Boat round trip and fares at Lake Lucerne

I have got the attached info on the boat trip from the lakelucerne. ch website. But I don't quite understand because the explanation in English is rather limited. Appreciate it if someone could kindly enlighten me:

1) What is the difference between Roundtrips from Lucerne and Roundtrips with Change?

2) What is the difference between the schedule and fare on the 1st and 2nd page?

thank you.

1. The first you leave Luzern and return in the same boat. The second you return on a different boat presumably because the original boat continues on somewhere else.

2. The prices (top right page 2) are the return fares from Luzern to whichever destination you choose. eg 2nd class return trip Luzern to Flüelen is CHF77. The price is fixed for a given trip irrespective of what particular time you travel or whether you break the journey along the way. The boat tickets work in exactly the same way as train tickets in that regard.

All Lake Luzern boat routes are all fully covered by the Swiss Travel Pass.

If you look carefully you will see that the English does in fact says 'change boat at' in the smaller type.

If you look at some of the round trip timings in the lower half of the document, you can work out which trips stay on the same boat, for example at Fluelen the arrive and departure times are just 5 minutes apart indicating that you don't get off the boat.

Swiss lake boats operate just like buses and trains, except on water. They are mainly public 'point to point services for locals as well as tourists.

It may be easier to look at the full timetable:

www.lakelucerne.ch/fileadmin/lakelucerne/content/Dokumente_Downloads_PDF/01_Fahrplan-Preise/01_Fahrplan/Saisonaler_Fahrplan/2020/2020_Fahrplan_Winter.pdf

Actually, for the first of the the three Lucerne - Flüelen - Lucerne daily trips, there are only two minutes between the arrival (Ankunft) and departure (Abfahrt). Swiss efficiency !

One could, of course, get off the boat in Flüelen if one was planning to do part or all of the return trip by train. It is a very short walk from the pier to the train station.

Hello,

With reference to the 2 page Lake Lucerne Ferry PDF, note the odd orientation of the map at the top of the first page, where north is at the bottom and south at the top. This is pretty well the opposite of the maps we usually see of Lake Lucerne (Vierwaldstättersee), and it puts Flüelen at the top of the map.

Thank you all for the info and guidance.

sorry, I have a couple more questions:

1) if we take a return trip to Fluelen, will the boat stop over at other piers before reaching Fluelen or it goes direct to Fluelen?

2) if it is yes for the former, are we allowed to hop off and hop on at other piers before continue the journey to Fluelen?

3) for the return trip to Fluelen, can we get down at Fluelen, walk around and take a later boat back to Luzern?

Thank you

Yes to all those but just watch the timings. The boats are not that regular at your time of travel. Also there is not much at Flüelen so I wouldn't get off there or you may be in for a long wait for the next boat. Personally I would agree with Peterli and suggest you just go one way by boat and return by train. Or vice versa. Winter is not the ideal time of year to spend most of the day on the water.

If you look at the full timetable 1960man linked to you will see where the boats stop on the way to and return from Flüelen.

Hi Jenn Chuah,

you can see informations about the boats on Lake Lucerne also at www.myswissalps.com/boatlakelucerne.

You can check the timetables of the boats at www.myswissalps.com/timetable. If you wish to see only the boats then use the advanced SBB timetable where you can select the boats so it will only show you the boats and nothing else.

Ildiko

Also see:

www.myswissalps.com/lucerne

www.myswissalps.com/lakelucerne/activities

Thank you all for the prompt reply.

Since Rockoyster mentioned winter is not suitable to spend too long on water, what would be the recommended pier to get down n preferably with train station within a short walk for the return trip to Lucerne?

Is the boat fare the same for one way trip and round/return trip?

thanks

None really because Fluelen is really the only landing stage where the railway station is adjacent to the pier.

I'm not sure that 2.45 minutes (the full boat journey from Luzern to Fluelen) is too long - especially if it is a clear and sunny day. You see some great scenery from the boat including some things not easily seen any other way. Also it is very varied. at calling points you see people's waterside gardens, little bays in the lake shore, at other places you see sheer rock faces etc.

There is one other lake town that I know of with a train station between Luzern and Fluelen, at Brunnen. The Brunnen train station is about 4 blocks inland from the boat dock. The boat to Brunnen is about 2 hours, the train back to Luzern is 50 minutes, with frequent trains passing through.

I agree with 1960man, the scenery along the lake is varied, details are constantly changing, and each small town is interesting in its own right. Unless its pouring rain or foggy, the boat ride is quite nice.

Boat fares appear to be discounted for a round trip ticket, obviously more than a one way fare but less than the price of two one way fares.

I think you should go through to Flüelen and don’t bother getting off anywhere along the way unless you want to get of at Vitznau and go up to Rigi Kulm.

I just meant doing the whole return trip on a boat may be too much. The one way fare should be half the return fare. Unless you have a Swiss Travel Pass in which case both fares are zero.

I think 1960man meant 2hours and 45 minutes rather than 2.45 minutes ! That aside, if the weather is nice, I agree with Rockoyster that you invest this time and go all the way from Lucerne to Flüelen. You will have no problem getting a train heading north along the east side of the lake and eventually to Lucerne. Distances are relatively small in Switzerland and the fast trains make for easy "déplacements" (getting from one place to another). Quite a bit of the train lines north of Flüelen are in tunnels. The road north to Brunnen is much more interesting (less tunnels and often right beside the water). One of the reasons I like moving around by car.

If you are going to be in the Lucerne area for more than one day, you could, as Rockoyster has suggested, get off in Vitznau and go up the Rigi Kulm. If you have even more time (perhaps another day) and want to see a fantastic view of the lake (weather permitting), try googling Fronalpstock.

Boats for Flüelen leave Lucerne at 09h12, 10h12, and 13h12, and arrive at 11h58, 12h55, and 15h55. If you take the first boat, you will have the entire afternoon to make your way back to Lucerne. Best to get an early start !

Are you planning on the purchase of a Swiss Travel Pass ?

Peterli

Thank you all for the information and it is much appreciated.

To answer Peter's question, no I have not purchased the Swiss Travel Pass. I m currently doing the cost comparison to see which pass is more workable and cheaper for us. It is taking a lot of time off me coz I need to find out the fare for each destination and put it into the spreadsheet. Still not familiar with the various train stations for each destination.

We will be based in Basel. Arrive on 28 March. We have relative to fetch us from airport

29 March - Stoos Furnicular (we keep this day free n easy in case we suffer from jetlag). No need train coz relative will drive.

30 March - Lucerne (boat ride, old town) by train

31 March - Mount Pilatus (on 30 Mar not sure if we should stay overnight in Lucerne or go back to Basel coz we already have accommodation there ) by train

1 Apr- Bern by train

2 Apr - Zurich by train

3 to 6 Apr - we don't need to travel by train coz relative will drive us

7 Apr - Interlaken (coming fr grindelwald) by train

8 Apr - jungfraugh

9 to 11 Apr -geneva/lausanne/montreux by train

Hopefully my itinerary is workable.

Thanks.