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Hello everyone. I’m carefully planning a vacation for my husband and I to Switzerland. On this trip we want to do a lot of sightseeing typing and maybe skiing in Zermatt, just once. We will be arriving in the first week of June. I chose to explore The Jungfrau region and Zermatt since we enjoy the mountains and hiking and outdoor activities. Below is my currently planned itinerary.
I have two things I am unsure of.
1. Is Wengen a good base for what I want to do, or should I chose Interlaken or Grindelwald?
2. Do I have time to check out Lucerne, or should I save it for another time.
Any advice and input would be appreciated. Thanks!
Day 1: Zurich: land in Zurich, stay overnight
Day 2 (Jungfrau region) : maybe explore Zurich, then head to Wengen where our hotel is. Do some sigh seeing in Wengen
Day 3 (Jungfrau region): Jungfraujoch or Schilthorn or hike in are depending on weather
Day 4 (Jungfrau region): Jungfraujoch or Schilthorn or hike in are depending on weather
Day 5 (Jungfrau region): Jungfraujoch or Schilthorn or hike in are depending on weather and head to Zermatt at night
Day 6: Zermatt: ski (if they still allow skiing then. Just want to try skiing once in the alps. Nothing more) or hike
Day 7: Zermatt: Hike/sightsee Zermatt
Day 8: Zermatt half day and head to Geneva to sightsee
Day 9: flight early morning out of Geneva.
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There’s nothing wrong with your plan.
A couple of practical points:
June is not the ski season, but Zermatt has summer skiing on a glacier (how long that will continue given the warming trend is a moot point…)
To allow time for ‘sighteseeing’ in Geneva, you will probably not have time for ‘half day’ in Zermatt before you set off for Geneva (example journey Zermatt depart 09.13, Geneva arrive 12.48)
Hi Jacks12345 and welcome to MySwissAlps!
Can you already ski? If this would be your first time, I suggest you not to try here. It is quite an altitude, if you are not used to it you might find it difficult even just to walk there. Have a look at http://www.myswissalps.com/ac tivities/snow.
If you skip Zurich on your first day, you could travel by train via Lucerne (http://www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne) and stay there for a few hours. It is not much, but at least you can walk around a bit.
Anyway I like your itinerary as it is a balanced one, and you won’t rush, you can take your time to visit everything.
Further information:
Hijacks12345-
You may find this useful:
http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/tips-about-wengen-and-the-jungfrau-region-by-kim
A few links are obsolete, but it’ still very accurate.
<<“Anyway I like your itinerary as it is a balanced one, and you won’t rush, you can take your time to visit everything.”>> I agree 100% with Ildiko. That’s the best way to travel.
If the weather in the Jungfrau region does not cooperate, you can pause in Luzern on the way. It is on an optional route to the Jungfrau region from Zürich. I’d check the weather carefully in the days before you arrive. And, a day trip from the Jungfrau region to Luzern is done by many people, but it is a long day. The timetable will guide you :
http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/maennlichen-kleinescheidegg
Weather forecasting in Switzerland is unreliable for more than a few days in advance, and probably less than 24 hours in advance in the Alps, because the mountains make their own weather. There are a lot of microclimates. So, I use this site for planning, because is good at localizing the weather in detail:
http://www.meteocentrale.ch/e n/europe/switzerland/w eather-wengen/details/N-3517887/
One serious concern with your dates of travel. The first week of June near the Jungfrau is the time when the restaurants and hotels are just starting to re-open from the between seasons break. The snow that is left is not suitable for skiing, but it can still remain in meter high drifts on the trails. The best hikes are still closed due to snow, until about June 15th, or even later. So, if you really want to hike in the area, you’ll be about 2 weeks too early for all but the lowest trails.
Attached picture taken on June 16th was taken the day after the famous and spectacular trail from Männlichen (about 2300 meters altitude) to Kleine Scheidegg (about 2060 meters) had opened fully.
http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/maennlichen-kleinescheidegg
A mile or so along the trail is a place that does not get much sun, and is not safe until about June 15th.
I’ve also attached some pictures taken when it was open. It is an easy walk with great views. Easy enough to be nicknamed “The Grannies’ Walk” buy locals.
Please ignore the eccentric spellings. 😉
The Jungfraujoch and Schilthorn will be accessible in early June.
If the weather is not cooperative, you can run up to Bern from the Jungfrau region:
http://www.myswissalps.com/be rn
Slowpoke
Attachments:Dear everyone,
Thank you for taking the time to reply in such detail.
Ildiko- Thank you for your response. it is not our first time skiing and we are quite advanced. Im hoping Zermatt will still be open to ski, but we are mostly there to hike. We just want to have “ski” once in the alps before we come back in a few years during the winter.
Slowpoke- Thanks for the information about the hiking. In the Jungfrau region, I am planning one day each the jungfraujoch, and one day Schlithorn, with sightseeing along the way. We dont mind hiking in the easy trails. Will Männlichen be open when I am there? Unfortunately, we only have that week to come to Switzerland, but if you have any where else you think will have great hiking in Switzerland , please let me know. Is there another region we should visit instead? My husband really wants to see Schlithorn since its in James bond, which is what made me decide to be in that region in the first place.
<<“Will Männlichen be open when I am there? “>
Almost certainly not. Altitude is too high.
Slowpoke
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