Family holidays in Zurich & Lucerne in Dec 2015

Good day everyone,

Me and my family (2 adults & 2 children ages 14 and 12) will be visiting Switzerland in December this year. We will be arriving at Zurich on 10th Dec for a 5 nights stay and then travelling to Lucerne for a one week stay before returning to Zurich airport on 22nd Dec.

We have already made reservations for accommodations and I am now planning the best possible way to enjoy the sights and sceneries in both cities. We are planning for city tour, trips to the various mountains and landmarks and of course, the excursions on scenic trains too. We intend to do these using the public transport system in both cities as much as possible.

In my mind, I am thinking of buying the Zurich Card for the 5 days in Zurich. For Lucerne, I intend to buy the Tell Pass. Alternatively, I am also thinking of buying the 8 days Swiss Pass (with family card) instead of the Tell Pass. Or to make it simple, should I buy the 15 day Swiss Pass to cover both cities even though I am staying a total of 12 days only?

Can anyone in this forum help me to make a decision on which travel option is the best for my family? Appreciate it.

Thanks

KJ (Singapore)

Hello KJ, welcome to MySwissAlps,

A ZurichCARD might be a good option for a few days, but it only includes traveling in town and the immediate surroundings (links to more information are here). That might not fit your plans, at least not on all days. A Tell-Pass could be a good choice for Lucerne and the Lake Lucerne region, again depending on your plans. Please see here for what's covered. Last year this pass was free for anyone staying at least two nights between January and March, but I don't know whether this will be the case this year again, and whether December will be included too.

Do you have a list of day trips you intend to do? That should help picking a pass. Please see here for a step by step explanation. Note that the Swiss Pass is called Swiss Travel Pass now (see here for the difference). I think it could be the better and simpler option for you, allowing more flexibility on all days. All details can be found on myswissalps.com/swisst ravelpass. The children travel along for free.

I hope this helps to make a decision!