

Anna

Hi Sohigs,

There are Basically rhree ways to get to the "Top of Europe" from Interlaken. 2 of which are located in Grindelwald, the other one from Lauterbrunnen. (Interlaken Ost to Lauterbrunnen is approx 20 min, from Ost to Grindelwald is approx 40 min by train.) From Lauterbrunnen, take the train to Kliene Scheidegg, via Wengen, and then switch to the train to the Jungfraujoch from K.S. From Grindelwald, you can take a train up to Keine Scheidegg and then the same train up from there. Or you can take the Eiger Express cable car up (which is a shorter ride) and meet the same train from there to the top.

Also, on day two when you arrive in Interlaken, you may want to consider seeing Harder Kulm. (It's less than a 10 min walk from Interlaken Ost train station.) It is open later and one can see a spectacular sunset while looking down over the two lakes, and there is a large patio with some good food as well. Enjoy.

Regards,

Danielsan

Thank you. Really Appreciate it

Hi Sohigs,

No problem. Just wanted to mention also, as per Anna, the many ways to go to Jungfrau other than what I mentioned can be as follows: You can also take the cable car from EITHER Wengen, (about 5 min.) or from Grindelwald, (about 20 min.) up to Mannlichen. From there you can hike down to Kliene Scheidegg and catch the train from there. This hike is approx. an hour and a half, depending on photo/rest stops along the way. The mountains (Eiger, Monch, and Jungfrau) are in front of you for the better part of the journey. I had done this hike in September and it wasn't crowded. There were people, but not at all terrible. Again, have a great trip.

Regards,

Danielsan

"Travel from Zurich Airport to Andermatt via train. Take the 2:08 PM Glacier Express from Andermatt to Zermatt."

You are ONLY doing Glacier Express on Day 1 even though you have full day. And you need to pay for the Glacier Express seat reservation.

You can plan Lucerne first base and Interlaken as next base. This way you can decide as per weather.

Here on Day 2, you will HAVE to visit Gornergrat (Matterhorn) - this is not flexible as you planned to Zermatt on Day 1

Experts here can give better suggestions .

Thanks Sanjeev for your feedback.

We arrive in Zurich around 11;00Am ( Frying from Toronto, Canada) with jetlag and time change, and we wont have much time other than taking Glacier express to Zermatt that is on the bucket list.

In addition, there is a marathon happening in Interlaken on the Sept 8th. Hotel prices are crazy. We were luck to book all the hotels last year.

So making changes to hotel reservation will cost us.