MySwissAlps.com features ads, commercial and non-commercial 7 nights travel plan for Switzerland in May
-
Hi,
me and my wife (with 8 yr old child) are planning our first visit to Swiss during the month of May, we have tentatively planned for below itinerary:
1. Arrive in Zurich
Rhine falls guided tour in first half and check in to the hotel (will boat ride be open in May 2nd half)
evening free for relaxation
2. Zurich – Lucerne
explore Zurich in 1st half and proceed to Lucerne by early noon
do Mt. Pilatus early evening followed by lake boat cruise
3. Lucerne – Mt. Titlis – Lucerne
4. Lucerne – Interlaken
Roam around city (lake lucerne, old town) in morning and leave for Interlaken by early evening. Night at Interlaken
5. Interlaken – Jungfraujoch – Interlaken
6. Either visit Zermatt or move to Montreux (via Gruyères ? chocolate factory and cheese making tours??)
we are not sure on the last part of the leg and should we go to Montreux / Glacier 3000 or go to Zermatt and then back to Zurich to head back home..
-
Hi Sudamehv! and welcome to MySwissAlps!
A couple notes below:
- The boat tours on the Rhine Falls will indeed be operating in May.I was not too impressed with the Rhine Falls on my visit. Is there a specific reason you want to see it? After your arrival at Zurich I might recommend just going to your hotel there and exploring the city (maybe take an inexpensive boat tour on Lake Zurich as an alternative during the afternoon).
- If you follow my idea above you can get to Luzern (German spelling) earlier and make a nice day trip to Mt. Pilatus and maybe have time for a lake cruise as well but it depends on how early you get to Luzern etc.
- Visiting Zermatt or Montreux is a question of personal preference on what you want to see. I’ve been to both cities in the winter only. I might be tempted to go to Montreux at that time of year unless you really want to see the Matterhorn etc. Both have very scenic trains that you can use to visit them as well.
- The Golden Pass to Montreux (Interlaken Ost to Montreux)
- The Glacier Express to Zermatt (take regular train from Interlaken to Visp and then the Glacier Express to Zermatt.
I hope this helps!
Best regards,
Lucas
Hi Sudamehv-
Some comments about Day 5:
Selecting one day, and only one day, for Jungfraujoch , is a potential problem.
If the skies are cloudy up there, you will not want to spend your money to see the inside of a cloud.
Weather changes rapidly in the region: it would be better to be there for a couple of days, which will improve your chances of good weather a lot. If things work out well, you can move on to Zermatt or Montreux afterward, or skip them.
May is still pretty much Winter as far as trails are concerned near the Jungfrau. At those high altitudes, there is still a lot of snow and ice, which can block the higher hiking trails. Train will run.
Lower elevations – Luzern, for example, will be well into Spring by then.
I agree with Lucas about the Rhine Falls. Even with the Spring runoff from snow melt, they are wide, powerful, and not very tall. I went there once. Won’t go back. The are plenty of other waterfalls around the world to see. This one did not contribute to my feeling of seeing something Swiss.
Many people like it; but, from my perspective as US citizen who has seen Niagara Falls, it was pleasant…nothing more.
You may feel differently.
Slowpoke
Hi Lucas/slowpoke,
thanks for a quick reply.
1. Got no specific reason for Rhine Falls, heard its a must visit place and hence was planning to include in my plan. looks like I can skip it. I also heard lot of hotels in Swiss have check in time of around 2pm so not sure how to move around in city with our luggage
2. Again, i can leave out for Luzern as early as by 7AM, but I wont be able to check in my hotel before mid day, are you suggesting to keep the luggage in some lockers (?) and do a day trip to Mt Pilatus and then come back to pick my luggage up? if so what are the safe places to keep our luggage
3. About Slowpoke’s comments on having extra day for Jungfrau, which is better to extend my stay at? Luzern or Interlaken
4. apart from the journey to Zermatt, is there anything to do at Zermatt? we added Zermatt as we want to enjoy Glacier Express. But is it worth doing full 8 hour journey from Zermatt to St Moritz? what if I do Zermatt – Zurich (Glacier Express journey only till Chur and then take normal IC train to Zurich)?
5. alternatively whats there to do at Montreux? how many nights should we plan at that place?
Also any idea on what are average food expenses for an indian meal in Switzerland?
Good morning sudamehv,
- You can always drop your luggage at the hotel and then go out if your room isn’t ready – or leave in luggage locker or office at Zurich train station or airport.
- same as above. you can leave your luggage at the hotel or the train station. Lockers are available here as well.
- If you are worried about weather for Jungfrau (valid) then I would extend my stay at Interlaken.
- Well there is always the Matterhorn to check out! 🙂 Also the you can see here activities to enjoy in the area such as Gornergrat.
- I took the Glacier Express on that exact route (Zurich to Chur on IC and then the Glacier Express to Zermatt. I saw a lot and it was a great trip. The route from Chur to St. Moritz is also quite scenic from what I’ve heard. I thoroughly enjoyed the 6 hours or so from Chur to Zermatt – its just a question on how much time you have/want to spend.
- Montreux is a very pretty city on Lake Geneva. Take a look at your Montreux page for ideas on what to see and do in the area.
- I have no idea about Indian meal expenses in Switzerland. However, everything in Switzerland is quite expensive so I would budget more than you think it will cost. I would count on 20 to 25 CHF for a main course.
All the best!
Lucas
Hi Lucas and Sudamehv-
In addition to the link Lucas provided specifically for ZHB, this one (look under “Equipment”) tells the number and size of the lockers:
Left Luggage Office hours are found under “Services.”
That link works for all stations in the system; Lucas used it for Luzern. You can change the name of the station in the search box.
Slowpoke
Hi Sudamehv-
<<“4. apart from the journey to Zermatt, is there anything to do at
Zermatt? we added Zermatt as we want to enjoy Glacier Express. But is it
worth doing full 8 hour journey from Zermatt to St Moritz? what if I do
Zermatt – Zurich (Glacier Express journey only till Chur and then take
normal IC train to Zurich)?”>>
Not that Zermatt is not a good destination…it is.
But, you might also focus on the Glacier Express itself. In my view the legs from Visp or Brig to Chur, and the 2 hour each way leg to/from Chur/St. Moritz are more scenic than the section from Zermatt to Visp.
Depending on available time, you could take the stretch from Visp to Chur which is very enjoyable, as Lucas suggested, or even change at Andermatt and take the old very scenic Gotthard Pass route via Göschenen to Luzern or Zürich. That part of the Gotthard line has spectacular rail engineering. Even though there is a new “Gotthard Basis Tunel” the old line is still running for local stops and scenery.
jerrygarrett.wordpress .com/2013/03/15/switze rlands-eight-greatest-train-rides/
In that link, Mr. Garrett mentions not having to pay the surcharge by some kind of luck on the GEX. I don’t know about that, but I do know that regular trains run in the same routes. So, if by some chance you cannot fit in the GEX with it’s extra services and special cars, the regular trains are an alternative
Too many good choices!
Slowpoke
- The thread ‘7 nights travel plan for Switzerland in May’ is closed to new replies.
