9 nights in Switzerland

Hi,

My parents, sis and my 2 kids will be arriving in Frankfurt airport on 30 May. We plan to take a train directly from the airport to Geneva on the same day.

Our planned itinerary is as follows:-

1. 5 nights in Geneva

2. 4 nights in Grindelwald

Is this itinerary ok? My parents are old so we will only use 2 places as our base to get around Switzerland.

We plan to use the 8 day swiss pass.

Would really appreciate your help for day trips out of Geneva (maybe to Mont Blanc, France too) and Grindelwald e.g. places to visit, open air museums, parks, something for the kids (age 9 & 11) as well.

We would love to take cogwheel trains, cable cars and ferries and we really love the wonderful sceneries of switzerland.

3. on the last day, we will be travelling from Grindelwald back to Basel where we will catch a train to Heidelberg. On this day, we plan to stop for 4 hours in Spiez.

Is this a good idea?

Thanks so much!

Warmest Regards.

Elaine & family

Malaysia

Hi Elaine,

To be honest, I would not stay that long in Geneva. It's not in the mountains, and it's in the utmost South-Western corner of Switzerland, so quite far away from many Swiss attractions. Montreux is more central, also on Lake Geneva, and near the mountains. It's where the Chocolate Train excursion starts; your kids may like that.

From Spiez, you can take a boat to Thun and continue by train from there.

The pages below help you with day trip suggestions, hotel tips and more:

• myswissalps.com/montreux
• myswissalps.com/grindelwald
• myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass

Dear Annika,

Thanks for your quick reply. The reason I'm staying in Geneva for 4 nights is because we are visiting our uncle who is working there. I have now decided to spend 5 nights in Grindelwald instead of 4 nights.

Would you recommend me some day trips with the swiss pass out of Geneva?

Thanks again!

Warmest Regards.

Elaine

Hi Elaine,

Tips are on the Geneva and Montreux pages I linked to in my previous post. Also check the "What to do" sections on those pages. The Chocolate train can also be done from Geneva; you just need to travel to Montreux first. Or you can visit the chocolate and cheese factories on your own using the normal trains to get there (this thread may be helpful).

Kind regards,

Annika

Hi again!

Thanks. Should I make reservations on the Chocolate train or the Golden pass trains? If so, how do I do that?

Is the swiss pass utilised based on the hour I activated it?

For e.g. if I start using it on 31 May 3pm - 8 June 3pm. Is this considered a 8 day pass?

Is it cheaper for me to use the DB Bahn to travel from Frankfurt to Geneva or the SBB? I tried checking on SBB, however they don't allow for online booking for 6 passengers.

Thanks again.

Warmest Regards.

Elaine

Hi Elaine,

The Golden Pass trains don't need to be booked (see here please for the details), the Chocolate Train does need to be booked. Links for that are here.

The Swiss Travel Pass works on a daily basis, not by the hour. It is explained here.

If your Swiss Travel Pass is valid on the day of arrival, you only need a ticket from Frankfurt to Basel (Swiss border). If, not you need a ticket for the whole trip. You order the tickets along with your pass. Points of sale are listed here. Ordering for 6 passengers should not be a problem there.