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Hello. We (me, my husband and two adult daughters) will be in Switzerland in June. First stop is Luzern for 4 nights, then on to Murren for 4 nights, then Zermatt 3 nights, then Appenzell 2 nights. We plan on getting the Swiss pass for 15 days. When we travel from Luzern to Murren, should we stop at all in Interlaken to see anything? Also, we know we want to walk/hike around the Lauterbrunnen valley so should we stop there before heading to Murren and store our luggage somewhere? Or should we just head straight to Murren and head back down to Lauterbrunnen during our stay in Murren? Is it a quick trip into the valley?
Also wondering if there is a recommended scenic train route to go from Murren to Zermatt (I know everything is scenic in Switzerland 🙂 or is there just one route?
We plan on taking the Glacier Express from Zermatt to Chur, then regular trains to Appenzell. Am I correct in understanding that we can book our reservations on the train 90 days ahead of time but can book our Swiss pass after that?
In Appenzell, does our Swiss pass cover the bus or train that would get us from the town to Epenalp including the cograil?
Thank you for your help!
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Hello steslow and Welcome to MySwissAlps,
Mürren is at the end of a transport circuit. From Lauterbrunnen what you can do is to Grütschalp (cable car), Mürren (cogwheel train), Gimmelwald (cable car), Stechelberg (cable car), Lauterbrunnen (bus). Or round the other way. From Mürren you can easily visit Schilthorn if you have time. In between Stechelberg and Lauterbrunnen the bus stops at the Trummelbach Falls. Well worth a look. All these places are searcheable on the MySwissAlps website.
The Swiss Train Timetable (http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable) will tell you when the trains/cable cars run and how long the trips is. If you haven’t used it before it will pay to read the instructions on that page before delving into the timetable.
From Interlaken Ost you can take the Golden Pass Line to Montreux via Zweisimmen and then from there to Zermatt. The Golden Pass Line is a famous scenic route but it is a long way round.
A much faster route is If you between Spiez and Zermatt you go via Kandersteg. You will then travel on the Regio-Express Lötschberger train over the traditional, more than 100 year old mountain route, giving you a wonderful view along the impressive peaks and down into the Rhone Valley.
Your understanding of the Glacier Express booking process and Swiss Travel Pass is correct.
From Appenzell to Wasserauen is free and then from there to Ebenalp is 50% discount with STP. The last leg is a bit hard to see on the Swiss Travel Pass Vailidity Map, which you will find here http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpass/validity, but I’m pretty sure that’s right.
>> When we travel from Luzern to Murren, should we stop at all in Interlaken to see anything?
Interlaken itself has the least to offer of any town in the Jungfrau Region in my opinion. It’s a good transport hub and has a lot of shops, restaurants and hotels, but has little charm. Personally, I would give it a miss.
>> Also, we know we want to walk/hike around the Lauterbrunnen valley so should we stop there before heading to Murren and store our luggage somewhere?
If you get there after check-in time (usually 2-3pm), I would go straight to your hotel in Mürren. If you get there well before that, you could leave your luggage in the lockers or at the left luggage service at Lauterbrunnen railway station and go exploring.
(Look under Equipment and mobility at the station for details of locker sizes and prices. Also note the opening hours for baggage services.)
>> Or should we just head straight to Murren and head back down to Lauterbrunnen during our stay in Murren? Is it a quick trip into the valley?
It takes 20-30 minutes, depending on route.
Anywhere else you go from Mürren (apart from the Schilthorn or Gimmelwald or hiking on that side of the valley) will mean first descending to Lauterbrunnen, so it is likely you will go through it several times during your stay.
>> In Appenzell … from the town to Epenalp including the cograil?
Which cograil do you mean? Transport from Wasserauen to Ebenalp is in a cable car, a short walk from Wasserauen railway station.
Alpenrose
Yeh sorry I meant cable car. Thank you so much for the input!
Hi Steslow-
Rockoyster has linked you to the timetable. Please note his comments on the instruction page.
In particular, if there are multiple routes available, the timetable will default to the fastest one. So, to force it to show the more scenic routes, which are often slower, you may have to put in a “via” station.
Note Rockoyster’s comment about a “via Kandersteg.”
Besides the timetable, the other useful, in fact, necessary, tool is this map:
map.search.ch/?pos=637976,162616&z=32
I have zoomed it in to zoom level “32” at which magnification the train lines appear.
Use the menus.
Under “Points of Interest, Traffic” you can turn on layers which show various kinds of transport stations.
Hotels are under “Gastronomy;” be sure to also check off “restaurants” because many have rooms. Not all are shown, but many are and it is a handy way to locate those features and others.
I note that you are traveling in June.
http://www.myswissalps.com/be sttimetovisit
http://www.myswissalps.com/ab outswitzerland/nature
Weather is dependent on altitude. In June, or even May, the Lauterbrunnen Valley floor should be free of snow. (Although, the snow pack will be heavy this year). The paths will almost surely be open.
Trails at a 2000 meters or so usually don’t open before June 15th; probably later this year.
So, if you want to take this easy and wonderful walk above Wengen, you may not be able to until the end of June. or even July.
http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king/maennlichen-kleinescheidegg
Early June is the tail end of Winter at high altitudes.
This map is useful for altitudes:
Luzern, at around 435 meters, will be well into Spring in May.
Wasserauen is at about 870 meters, Ebenalp at 1640.
The short walks up there can be rather steep. Early June might find them slippery, if not impassable. Late June, probably not.
This site notes that the service is closed in late November and early December, so you should be able to ride up any time in June:
http://www.appenzell.ch/en/al pstein/cableways/wasse rauen-ebenalp-cableway.html
In 2017 it was running from 0730 until 1800 up to June 23rd, then after that, 0730 to 1900. Every 15 minutes. I’m sure the hours will be the same; on that web site, they only have winter hours now.
When are you traveling?
By the way, a lot of us like Wengen:
http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/tips-about-wengen-and-the-jungfrau-region-by-kim
The document has lots of useful information about the region, not just Wengen.
Slowpoke
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