7 day trip planning in Switzerland

Hi,

First of all, I would like to say thank you to all the information posted on this site. Its a great website with lots of details.

We are a family of 4 (2 adults, 6 and 10 year old boys) traveling to Italy and Switzerland during August. We will be heading to Brig from Venice for a night's stay on Aug 17th. My 10 years old wants to see Matterhorn and we read that its easier to visit Matterhorn from Brig. Is it possible to get to Matterhorn on a day trip from Brig and then head to Wengen from Zermatt that evening/ night? If possible, is it better to have a one night stopover at Interlaken or head directly to Wengen? I have read that the boat trip in Lake Brienz is a good one and needs to be taken from Interlaken. So, wondering if its better to make a one night stop in Interlaken and cover this tour or head to Wengen for 6 nights (18th till 24th,flying back from Milan Linate airport on ) and make a day trip to Interlaken for this tour? Also, i see a good apartment available in Wengen for the dates we plan to stay, but it does not mention any check-in/ check-out times. Is it ok to do a late check-in? How do we contact the apartment owner or get the key if we arrive late to Wengen on the check-in date?

With 6 and 10 year old boys, what are all the activities that could be covered by staying in Wengen area? Boys are into hiking, biking, trains etc.,

Really Appreciate the responses.

Thanks for your compliments prapoorna!

Brig to Zermatt takes about 1h20. Zermatt to Wengen takes 3h15. So it's certainly doable. You can either take the cable car to Klein Matterhorn (the highest point in Switzerland to be reached by cable car), or the cogwheel train to Gornergrat (further from the Matterhorn but a better view of it in my opinion).

I would head straight to Wengen as checking in and out of another hotel takes quite some time. Wengen is only 50 minutes from Interlaken so it's easy to do as a day trip. Also that allows you to do it on a day with the best weather for it. If it's bright and sunny you may want to visit a peak instead, as a boat trip can be done with cloudy weather as well. You can also consider a round trip from Wengen: train to Grindelwald, bus to Meiringen, train to Brienz, boat to Interlaken, train to Wengen.

For tips on activities, please see myswissalps.com/ jungfrauregion/ activities.

Which apartment are you referring to?

Arno

Thank you Arno for the reply. Your reply gave us the confidence that we are on right track so far :-)

There is an apartment in Wengen listed in interhome.com as well as through the search engine provided by this myswissalps webpage. Its called "Apartment Central". Its listed for EUR 832 for 6 nights but, when we add the insurance (needed for the cancellation) and other taxes etc., its going all the way to EUR 1100.

Is there a possibility to get something less expensive for the date range we are looking for? Do we need to list kids also as Guests i.e., would it make a difference if its 2 adults and 2 kids vs 4 Guests?

Thank you again for the help

Prapoorna

Hi Prapoorna,

You are most certainly on the right track. The only risk is the single night in Brig as you need clear weather to see the Matterhorn. So you need a bit of luck for that day.

I found the apartment on the Swiss site we usually work with, please see www.en.e-domizil.ch/vacation-home/850753/holiday-apartment-central-wengen-jungfrauregion-bernese-oberland-switzerland/. I find insurance offered by rental websites quite expensive in general, so be sure to check if you actually need that option, or if a travel and cancellation policy offered by your own insurance company is better. Having said that, the insurance offered by the above website seems much cheaper than the one you found.

The apartment itself is actually not that pricey for Swiss standards. Apartments are usually rented by the week, so you're lucky to have found one for 6 nights in a popular town like Wengen, and in high season, and pretty much last minute. I don't think you'll find something cheaper there, but you can do a search through www.en.e-domizil.ch/holiday-houses/CH/Jungfrauregi on/Wengen/854/1043902/. Children do count as adults when it comes to booking an apartment, so you would book for 4 guests.

Thank you Arno. We were busy with the Switzerland Visa appointments and all, hence the delayed response.Thank God, We got the Visa :-)

After coming up with the detailed plan for our trip, we felt its better to stay closer to interlaken to avoid the 2 hour (1 hour each way) to and from Wengen. We found a chalet in Ringgenberg but the owner is asking for 50% deposit amount transferred to his bank account. Wondering how secure or reliable this kind of transfer is? This apartment is referred to us by Interlaken tourism team. But, there is no option to pay by credit card.

Could you please let us know if this is normal and if we don't have to be worried about losing this money?

thanks

Prapoorna

<<"we felt its better to stay closer to interlaken to avoid the 2 hour (1 hour each way) to and from Wengen.

46 minutes inbound, 51 minutes outbound.

Hi Prapoorna,

It's quite common to pay a deposit, but only after you have a signed contract. First sign a contract, then pay the deposit, and finally pay the rest when you're there or shortly before arrival. If Interlaken Tourism refers to them it should be fine. Which chalet is it?

Thank you Arno, there was no contract sent, just the bank account information asking us to transfer the money to hold the chalet.

Its Sethi Arshad in Ringgenberg.

Thanks

Prapoorna

Hi Prapoorna,

I haven't heard of that chalet, but that does not mean it's not legitimate. I expect it is fine as Interlaken Tourism is suggesting this one. But still I would not pay before I had received a contract. You can contact Interlaken Tourism to be sure: ask them about the order of the booking process: contract first, payment second is preferred and best for both parties.

Interlaken Tourism is just asking us to work with the owner directly. We are not comfortable transferring the money without a contract in place. Hence, we are back to searching again :-(.

thanks

Prapoorna

<<"We are not comfortable transferring the money without a contract in place. ">>

I'd feel the same way.

I send deposits to hotels, but that is part of a contract.

Slowpoke

Thank you Slowpoke and Arno for all the help/ info. We have reserved the apartment in Niederried.

I am sure I will be posting more questions as we close on the places to visit. Thank you again

thanks

Prapoorna

Hi Prapoorna!

You can also check out Swiss Inn hotel apartments which is in Interlaken West. We found it reasonable during our stay in mid July. They have very well furnished apartments with kitchen etc in a beautiful setting and near many supermarkets! The owners are wonderful people, too!

Thank you mistybabu. We checked there as well. It was not available for our travel dates. Went ahead with reserving an apartment in Niederried. Hoping it will be a good stay :-)

thanks

Prapoorna