4 days in Switzerland, suggestions

Hi, my Switzerland trip travel dates are confirmed. Need assistance to identify the best itinerary in 4 days. below is what I have in mind-

I arrive in Zurich on the 14th evening (5PM), i plan to stay in Zurich that night and see Lake Zurich, old town (same day) and Rhine Falls (15th morning) unless I can cover the falls on the 14th evening itself.

After that, proceed to Interlaken (15th afternoon), stay in Interlaken for 2 nights(15th & 16th Sep). While in Interlaken, visit Jungfrau, Piz Gloria & schilthorn & st Beatus Caves.

On 17th Sep from Interlaken itself go to Montreux , see chateau de chillon then taken the golden pass train from Montreux to Lucerne, stay the night in lucerne & proceed the next morning(18th Sep) to Zurich Airport.....(we need to be at the airport by 11am on the 18th)

Do you think its reasonable to expect we can cover all this in 3 days ? or you have better suggestions? I'm more interested in enjoying the scenic beauty & essence of Switzerland that anything else.Also, what would be the best place for souvenirs?

Finally I am still open to changes since I need to confirm what is the best(central) place to stay(town/area) if I were to cover the above.

Hi Mathew157,

The Rhine Falls are half a day trip from Zurich, so you can't include that on the evening of the 14th. I think the rest of your plans are doable. Note that Piz Gloria and the Schilthorn are the same thing.

I would change the order though. First go to Montreux on the evening of the 14th. Then work your way back along the Golden Pass line: Interlaken, Lucerne and finally Zurich. This will save you some time.

I'm not sure if you already have a rail pass, but there's 2 days left to get one with an additional discount. You can find the promotions here.

Hi Arno, thanks for your valuable feedback. Few queries still exist, appreciate your support. We arrive in Zurich airport at approx. 5 pm. Are you suggesting we go directly to Mointreux? What's the best way to go there? How many days do you suggest we stay at each place and where exactly do you reckon we stay?

i shall check the rail pass link and do the needful. Any suggestions on budget? Per day what should we expect/consider for expenses (not including hotels)

thanks in advance.

Yes, I would go directly to Montreux by train. Schedules are in the timetable. You only have 4 days, so you can't stay more than 1 or 2 days in each town. Perhaps you should not focus too much on Zurich. It's nice, but with limited time Lucerne is the better option in that region and the scenery is better too. See the town links I gave you to see for yourself. The hotels we like best are listed there as well.

The budget depends very much on your own preferences. If you have a Swiss Pass, trains, boats, buses and museums are mostly covered, and cable cars are 50% off. If you go out for lunch you would spend CHF 20 per person or so, but spending more isn't hard, and buying sandwiches in the supermarket will be the cheaper option. Diner will be around CHF 40, and going up from there as much as you like :-)

I also have a 4 day trip planned for Switzerland at the end of September and would appreciate a reality check in terms of time. All travel by car. And apologies in advance for spellings! Day 1 -- Flying into Geneva, driving that night to Montreaux. Day 2 -- Wake to couple hours at Chateau Chillon, then to Schilthorn, parking in Lauterbrunnen, taking cable and train, staying in Gimmelwald. Day 3 -- Descend next day to Stechelberg and bus back to LBrunnen. Become road warrior driving a bunch of Alps passes, across Susten, Furka, Nufesen, St. Gothard, down and up 13 to San Bernardino, south on Splugen and east to stay overnight in St. Moritz. Day 4 -- Drive to Zurnez, then south across Ofen, Umbrail, back west to Stelvio, through Tirano and stay that night in Lugano.... I know a lot depends on how much time I'll want to pull off along the way, and the weather, but are my drive times especially on Day 3 and 4 somewhat realistic?

Thanks! Doug

Hi Doug,

I'll be happy to look into your planning, but can you please post this in a new topic? Your question is unrelated to the one posted by Mathew157. I asked you before here, so please stick to the forum rules to keep this place organized and easy to read for everybody. Thanks for your help and cooperation!

Hi Arno, thanks. So where and how many days do you suggest we stay? 1 day Montreux, 3 days lucerne or 2 days at either place?nplease advise, thanks

Hi Mathew157,

Either choice is fine actually, as there is plenty to do in each region. Much more than you can cover. My personal preference with limited time would be one night in Montreux, skip Zurich, and focus on the Jungfrau region (Interlaken) and Lucerne the rest of the time.

Thanks, itinerary almost sorted. Another query I had was , is the swiss pass and golden train pass 2 different tickets? Since we plan to do montreux to lucerne, is it possible to get down in between, I mean break the journey in interlaken for example and continue next day to lucerne?

Hi Mathew157. The Swiss Pass covers the Golden Pass train route, so the trip is for free if you have a valid Swiss Pass and you won't need an additional ticket.

If you want to make sure you have seats, you should book them in advance. This booking fee is not included in the Swiss Pass and has to be paid for separately. It's no problem to break your journey and stay in Interlaken. In that case you'd have to make seat reservations for separate legs (Montreux-Interlaken and Interlaken-Lucerne) and separate travel dates.Further information on seat reservations can be found here, and for the Golden Pass trains here.

I hope this answers your question!

Any specific area in Interlaken is recommended to stay? Or is it recommended to finish our golden pass trip and stay in Lucerne and visit Interlaken?

Interlaken West is more busy/lively than Interlaken Ost. In either case I would stay at walking distance of one of these rail stations. Recommended hotels are on the Interlaken page. Or, if you prefer to stay in the mountains (Interlaken is on the valley floor), Grindelwald is an option.