Rail itinerary older couple 10 days in Switzerland

  • Removed user
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    19 March 2019 at 2:44:29 #820473

    We are a couple my age is 67 and my husband is 75. We are travelling through Switzerland for 10 days with luggage, so would like advise on the best way to manage. My fitness level is very good, but my husband’s is not as good so this has to be taken into account. He sometimes has problems with lifting and walking long distances due to some health problems. We are interested in taking a few train journeys and also staying in some places for more than 1 day if there are things to see and also we would probably need a rest from the constant travelling and lugging of bags. We have 2 options.

    Option 1. Arrive Zurich, stay 1 night.
    Day2. Catch a train to Zermatt, stay 1 night.
    Day 3 Zermatt to Chur on the Glacier Express,
    Day 4 Chur to Lugano on the Bernina Express.
    Day 5. Lugano to Lucerne.
    Day 6 Lucerne to Interlaken.
    Day 6. Interlaken to Montreux.
    Day 7 Montreaux to Geneva.

    With this intinerary we would like to spend sometime in some of the places for 2 nights. The question is which ones?

    Option 2. Arrive and stay in Zurich,
    Day 2. Travel to Lucerne.
    Day 3. Luzerne to Lugano.
    Day 4. Bernina Express to Upper Engadine and sleep in Pontresina,
    Day 5. Upper Engadine (Pontresina, St Moritz and Samedan, sleep in Pontresina).
    Day 6. Take Glacier Express to Zermatt or straight to Lausanne (depending on weather).
    Day 7. Stay in Zermatt or Lausanne.
    Day 8, Take the Golden Pass to Lauterbrunnen Valley, sleep at Gimmelwald or Murren.
    Day 9 Travel to Bern.
    Day 10 Bern to Geneva were we would end our journey and go across to Italy.

    Some advise or other alternatives would be beneficial to us. We do not have to end our journey in Geneva, but thought we would stay there one night before travelling to Genoa in Italy.

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    Removed user
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    19 March 2019 at 5:49:46 #906910

    Hello Chrkei 5219 and Welcome to MySwissAlps,

    I see you have researched quite some places and activities for your stay in Switzerland.

    To get an idea of detailed travelling times between the destinations you mention, use our timetable link. As it will be of great support for all your planning make sure to read how to use it:
    http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable

    You can search all the destinations of your two options in the search bar of this page to get impressions and helpful information about them and hopefully support you choosing.

    I personally would overall favour your option 1 and consider staying in following areas for some additional nights: Lugano, Lucerne, Interlaken, Montreux

    For an overall approach to planning your trip please go here:
    http://www.myswissalps.com/ge ttingstarted

    Get back to us anytime for more detailed input.

    Happy planning.

    Best,
    Steph

    rockoyster
    Participant
    8889 posts
    19 March 2019 at 9:00:09 #906911

    I think all your options involve a cray amount if packing up and moving to the next location. As a fellow senior citizen I would not contemplate that.

    You don’t say what time of year you are travelling. That’s important.

    Do you enjoy sitting in trains for hours on end?

    Do one or other of the Bernina Express or Glacier Express. Both is overkill. Speaking from experience.

    Removed user
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    19 March 2019 at 10:46:50 #906912

    Thanks very much to you both for your your advise. We will be arriving in Zurich from Australia on 6th May, 2019. Yes, I was concerned about the packing and unpacking etc. And the other point that you mentioned is very relevant as I was wondering whether we needed to do both the Bernina and the Glacier, so appreciate your thoughts on that. No, we probably do not want to spend hours on trains, so would appreciate some advise on using our time in Switzerland to enjoy this beautiful country and maybe focus on one area, including one of the above-mentioned rail trips. We will probably only go to Switzerland once in our lifetime and do not want to be too tired to enjoy and remember what we saw. We were advised that Interlaken and the Jungfraujoch should not be missed? We would also like advise on rail passes as researching the best option on this has become confusing also!

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    19 March 2019 at 10:47:37 #906913

    Thanks Steph – Will do some extra research and contact you again if I have further questions.

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    19 March 2019 at 11:22:31 #906914

    Hi Chrkeii 5219,

    I totally agree that setting up a slightly calmer itinerary will make the trip much more enjoyable for you.

    I would suggest considering Lucerne and the Interlaken area as base cities for your stay as they offer you a nice variety of day trips as well as quite different scenery.
    http://www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne
    http://www.myswissalps.com/la kelucerne

    http://www.myswissalps.com/in terlaken
    http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfrauregion
    http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfraujoch

    You could extend your area west-wards into the French speaking part of Switzerland to visit Montreux and Lake Geneva if you wanted as an addition using the Golden Pass Route (another scenic train route)

    http://www.myswissalps.com/mo ntreux
    http://www.myswissalps.com/la kegeneva
    http://www.myswissalps.com/go ldenpass

    This is just an idea, I hope you find lots of inspiration here on the page.

    Regarding the best rail pass you will first need to have a detailed itinerary to do calculations. Once you have the itinerary, use this link to help you find the best rail pass option:
    http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses/prac tical/chooserailpass

    Happy planning, I hope you know we’re here for further input.

    Best,
    Steph

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    19 March 2019 at 20:22:10 #906915

    Hello again Steph

    Thank you so much for this invaluable information and promptness in replying. This does sound a much better way for us to do it. I will go through the links and work out an itinerary. I may need your advise one more time after doing this. Regards Christine

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    19 March 2019 at 21:37:19 #906916

    Dear Christine,

    We are here any time for further support!

    Enjoy planning your stay.

    Kind regards,
    Steph

    Roseclar
    Participant
    18 posts
    19 March 2019 at 22:27:08 #906917

    Hello Christine,

    My husband and I are in mid-seventies (definitely an older couple!) and having greatly enjoyed previous trips to Switzerland are planning our 4th visit . I agree with the experts that you should choose one or two base cities and avoid hassle of packing and unpacking.. I too recommend Lucerne from where you can take boat trip on lake, go to Rigi, Pilatus, Stanserhorn, Fortress Furigen among other places. Several nights in Lucerne and then in Interlaken would be a good idea .

    I’m sure you will enjoy your time in Switzerland as much as we have.

    .

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    19 March 2019 at 22:42:31 #906918

    Great to hear from you. Appreciate your great advice. We will definitely do it that way. I feel much better now as was getting confused. Did you get train passes? I know this will depend on what we chose to do but I think I will be following your advice and that of Steph. Thanks again Christine

    rockoyster
    Participant
    8889 posts
    19 March 2019 at 22:49:37 #906919

    Hi Christine

    I think you are on the right track.

    Steph has given you all the links to figure out the best pass

    The Swiss Travel Pass is fantastically convenient. You can be quite spontaneous depending on weather. You could easily make a day trip to Lugano from Luzern if you wanted to have a look or to get some warmer weather. It’s about 2 hours each way by the fastest route.

    Once you have mastered the SBB timetable and with Swiss Travel Pass in hand the country is your oyster, so to speak. 😇

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    19 March 2019 at 23:51:28 #906920

    Thanks again. Really appreciate all the support.

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