Oct 26, 2016 - 9:35 AM
Hello Mcdoug72,
Welcome to MySwissAlps! You have picked a wonderful time to visit Switzerland. It's also the busiest time of the year in many places; particularly in ski resorts, so avoiding tourists won't be easy.
I don't know of Christmas markets still open after Christmas, but there will be plenty of other things to do. You may want to consider skipping Zurich and stay in Lucerne as it offers more Alpine day trips, unless you have specific museums or other sites in mind in Zurich. As for skiing and snow: you'd best stay in place at high altitude as snow is likely late December but not guaranteed. Zermatt is such a place, but it will for sure be crowded there. The Upper Engadine area might fit you needs. There will be many tourist there too, but it's a much larger region so there will be quiet places too. The Bernina train line is worth it. Dog sledding is pretty rare, so you should search for that in advance and book a ride. Other snow activities are easy to find in the mentioned areas. There are some horse drawn carriages in the Engadine, you may like that instead.
I would avoid driving and take advantage of the excellent train system. A car really isn't an advantage unless you have some really remote places in mind you'd like to visit, and you're used to driving on snow as that may be required in late December. Please see myswissalps.com/ carversustrain.
Last modified on Nov 19, 2017 - 2:04 PM by Arno