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Hello,
My family, with two children (7, 9), will be traveling to Switzerland for 7 nights, Oct. 25 – Nov. 2 (in and out of Zurich). We know the timing is not idea, but unfortunately, the dates were not flexible. We’d like to see mountains, cities, villages, and lakes. I’m trying to decide if we should base exclusively out of Luzern and do many day trips thus maintaining flexibility on what we do when depending on the weather (and our kids). Or if we should stay in a second city/village for part of the trip, and if so, where? Here are some of the places we’d like to see, in no particular order, although we know we cannot do it all!
- Luzern
- Lake Luzern
- Mt. Rigi and/or Mt. Titlis and/or Mt. Pilatus
- Grindewald or Murren, Trummelbach Falls, maybe Schilthorn or Jungfraujoch (I realize it’s 4 hours each was from Luzern to the top)
- Bern
- Zurich
- Castles near Baden/Aarau (would be by car)
- St Gallen/Appenzell
- Ballenberg
If the time of year were different, I think we’d stay a few nights in the Jungfraujoch region, but I hesitate since many things are closed, some cable cars won’t be operating this week, and I’d to have to pick which days we’d be there now (and risk having it be cloudy, foggy or rainy the whole time). I’d prefer not to stay in Interlaken as I’ve read it’s over-touristy and not as pretty as other towns in Switzerland. Another very different option would be to split the time in Montreax and take the Golden Pass Line there from Luzern. We will travel mainly by train but may rent a car for a few days. I’d be grateful for any advice you have! Thank you!
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We spent 8 days in Zurich & Lucerne in early October last year. First 2 nights in Zurich, 5 in Lucerne, last night in Zurich. The first night in Zurich was to recover from a long overnight and morning travel day, the second day for sightseeing & exploring in the old town area, which was very interesting. We probably could have left Zurich on the second day & headed to Lucerne since it is just under 1 hour by train. We preferred Lucerne. It is a charming small city, and we took multiple day & 1/2 day trips from there via train and/or boat. Very convenient since the boat docks are across the street from the train station. We visited Mt. Rigi and Mt. Pilatus, and preferred Mt. Pilatus since it has more infrastructure at the top than Rigi (check the live weather cam at top before you go).
We also took several short boat trips on Lake Lucerne, stopping wherever we felt like getting off for sightseeing, browsing shops, or lunch, before heading back via another boat. While that worked well for two adults, I’m not sure the youngsters wouldn’t get bored by the walking & boat rides. We also spent a week skiing in Grindelwald several years ago, but that experience won’t be of much help to you outside of prime ski season. We did go to the Jungfraujoch that February, but I wouldn’t do it again. You can however take a train partway up, to Kleine Scheidegg, from either Grindelwald or Wengen (the rosti at the KS train station was wonderful), for less time (3h 13m) & money than going all the way to the “Top of Europe.” Still, a long day from Lucerne, but you should see some great scenery and small towns/villages along the way. Lake Brienz is a vibrant turquoise when the sunlight hits the water, tropical in color. Surprised us last year when we went to Brienz for a trip up the Rothorn on the steam-powered cogwheel train.
I can’t help on your other destinations, since we didn’t go to any of those. Hope you have a great time!
Hi 2019Trip, welcome to MySwissAlps!
Here are some thoughts on your itinerary, in addition to CabinJon’s great advice. I think Lucerne as a base town for the entire week would work out very well. It’s located pretty centrally for most of the trips you have in mind, and the city and its immediate surroundings offer enough to keep you busy for days (and even weeks). Please find tips at http://www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne and http://www.myswissalps.com/la kelucerne. A day trip to the Jungfrau region (http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfrauregion) would be doable, if you don’t mind a longer journey. You’d best consult the timetable to find out about traveling times and plan each of your day trips: http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable.
A few days in Montreux (http://www.myswissalps.com/mo ntreux) would certainly be nice too. If you’re interested in the Lake Geneva area (http://www.myswissalps.com/la kegeneva), picking both Lucerne and Montreux as base towns and using the Golden Pass line in between (http://www.myswissalps.com/go ldenpass) would be a good choice. Note that most of the destinations you’ve listed can be reached from Lucerne more quickly though.
I would advise you to reconsider hiring a car. That comes with some serious disadvantages, and it would be a shame not to enjoy the excellent Swiss public transportation. Please refer to http://www.myswissalps.com/ca rversustrain before making up your mind. With an 8 day Swiss Travel Pass for the adults and the free Swiss Family Card for your children, you could travel anywhere you like and enjoy maximum flexibility: http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpass, http://www.myswissalps.com/sw issfamilycard. Of course there are many more pass options, and how to find the right one is explained at http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses/prac tical/chooserailpass.
Thanks for all the advice!
Hi 2019 trip-
Indeed, lots of good advice. Thanks for posting your travel dates…helps a lot.
My thought is that you have chosen wisely by not staying in the Jungfrau Region at that time of year.
Just be aware that schedules, such as lake boat schedules and cableway schedules (but not most train service), decrease as Fall progresses.
Please spend time with the timetable linked by Annika to guide you on that issue.
Slowpoke
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