August itinerary advice 1 week Zurich Lucerne Bern

Hello,

My wife and I are spending our anniversary in Switzerland. I am in the beginning stages of planning my itinerary, and would like some advice. This is the rough outline of where we will be spending our time:

• Zurich - 1 night
• Bernese Oberland Region - 3 nights
• Lucerne - 2 nights
• Bern - 1 night

Is this a feasible plan? We want to avoid most of the touristy areas and experience the Alps, but our anniversary falls on a holiday (Aug 15), so we want to make sure we are able to find a restaurant. Haven't found any hotels or planned any restaurants, but are there any cities, hotels, restaurants, etc. that are must-see?

Any advice, opinions, and criticisms will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

Hi jwozn, welcome to MySwissAlps!

I would omit the nights in Zurich and Bern and add one night to both the Bernese Oberland and Lucerne. Zurich can easily be done as a day trip from Lucerne. Bern is an easy day trip from either Lucerne or the Bernese Oberland (depending on which town). Less base towns saves time changing hotels and also allows more flexibility as ideally the mountains should be visited when the weather's good, and cities can be visited at any time.

Finding a restaurant won't be a problem and there are lots of good hotels. Once you have picked towns and exact dates you can post to the accommodation forum if you need help finding hotels. Be sure to also check our town pages (e.g. Lucerne) for suggestions.

Hi Jwozn -

Annika expressed it very precisely and very well.

One question for you ...I assume that you are coming in to Zürich? Where are you leaving Switzerland from?

Actually, two questions, I guess.

And, a comment- it can be unpleasantly warm in Zürich ( and some other low altitude Swiss cities) in August, and air conditioning is not common.

www.myswissalps.com/be sttimetovisit

Slowpoke

Thank you both! The only reason we considered staying in Zurich for a night was because we are flying in at 7:30 AM. Staying inside Zurich would give us a day to explore and overcome any jetlag. We haven't made any arrangements out of Switzerland yet, as we are travelling to Italy for a week after (Florence, Rome, and Naples). We most likely will book a flight to save time, but a train is still a possibility.

Do a lot of places close for the holiday? That's great to hear we won't have a problem finding a restaurant!

Other than Zurich and Bern, are there any other day trips that are must see?

<<" Thank you both! The only reason we considered staying in Zurich for a night was because we are flying in at7:30 AM. Staying inside Zurich would give us a day to explore andovercome any jetlag. ">>

Agree, and if you can get a hotel that lets you in early, that works well. But, Luzern is only an hour away by frequent trains

<<"We haven't made any arrangements out of Switzerland yet, as we are traveling to Italy for a week after (Florence, Rome,and Naples). We most likely will book a flight to save time, but a train is still a possibility.">>

Best connections to Italy are probably from Luzern and Zürich. If you were going to Milano, I'd surely suggest the train via the Gotthard Pass for the spectacular scenery, and not much time saving.

www.myswissalps.com/ti metable

Not sure how good the airplane connections are to Firenze.

<<"Do a lot of places close for the holiday? ">>

The holiday is an issue, mostly in the Catholic cantons, but you'll be OK in the main cities. Swiss National Day in early August is more universally celebrated, but the cities are still generally OK.

www.officeholidays.com /countries/switzerland /index.php

<<"Other than Zurich and Bern, are there any other day trips that are must see?">>

Only 20 or 30 or more ;-).

www.myswitzerland.com/ en-us/home.html

Slowpoke

I would also recommend the train to reach Italy. From Interlaken, for example, it only takes 6 hours to reach Florence. You can see some scenery and I don't think a flight will save much time, if any. From Lucerne it will take a bit longer but the Gotthard route that Slowpoke mentioned is worth it. By the time you're in Switzerland the new Gotthard train tunnel will be open which means you can also choose a less scenic but quicker route. If you have a Swiss Travel Pass the Swiss part of the trip will be free. The Italian part could be pretty cheap if you book well in advance.

<<"By the time you're in Switzerland the new Gotthard train tunnel will be open which means you can also choose a less scenic but quicker route.">>

Arno-

I may be mistaken, but I thought that passenger service through the new Gotthard "Basis Tunnel" will not begin until the December 15 general train route update?

Slowpoke

Hi Slowpoke,

The tunnel should be officially opened on June 1. But, you may be right in that regular trains will not use it before mid-December. I'm not sure about that as I found the summer timetable for trains to Italy is still not available. Well, if this is correct there's one less choice to make for jwozn. I would recommend the old route anyway for the scenery!

Hi Arno-

check this link.

www.railwaygazette.com /news/traction-rolling-stock/single-view/view/sbb-prepares-for-gotthard-base-tunnel-opening.html

Slowpoke

Thank you! I think we are going to take the train to Italy for the views and experience now. We also plan on staying in Murren in the Bernese Oberland region. There are a few nice but expensive hotels there. Do you think they are worth it rather than staying in a nice hotel in Luzern? Specifically, Hotel Eiger and Hotel Edelweiss. I'll post on the hotel forums shortly.

<<"We also plan on staying in Murren in the Bernese Oberland region. ">>

Some people like Mürren, some people like Wengen.

I like Wengen -

www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/tips-about-wengen-and-the-jungfrau-region-by-kim

Check that link for a little information about the area.

Slowpoke

Thanks Slowpoke!

<<"Thanks Slowpoke!">

You are welcome.

I'm keeping track because I want to ride the old line in the near future..

Slowpoke

Thank you! We decided to do one night in Zurich, followed by three in Wengen for our anniversary at Hotel Bellevue, and finally three in Luzern then on to Italy via the train.

Thank you again for all of your help!!!! I appreciate you taking the time to answer all of my questions.

Sounds great! For tickets to Italy, please see myswissalps.com/ traintickets/italy.

Enjoy your stay!