Is Wengen a good choice for easy walks and scenery

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    25 October 2017 at 20:47:10 #813566

    We have not been to Switzerland as a couple. I travelled there many years ago. We both love the country side are not super fit though. We enjoy strolling; gorgeous views and fresh air. We have just started planning.

    We hope to fly into Zurich- only direct connection from Melbourne have one night there, 2 nights in Berne and then to Wengen for four nights. During that time we hope to have picnics; very easy walks, see Murren and Lauterbrunnen and ( I’m holding my breath for this one- scared of heights) go up the Schilthorn. Have fallen in love with photos of Wengen Love the small town feel; but with places to eat and evening strolls and of course the views! We would be there in late August. .is it good choice for us? Do we have to be ultra fit? Thank you!

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    25 October 2017 at 23:13:36 #871255

    Hello Mittens

    Welcome to the forum. You do not need to be ultra fit to enjoy a holiday in Switzerland!!! No doubt Lucas can link you to an excellent set of documents by our member Kim all about Wengen.

    But on a personal note here are some suggestions for you.

    Take the cable car from Wengen to Männlichen and walk to Kleine Scheidegg from there. It is an easy but impressive trail. You can get a train back to Wengen from there.

    This last summer I was even less fit than usual but managed a day of easy rambling as follows – we took train to Lauterbrunnen, bus from there to Stechelberg (Schilthornbahn stop), cable car to Gimmelwald where we had a leisurely stroll through the village, taking photos etc, had lunch in the Beer Garten – limited but tasty menu – , took cable car to Mürren, funicular to Allmendhubel (the food in restaurant there is also good) where we did the flower trail, back down to Mürren, strolled through village to take train to Grütschalp, then cable car down to Lauterbrunnen. The walk between Lauterbrunnen and Stechelberg is also easy as it is flat. Others recommend the walk between Grütschalp and Mürren – we haven’t yet done that one.

    If you want to combine a walk with a boat ride, take boat from Interlaken to Spiez, walk the wanderweg along the lake to Faulensee where you can get boat back to Interlaken, or to go to Thun. This could be a good option if the weather is not clear enough for views up in the mountains. Or you do this as a day out from Bern, by taking train to Thun, boat from there to Spiez, walk the trail, then boat to Interlaken, (bus ride back to Thun is nice along north shore of lake or train along south shore) or boat back to Thun.

    You can get supplies for a picnic from Co-op or Migros at reasonable prices.

    Enjoy your trip.

    Maggie

    Slowpoke
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    26 October 2017 at 0:55:06 #871256

    Hi Mittens.

    I’ll add my welcome to the forum.

    You might find this useful:

    http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/tips-about-wengen-and-the-jungfrau-region-by-kim

    It adds support for my own preference for Wengen.

    Late August is good, but European tourists use August as a vacation month. If you could move to early September, you’ll find things to be less crowded.

    Slowpoke

    rockoyster
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    26 October 2017 at 5:44:25 #871257

    G’Day Mittens,

    Is there something you particularly want to see in Bern? Depending on what time you arrive at Zurich Airport you might instead consider hopping straight on a train to Luzern (German spelling) and staying there 3 nights then to Wengen. The less hotel swaps the better IMHO.

    Luzern has heaps of things to see and do. See http://www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne If you pick the right train you can get to Bern in 1 hour from Luzern if you really feel the need to go there. Or you can always do a day trip there from Wengen if, heaven forbid, the weather is crook. 🤓

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    26 October 2017 at 6:34:21 #871258

    Slowpoke beat me to Kim’s Wengen trip report.

    I did link Maggie’s advice to some of your web pages here so you can learn a bit more about the towns and hiking options.

    Let us know if you have more questions!

    Slowpoke
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    26 October 2017 at 8:21:21 #871259

    G’Day Rockoyster-

    I continue to learn new things from your posts:

    <<“if, heaven forbid, the weather is crook. 🤓”>>

    That is not a choice of words heard commonly in the USA 😉

    I like Bern for a short visit, but I support your recommendation for Luzern. More variety nearby, and a more scenic location. The tourist density in Luzern is higher, but June is a bit ahead of the crowds.

    You’ve seen these pictures, but this was a convenient place to post them.

    Slowpoke

    Mark
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    26 October 2017 at 16:59:15 #871260

    Hello Mittens, Two more suggestions for scenic but easy and fairly flat walks in Jungfrau region. First to Grosse Scheidegg is a paved trail and rated 1.25 hours. You can take bus back to Grindelwald and train to Wengen. Photo of trail attached. Also First to Bachalpsee is beautiful and easy as well but will likely will need to walk back to First.Photo of Bachalpsee attached. I also thought you might enjoy a couple of photos taken in Wengen this past Sept. The first is a view of Lauterbrunnen Valley from Wengen train station. The next 2 are from our hotel room in Wengen Mark

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    26 October 2017 at 20:13:19 #871261

    Thank you for this very comprehensive advice. I am sure I will be back with more questions!

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    26 October 2017 at 20:29:05 #871262

    Hi Slowpoke, Lucas and others. Thanks for sharing. We will be away from Australia for 6 weeks. Starting in Switzerland heading to Italy. We’ve had a little hiccough- we will be landing in Geneva. Still keen to find our way to Wengen though, all the fabulous photos Mark! Understand entirely about crook weather Rockoyster so will plan accordingly. Now I have to find the ‘scenic route’ from Geneva to Wengen.

    rockoyster
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    26 October 2017 at 21:16:20 #871263

    Scenic route Geneva to Wegen http://www.myswissalps.com/go ldenpass

    If you are still keen on Bern you can easily duck up to there from Spiez which is on the Golden Pass route.

    Where will you depart Switzerland from?

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    26 October 2017 at 22:28:01 #871264

    We are not sure where we will exit Switzerland. We have been to Italy a few times and love it. Last year we spent time around Bellagio (Lake Como area) so we will possibly look at some where different. Have looked at the Bernina Express route. We like staying in the one spot for a few days and getting to know that area. Any suggestions welcome. Our final destination is the Amalfi Coast ( a bit of a step away) and fly home from Rome. Thanks for sharing the golden pass info. Montreux looks lovely, Luzern too. Gone right off Bern! Still loving the look of Wengen.

    Slowpoke
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    26 October 2017 at 23:15:33 #871265

    Hi Mittens – apart from the Bernina route through Tirano, two other obvious routes are:

    1.- Interlaken Ost to Spiez to the Rhone Valley at Brig( more on that in a moment) then through the Simplon Pass from Brig to Domodossola, and on to your destination.

    If it is Locarno, the train from Domodossola through the Val di Centovalli to Locarno is a special treat.

    We have not worked all the major destinations in the lake region of the Ticino, but after Lugano, we tended to revisit Locarno. No strong reasons, although it felt more accessible, somehow, compared to Lugano. We enjoyed a trip into the Val Vercasca from Locarno. Also, if you are an architecture buff, you might find this worth the journey:

    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Church_of_San_Giovanni _Battista,_Mogno

    You can get to the Rhone Valley from Spiez to Visp, through the new , fast, boring Lötschberg Basis Tunnel. Form Visp, it is a short ride to Brig. Or, you can go up the valley to Kandersteg from Spiez, (on the train called the Lötschberger), go through the old tunnel to Goppenstein, then ride down the south-facing slope of the valley to Brig. Takes about an hour longer.

    2,- Interlaken Ost to Luzern via the Brunig Pass ( part of the Golden Pass Route), thence to Arth-Goldau, to pick up the southbound train to the Ticino. At Bellinzona, you can choose Lugano or Locarno.

    There is also a slower, nicer, named route called the Gotthard Panoramic Express, which takes a boat from Luzern to Flüelen, where you pick up the train that goes through the Gotthard Pass to Bellinzona on the old wonderfully scenic route.

    Or, if you are in hurry, you can ride through the new Gotthard Basis Tunnel at high speed while studying the walls inside the tunnel.

    Slowpoke

    Mark
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    27 October 2017 at 1:15:07 #871266

    Mittens, If your itinerary in Amalfi is not set, you may want to look at Ravello, a beautiful small town above Positano. Most people only consider visiting Capri,Amalfi,or Positano which are all very nice but we thought Ravello the most picturesque and quaint of all. The Hotel Caruso in Ravello may be the finest hotel I’ve ever stayed in. Last, a trail called Path of the Gods near Positano is a fairly easy hike that gives gorgeous views of the Amalfi coast. Attached View from Ravello,View from Path of the Gods, and infinity pool at Hotel Caruso Mark

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    27 October 2017 at 1:30:43 #871267

    Hi Mark, Our main reason to visit Italy this time is to visit Ravello. We were married there in 2008, so it will be a special 10 year anniversary for us. I use the term “Amalfi Coast’ as many people are unaware of Ravello perched above Amalfi. We were not lucky enough to stay at Caruso, but loved our very brief stay at Villa Cimbrone. Not sure if my fitness levels are up to the Path of the Gods, I’m hoping the great suggestions from you and others around Wengen will bring me ‘up to scratch’

    rockoyster
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    27 October 2017 at 1:59:06 #871268

    Hi Mittens,

    If you go from Wengen to Luzern then I’d recommend the Gotthard Panorama Express as mentioned by Slowpoke. The paddle steamer ride to Flüelen is magic. We did it in late May but in the opposite direction starting at Lugano. See http://www.myswissalps.com/go tthardpanoramaexpress

    The Bernina Express is great but it’s a long way to go given you are starting from Geneva. I can’t help thinking the Bernina is best experienced in winter or spring when there is still plenty of snow about. If you do the Bernina then skip the bus trip from Tirano to Lugano and head straight down in to Italy. I found bus ride quite dull for the first half of the 3 hour trip.

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    1 November 2017 at 7:44:43 #871269

    Hi Maggie, for the walks and trips you suggested, do you think we should get the Swiss rail pass, or the half price pass? My little and very sketchy plan is: Geneva direct to Wengen, the walks or similar to your suggestion, Some further walks suggested by Adelaidean, Up to the Schilthorn, Brienz excursion and then Wengen to Luzern and excursions there (!) to Zurich and flight out from there. We had intended to go into Italy and Soglio looks beautiful, but given our poor Aussie dollar have decided to fly to Greece- one of our favourite destinations and not so heavy on the hip pocket. We will go back into Italy from Greece to celebrate our wedding anniversary ( married in Ravello ten years ago.).another expensive destination. Hope to be in Wengen for 5 nights, Geneva for one, Lucerne for 2. I know it seems like a long trip, but 2.5 hours (Athens)in a plane is a breeze coming from Oz. Thank you.

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    2 November 2017 at 2:03:14 #871270

    Hi Mittens

    We always get a Swiss Travel Pass and buy any discounted tickets we need for cable cars and cogwheel excursion trains. Next year’s pass will cover Schilthorn and Schynige Platte so no tickets needed. It saves time if you can just board trains, buses and boats without queueing up! How many days in total will you be in Switzerland? The 8 day pass will cover most of your days I guess – if you are there for nine days then buy point to point tickets for the day with least travel whether that is first or last day.

    Hope you enjoy your trip! By the way we visited Ravello a few years ago when on a guided tour based in Sorrento and we thought it was beautiful. Have a lovely time celebrating there!

    Maggie

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