MySwissAlps.com features ads, commercial and non-commercial 7/8-day trip Bernese Oberland and Lucerne in May
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Hello Experts! We’re planning a 7 or 8 day trip for May 2023 to celebrate duo 50th birthdays.Your wisdom would be most appreciated. We want to focus on natural beauty and to build in as much diversity of experiences/vistas as we can. Not interested at all in cities, but need to be practical about jet lag arrival in and departure from Zurich. We love the lesser known gems for a less crowded experience. Thank you!
1. We’ll have a long flight from Boston. Is it too ambitious to go directly to Wengen from the airport? Other than 2 days in Lucerne, do you have other recommendations for beautiful towns easily reached by train from Zurich to decompress before the Bernese Oberland leg?
2. Should we return to Zurich Airport via a different route (i.e. train through Bern)?
3. Should we replace one or two nights in BO for another locale? Just trying to keep it focused and somewhat relaxing.
Here’s the draft:
0 depart Boston
1 arrive Zurich, head to Wengen via Golden Pass
2 Männlichen to Kleine Scheidegg hike, Eiger Trail, Jungfraujoch (may skip Jungfraujoch)
3 Shilthorn and Birg, Gimmelwald, Murren, Allmendhubel
4 Lauterbrunnen, Trummelbach and Stuaubbach Falls, Stechelberg
5 Grindelwald, First Cliff Walk, Schynige Platte
6 to Lucerne
7 depart?
8 depart?
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Hi Boston2023,
Welcome to MySwissAlps.
This itinerary is well paced and covers all the major attractions in the Jungfrau region.
I think going straight to Wengen from Zurich Airport is a sensible plan if your goal is to maximise time spent in the Jungfrau region. The journey from Zurich Airport to Wengen takes about 2.5 hours if you travel via Bern. If you take the Golden Pass route via Lucerne, it will take you longer to reach Wengen (about 3.5 hours). If your flight arrives late evening, this option might not be practical. My suggestion would be to take the fastest train to beat the jetlag. Then on the way back you can travel via Lucerne to experience the Golden Pass route between Interlaken and Lucerne. Also, Lucerne would be a good option to spend a night or two and explore the central region of Switzerland. You can find some sightseeing ideas here: http://www.myswissalps.com/lucerne/activities
Hope this gives you more options for your itinerary.
regards,
Anna
Hi Boston2023,
The Bernese Oberland is a great base for your plans. I agree with Anna that it makes sense tod spend a night in Lucerne (https://www.myswissalps.com/lucerne) before heading back for Zurich, as it’s on the route from the Bernese Oberland to Zurich. You’ll save quite some time compared to making a day trip from Wengen to Lucerne and back. You can check each trip with the aid of the timetable: https://www.myswissalps.com/timetable.
If you can stay an additional day, you’d be able to incorporate a day trip to Bern (https://www.myswissalps.com/bern) or even to Zermatt (https://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt) with the scenic RegioExpress Lötschberger (https://www.myswissalps.com/lotschberger).
Once your itinerary is more or less set, don’t forget to look into rail passes to save money: https://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses/practical/chooserailpass.
Fantastic input. Much appreciated. It sounds like Wengen via Bern on the front end and two nights in Lucerne on the way back to Zurich will work well.
I bookmarked Kandersteg as a TBD. Thoughts on this or other beautiful villages in the area?
Hi Boston2023,
The Kandersteg area is great for hiking, or a visit to the Oeschinensee (Lake Oeschinen) or Blausee. You’ll pass Mount Niesen on your way there, that could be a side trip: http://www.myswissalps.com/niesen.
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