MySwissAlps.com features ads, commercial and non-commercial Swiss itinerary in January: 5 days car or train?
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First, I’d like to state that this website is amazing! My wife and I, along with our two teens are traveling to Switzerland in January. We will be arriving early in the day in Zurich on the 13th and departing Zurich on the 19th. We are interested in seeing Lucerne, Zermatt, the Jungfrau region, Interlaken and any other mountainous beauty that we can fit in our 5-6 days of actual sightseeing.
I really don’t want to rush the trip but also want some options in case weather conditions cause us to change course. Here are my questions:
1) Is it best to rent a car or take trains/buses everywhere – especially this time of year? Train passes look like it’ll cost us $300+ each person. However, I heard that parking is scarce & expensive.
2) Should we base somewhere or move suitcases from town to town. I also heard that there’s luggage services there – is this true?
3) Are any of the regions I’ve named difficult to navigate in January?
4) Any places we should avoid due to overcrowding this time of year?
We are so excited to visit Switzerland and cannot wait to experience its culture and beauty. Thank you in advance for your experience and tips.
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Hello Lbsjw2 and Welcome to MySwissAlps,
To help you abandon the idea of renting a car read http://www.myswissalps.com/ca rversustrain.
If your teenagers are under 16 they travel free if you have a Swiss Family Card (http://www.myswissalps.com/sw issfamilycard) in conjunction with a Swiss Travel Pass (http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpass) or a Swiss Half Fare Card (http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isshalffarecard).
You should read “How to choose the best travel pass” (http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses/prac tical/chooserailpass), download the handy spreadsheet calculator and do the math.
Use the SBB Timetable (http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable) to plan your travel. If you are not familiar with using the timetable it will pay to first read the instructions on that page.
Oh, and rug up!
<<“However, I heard that parking is scarce & expensive.”>>
Generally true, unless you are parking out in the countryside somewhere that is not apart of the scenic areas.
If I park overnight..say 16 hours…in Luzern or Zürich I expect to spend about 60 CHF. That is at a public garage. If it has spaces. The prices are steadily adjusted upwards to balance cost with accessibility, so that you can find a place at least half the time. Hotels in the cities, or in the car- free places included on your list (Zermatt) generally don’t have their own parking places. Most were built a century or so before cars were invented.
However, if I park at one of my favorite inns in Ligerz or Sugiez or Sumiswald or Madiswil or Ftan, it is free. Those are not on the normal tourist routes..Many other parking areas near train stations have parking for a modest fee…say 5 or 6 CHF for 6 hours…in the villages along train lines a bit outside cities.
Slowpoke
Hi Lbsjw2,
With only 5 days in Switzerland I’d normally recommend to have one base as almost all regions have more to offer than you can cover in 5 days. However, considering your wish list you may want to have two bases: Lucerne and Zermatt:
A car won’t make your trip easier or cheaper. I’d recommend to take the trains as well, it’s an experience of its own. There is indeed a luggage service. If you don’t pack more than you can carry you probably won’t need it, unless you’d take a scenic route from Lucerne to Zermatt (e.g. via the Jungfrau region) and prefer to travel light. Please see http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/practical/luggage.
Thank you Slowpoke for your reply and suggestions. I did abandon the car rental idea. I’ll be looking at our train options at this point.
So far we’re going to spend our first three nights in Grindelwald for activities around that area. From there we’re thinking of going to Gruyere for a few days to see the castle, cheese and chocolate factory. Any suggestions or alternatives to Gruyere with similar sites? Thanks again!
Hi Lbsjw2 –
Not a bad idea.
In January, in particular it is a good idea to spend some time in the lower altitudes, if you are not a skier.
If I were doing it, I’d stay in Wengen, Mürren or Lauterbrunnen instead of Grindelwald. However that is a personal opinion, not based on traveling with teenagers, and seeking a more relaxed atmosphere. I find Grindelwald to be too commercial for my tastes. Of course, that adds more options and places to see, visit, eat at, or buy from. Many prefer it.
For the Gruyères+ p0rtion, ( German Greyerz) you could stay in the vicinity. There will not be a lot of tourists there at that time of year. Or, you could stay at Montreux, for a more cosmopolitan environment.
http://www.myswissalps.com/mo ntreux
Accessible easily by train from Montreux, the Olympic Museum in Lausanne might appeal.
Montreux is at the end of the train route travelled by the Golden Pass trains, which you could ride from Interlaken ( Grindelwald,etc.).
I’m trying to find you some time in Luzern, without compounding the hassles. May not be possible. You might do it ont he way from Momtreux/Gruyeres to Zürich as a day trip or a midpoint. Or, maybe include it on your first day on the way from Zürich if you are not too jet – lagged. I have not worked that with the timetable to see how it would fit. Just a thought.
Slowpoke
You must’ve been reading my mind because I was thinking of trying to stop at Lucerne on the way to Grindewald. I think I read on a few posts herein that we can rent lockers at the train station to store our luggage while site seeing in Lucerne.
The reason I chose Grindewald as base is due to access to train station and lifts higher up to Jungfraujach. Also, Grindewald seemed to have more restaurant choices. However, I didn’t investigate the difference in transit times to Jungfraujoch from Wengen. Will most likely get our mountain site seeing and activity done in two days.
We’ll probably end up visiting other towns by train but like you, we’re trying to figure out the logistics. Trying not to waste too much time in transit unless it’s a scenic transit on a comfortable train. Thought about train tour but I’d rather not drop $1000 on sitting on a train all day. Would rather spend the time seeing the medieval towns by foot and tasting the local cuisine and beer.
So as it stands, here is a tentative itinerary that I’ve thought about:
13-1-19 (9:40 am) Arrive in Zurich, 1 hour getting luggage/walk to train
13-1-19 (11:00 am) leave Zürich for Lucerne or straight to Grindewald? Any suggestions? Seems like we’d be arriving in Lucerne too late in day to see much before nightfall.
14-1-19: Assuming we went straight to Grindewald, spend first day going to Jungfraujoch to lookout tower, see ice tunnels and other activities we can squeeze in one day. If bad weather, then do local activities and see Grindewald – perhaps sledging. Suggestions are welcome here.
15-1-19: Wanting to see other sites within close proximity from our Grindewald base. Other towns with activities? Suggestions welcomed here as well.
16-1-19: Early morning Checkout of hotel in Grindewald and travel to Gruyeres. Wondering if this might be best time to see Lucerne or another town along the way since we have to go Northwest before going Southwest to Gruyere. Suggestions welcomed here.
17-1-19: In Gruyere see cheese factory, chocolate factory and castle (hopefully in one day). Suggestions welcomed here.
18-1-19: Early morning checkout and travel back to Zurich. Should we use this day to stop in a selected town for site seeing or head straight to hotel in Zurich and sitesee there? Suggestions welcomed. From Gruyere to Zurich I’m not sure what towns the trains stop at.
19-1-19: Family flight back home but I get to stay for another week for company meetings. I work for Belimo Aircontrols in Hinwil and we’re having sales meetings for a few days then heading to the mountains for a few days at a resort.
Hi Lbsjw2
I have a busy day ahead, and will get back to the details of your message later.
However, some of your issues can be resolved by use of a map which shows train lines, plus the timetable.The timetable will be a life-saver for travel timing and route planning. It is also available as an app for smartphones.
http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable
Please read the instruction page and use the full timetable. Maps follow.
Switzerland is a small country. The Swiss rail network is dense and has frequent service. At least once per hour departures almost everywhere at any station , and more frequent between the main towns. So, going from Gruyeres or Montreux to Luzern can be done by many routes. Some are faster, some are more scenic. You can make your own rail tour, and not pay for a packaged tour. In the timetable, you can enter intermediate stations in the “via” box. And, with those tools you can visualize train and cableway travel around the Jungfrau region.
So, Google Maps will work, as will many others. Here is the one that I prefer for your needs. I don’t use it for hiking, because it does not show altitudes.
First-the overview:
Then, details around Grindelwald and Wengen. I’ve zoomed in to zoom level 32 ( look at the link name) and turned on transport station icons for rail and mountain transport in the menu accessible under Points of View/ Traffic. Click on the star. I did not turn on buses, just to minimize clutter. You probably should check out buses at various locations, too. You might ned one in Grindelwald.
map.search.ch/?pos=650328,165424&z=32 &poi=bergbahn,zug
and,
map.search.ch/?pos=641896,160320&z=32 &poi=bergbahn,zug
You’ll notice a good access to mountain peaks from either location.
My favorite place to stay is Wengen. Quite a few other forum members agree, but not all. Mürren vs. Wengen is a perennial dicusion.
Wengen and Grindelwald have the most direct rail access to Kleine Scheidegg, where you transfer to the train up to Jungfraujoch.
Here is an excellent report by a fan of Wengen, with details about Wengen including restaurants, and small bit of other useful information about the Jungfrau region:
http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/tips-about-wengen-and-the-jungfrau-region-by-kim
By oversight, Kim forgot to mention one other good restaurant with Swiss and Italian food and pizza’s. Da Sina’s, just behind the Hotel Schoenegg.
There will be a more than sufficient choice of restaurants from luxury to basic, including pizza, in Wengen in early January ( start of ski season) , all easily walkable. And the nothing is very far from the train station for Jungfraujoch or other locations. It is very compact village. In Grindelewald, you might have to walk a considerable distance or take a bus to reach the main station or the the lower station (“Grund”). Depends on where you stay.
If anyone in yoru family likes maps, here is a link to a very detailed map that will keep them happy for hours:
You might find this interesting:
http://www.brunnvalla.ch/chri stmasmarkets/switzerla nd.html
More later on your details. Spend some time with the map and timetable. You’ll be amazed at how good the transport links are.
Hinwil –
Hinwil is in a part of th country where very few tourists visit. It is right on a train line.
map.search.ch/Hinwil?poi=bergbahn,zug&pos=7 10088,240128&z=32
It is 30 minutes form Zürich by train every 30 minutes, as late as 1138PM, starting around 5:38 AM.
A go place to visit nearby is Rapperswil, and the land bridge and the land bridge across the lake.
Rapperswil is a pretty town.A good tourist destination, and on the lake. I have attached some pictures from the land bridge across the lake near Hurden and Rapperswil, in the summer. Hinwil is 10 or 15 km from Rapperswil. 23 minutes forom Hinwil by train, every 30 minutes.
The Way of St. James of Compostela ( der Jakobsweg), a historical pilgrimage route, passes through Rapperswil and across the land bridge. The attached sign in German is posted near Hurden. Not clear in the map, but the branch that goes to St. Gall might pass close to Hinwil.
Slowpoke
Wow, a ton of wonderful & helpful information. This will definitely give me something to do for the next week. Thanks so much Slowpoke!
Hi Lbsjw2 –
I just re-read your proposed itinerary.
I really do think that many of your questions don’t take into account the flexibility and convenience of the Swiss train system. The following exercise shows you how much detail yo can put into yur planig, thus permitting some good information on travel time. The principles apply for any journey. Leaving luggage is possible at main stations, but less common at smaller stations.
I’ll pick a few specifics to illustrate all the details:
This relates to your day of arrival, and details if you spend time at Luzern or instead go directly to Grindelwald and up to the Jungfraujoch. From details below, I don’t think you’ll have enough time to visit Jungfraujoch for more then 38 minutes…. I don’t think that is worth the high cost. My opinion.
You could spend 2-4 hours to see major sights in Luzern and get to Grindelwald before 7 PM. Thus, you do have time to spend a few hours in Luzern, but if you are jet-lagged, you could be better off going direct to Grindelwald or maybe, Wengen..;-) 3 hours in Luzern can give you a flavor of the old town by walking through it, getting lunch, seeing the the chapel bridge as you walk. If you want to see the Lion Monument, which is worth getting to, you’ll need 20 minutes each way to walk there. I might skip it on that short visit.
63 to 70 minutes Airport to Luzern. Frequent trains. Then, after sightseeing, 2 hours 32 minutes, Luzern to Grindelwald, once per hour at xx06, one change at Interlaken Ost for Grindelwald, two changes for Wengen.
<<“13-1-19 (9:40 am) Arrive in Zurich, 1 hour getting luggage/walk to train
13-1-19 (11:00 am) leave Zürich for Lucerne or straight to Grindewald? Any suggestions? Seems like we’d be arriving in Lucerne too late in day to see much before nightfall.”>>
http://www.timeanddate.com/su n/switzerland/lucerne?month=11&year=2018
Trains to Luzern from Zürich Flughafen ( airport) run all day at xx15, xx 18, xx46.
Time to Luzern is a bit over 1 hour.
I have attached a screen grab from the SBB timetable.
The ones at xx15 go direct, with no change, although the stop at Zürich main station. The others require a change. Although the screen grab is not interactive, in the actual timetable, you click on the timeline with the dot in the middle to get connection information, and click on the “+” tha appears to get intermediate stations. If you miss a connection at Zürich main station, just wait a few minutes and catch the next train to Luzern. Some of the connections are easy- on the main platform- tracks #3 through #18.. Others may involve a short walk and some escalators. E.g., tracks #31-32.
If you are an elite frequent flier on your airline, there is a good bet that you’ll beat your one hour time to the train after landing, because your bags will often be first on to the carousel. Mine often get there before I do. However, one hour is reasonable estimate, so your time to Luzern would get you there at just about noon.
The left luggage office at Luzern is on the balcony over the railheads. I’d use that instead of lockers, for speed and convenience. A bit more expensive. Lockers at Luizern are mostly by the lowest numbered track, which is track #3.. There is no track #1 or #2. The lockers are a modest walk out alongside track #3.
plans.trafimage.ch/luz ern#?lang=de&layer=luzern_i nnenplan&x=666079&y=21 1141&r=0.2
There are two or three sizes, and the largest will hold a good sized but not huge suitcase. Cost range from 6 to 9 CHF. Carry Swiss coins. The lockers are coin operated. I don’t recall if there is change making machine there. They exist at Zürich and Bern and they often work.
I buy a newspaper or some snacks to get change. I get my Swiss paper money from the Credit Suisse ATM at Zürich airport, but they exist at Luzern station as well. The Travelex booths – everywhere that I have seen them – charge much higher exchange rates.
http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/atmforex-at-zurich-airport
Tourist info also by track #3, but I don’t know the exact hours on Sunday. They surely will be open at midday. Very nice, very helpful people. Pick up a map of Luzern.
How about going directly to Grindelwald –
If you go direct to the Jungfrau region, specifically Grindelwald, with a route from the airport that may involve a change at Zürich main station and will involve a change at Bern, you will spend just under 3 hours to get there. You’ll catch either the 1046 or the 1118, which will get you to Grindelwald at either 1338 or 1408. All the trains to Bern have a restaurant car; some of the trains from Bern to Interlaken have a restaurant car. You can pick up sandwiches at train stations and there is a food court at Zürich airport train station. I don’t recall if you can get sandwiches there, but i’d be surprised if you cannot.
Trains from Grindelwald to Jungfraujoch run at xx17 and xx47. I hour and 18 minutes to Jungfraujoch. If you catch the 1417, you’ll get up there at 1535. Sunset is at 1640.
( By the way…Grindelwald main station is near the main street. Trains to Kleine Scheidegg and thence to the Jungfrau pass through Grindelwald Grund, a station a very short distance away, down the hill a bit. Grund is where the cableway to Männlichen has its valley station German is “die Talstation.”)
There is a left luggage office at Grindelwald station, which closes at 6PM(1800), although it may be possible to pick up luggage as late as 7PM (1900). Some hotels in Grindelwald are close to the staTion, others are quite some distance from the station.
In order to get to the Grindelwald station after time at Jungfraujoch by 1800 to get luggage, you’ll have catch a train down at 1613.
That is the next to last train down. The next is at 1643, which gets you to Grindelwald at 1813.The most likely timing is to arrive at Jungfraujoch at 1535, and leave at 1613. That gives you 38 minutes up there. The trip is expensive.
I’d not go up there on my first day. However, there is not a lot of sightseeing in Grindelwald.
Whatever you choose, if you happen to be coming in from the USA, keep in mind that jet lag will likely be an issue.
More later on Gruyere, probably, but the timetable and a map are your friends.
Slowpoke
Attachments:
<<“We’ll probably end up visiting other towns by train but like you, we’re trying to figure out the logistics. Trying not to waste too much time in transit unless it’s a scenic transit on a comfortable train. Thoughtabout train tour but I’d rather not drop $1000 on sitting on a train all day. Would rather spend the time seeing the medieval towns by foot and tasting the local cuisine and beer.”>>
The trains are comfortable, and even the normal everyday routes have nice scenery to see as you travel. You’ll find train travel to be a pleasure, although hauling a lot of bags can be a bother. I use the luggage transfer service of the SBB , but they don’t have the “Express” same day service anymore.
http://www.sbb.ch/en/station-services/services/lugg age/luggage.html
You have to watch the timing, but you could store luggage in Zurich during your travels, or send some from Zürich to, for example, Montreux. It looks like Gruyeres station is too small to have a left luggage office, and there are no lockers.
Slowpoke
Hi Lbsjw2 –
<<“From there we’re thinking of going to Gruyere for a few days to see the
castle, cheese and chocolate factory. Any suggestions or alternatives to
Gruyere with similar sites? Thanks again!”>>
I don’t know if your plans have evolved as this thread has developed, but you early comment about Gruyeres stuck in my mind.
If I take your words as written, I think that you’ll find “A few days” to be much more time than you willwant to spend on those activities.
Gruyeres is a nice town to visit, but it is small and a few hours, plus an hour or so in the show dairy, was plenty for the two of us. And, some of that time was spent looking at the art in the small museum….not usually something that holds the attention of teenagers unless they have an artistic bent.
Maison Cailler is not far away by train and a trip there could round out the day with time to spare, I believe.
http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/connection-from-brocfabrique-to-maison-caillerchoc
That is why I suggested that you look at Montreux as a base if you really wish to spend a few days in the region.. Nice town, on the lake, some things to do there.
http://www.myswissalps.com/mo ntreux
Castle Chillon is might be more interesting that the one in Gruyeres, and, the Olympic Museum in Lausanne is not far away by train.
Many people choose the scenic train rides from Luzern to Montreux via the Golden Pass Route, which passes through Interlaken.
http://www.myswissalps.com/go ldenpass
You would use the section that goes from Interlaken via Spiez and Zweisimmen if you did that. However, it is the slowest way to make the trip. Off hand, I’d think you’d want to take a faster one.
The timetable will help if you use the “via” option to choose intermediate cities, and the fastest route is from Interlaken to Spiez to Visp and than along the Rhone Valley to Montreux. A close second is to Bern and then through Lausanne. Those are all main line trains and include some stretches of fairly high speed rail.
However, although I have never done so, I am sure that you can find a nice place to stay in any of the smaller towns and villages between …say Fribourg and Lausanne and Gruyeres, such a Bulle or Romont as well as Broc. It’s been a few years, but I recall that Gruyeres commands somewhat higher prices prices for hotel rooms, because it is a famous destination.
I am a fan of the Emmental region, and there is a quite nice show dairy in Affoltern i. E. (im Emmental). Besides the modern dairy and restaurant, It includes a working exhibit of making cheese the old way , in a wood-fired kettle, in an old dairy building. The route to Affoltern is a bit circuitous, and involves a once per hour bus as the last section. It is between Luzern and Bern. No chocolate factory, however. So I think Gruyeres and Broc make more sense.
Just for your amusement, I’ve attached a few pictures.
The German “Schaukäserei” means “show cheese-making factory. The “Speicher” building in the entrance road is a characteristic Emmental out-building, used for storage on Emmental farms.
Slowpoke
You are really on top of things, Slowpoke ! I’m going to do another chocolate place soon, maybe later today.
I just looked at your photos from Affoltern in Emmental, and I have a suggestion for your next visit, which I am sure you will be making. My suggestion refers to the problem of taking photos of things where there is a sheet of plastic or glass between your camera and what you are photographing. That is to turn your flash off. It helps, but does not get rid of reflections on the plastic or glass from light coming from behind you. I faced this problem when visiting the Roman mosaics in Orbe this Fall. I wanted to take some photos of the models in the welcome area that were under glass. The gentleman on duty agreed to turn off the overhead lights for a few seconds, but we had to wait until we saw that the only other visitors that day were walking back. All of the lights in all of the buildings are turned on and off with one switch and we did not want to plunge them into the dark !
Hi Lbsjw2 –
<<“From there we’re thinking of going to Gruyere for a few days to see the
castle, cheese and chocolate factory. Any suggestions or alternatives to
Gruyere with similar sites? Thanks again!”>>
Some more comments on Gruyères.
It has been so long since we visited Gruyères that I decided to refresh my memories of the facilities, in particular, to look up the castle. This website looks useful for the whole region, as well as the castle.
http://www.la-gruyere.ch/en/P4544/gr uyeres-castle
I find that there is a bit more to the castle than I remember, so possibly I underestimated the amount of time that could be profitably spent there.
map.search.ch/?pos=572410,159117&z=51 2&poi=haltestelle,kult ur,zug
map.search.ch/?pos=572825,159340&z=40 96&poi=haltestelle,kul tur,zug
The train station (Gruyères, gare ) is about 300 meters from the parking lot at the base of the hill upon which the town stands.
map.search.ch/?pos=572825,159338&z=25 6&poi=haltestelle,kult ur,zug
There is a bus that stops at the train station (Gruyères, gare) and the parking lot ((Gruyères, ville); bus #263.
Mouse over the icons on that map to get the station names and bus number. You can also get a precise name for each of the stations, useful for selecting in the SBB timetable.
Buses run from the train station to the parking lot at xx03 and xx48, all day from 0703 until 1848 , for a 3 minute journey. The xx03 buses are timed to depart 3 or 4 minutes after the trains arrive from Broc and the northeast , or from Montbovon to the south or Bulle and Romont to the northwest.
Buses from the parking lot to the train station run at xx06 and xx51, all day, 3 minutes journey. The xx51 buses are timed to get you to the station just before the trains depart in various directions.
Slowpoke
Swiss timing. Simply amazing. Can you imagine a transportation system in the USA working like this ?
Even after 38 years of visiting Switzerland, I’m still impressed by the thought that goes into the transport connections.
I can still remember a very early trip to Technorama, where a bus was waiting at closing time, to take those who stayed to the end of the day to the station in Winterthur.
And, in 1984, my amazement that a shuttle bus up the hill at Romont did not appear, even though it was posted on the schedule board. Only time it ever happened, so it sticks in my memory.
Slowpoke
It is a finely tuned system indeed, with adjustments fitting in flawlessly as new lines and tunnels and equipment allow for shorter travel times.
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