January Swiss trip: Lucerne or Interlaken?

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    9 October 2018 at 11:09:04 #818642

    Hi Swissalps Team,

    I will be arriving in Zurich on 5th January early morning.I would like to visit the Rhine fall on the same day. Kindly advice if the boat ride is operational during January. Also, rest of the 4 nights I should spend by splitting between Lucerne 02 nights & Interlaken 02 nights ?? Or all 04 nights at Lucerne ??

    This brings to my next question whether Lucerne or Interlaken is good climate wise for exploring during January like cafes, bars, shopping centres, lake ride by boat will be open ???

    Last query is whether nearby attractions like Mount Titlis, Juangfrouch will be operational during that period ?

    Regards,

    Prasad

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    9 October 2018 at 17:55:37 #897664

    Hi Prasad and welcome to MySwissAlps!

    No the boat trips aren’t operating in the winter at the Rheinfalls: http://www.myswissalps.com/rh einfall – but you can still enjoy a trip there if you like.

    Choosing the best base town depends on your plans each day, and how much travel you want to do to get where you are going. Use the timetable to find trip duration/schedules and see what works best for you: http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable

    For climate, Interlaken and Lucerne will be quite similar.

    Lake Lucerne and Lake Thun boat trips are both operating yes:

    You can check operational dates for the mountains on our pages here: http://www.myswissalps.com/ac tivities/naturalsites/ mountains – click on the route tab for each mountain for more details.

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    10 October 2018 at 10:37:28 #897665

    Hi Lucas,

    Thank you very much for your answer. It was really helpful for me to plan my Swiss trip.

    You guys are doing a wonderful job !!!

    Regards,

    Prasad

    Gunzel
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    241 posts
    10 October 2018 at 19:42:44 #897666

    Probably better to have one base for the four days. Saves time on packing and carrying luggage. Any added travel time is always enjoyable.

    I haven’t been to Luzern for some time but Interlaken attracts lots of tourists who tend to travel in groups, be noisy and tend to push and shove. Consider Unterseen (walking distance from Interlaken West station) rather than Interlaken itself.

    Whatever, enjoy your travels. And the cooler weather.

    Slowpoke
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    7567 posts
    10 October 2018 at 22:46:59 #897667

    G’ Day Gunzel –

    <<“I haven’t been to Luzern for some time but Interlaken attracts lots of

    tourists who tend to travel in groups, be noisy and tend to push and

    shove.”>>

    Interlaken is surely full of tourists, and less scenic than towns further in the valley.

    However, I’m guessing that in January, they will be huddling together for warmth, and only pushing and shoving each other. 😉

    Certainly, a lot of the Summer backpacking crowd will be absent.

    Luzern is always full of tourists, but the town can absorb a lot of them with minor or no disruption. My opinion. For what it is worth. 😉

    Slowpoke

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    12 October 2018 at 10:30:20 #897668

    Hi Gunzel,

    Thank you for your update.

    Regards,

    Prasad

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    12 October 2018 at 12:47:33 #897669

    Hi Lucas & SwissAlps Team,

    I will be now arriving in Zurich on 8th January early morning by 06:30 and will be staying in Switzerland for 5 nights. However, my return flight ticket is still not issued. This is a tentative itinerary I have worked out & would request you to kindly suggest if the travel will be hectic

    Day 1 (08-01-19) : Train from Zurich to Zermatt.& evening for leisure

    Day 2 (09-01-19) : Visiting Matterhorn & rest of the evening at Zermatt

    Day 3 (10-01-19) : Early morning Train from Zermatt to Interlaken & visiting Jungfrau

    Day 4 (11-01-19) : Train from to Lucerne & rest of the day at leisure with walking tour

    Day 5 (12-01-19) : Half day visit to Mount Titlis & rest of the day at leisure

    Day 6 (13-01-19) : Train from Lucerne to Zurich & small Zurich city tour because of evening flight

    I have below queries :

    Day 1 & Day 2 : Will the 2 days stay in Zermatt be too long for us ?

    Day 3 : Is it possible to travel from Zermatt to Interlaken, visiting Jungfrau & back to Interlaken on the same day ? Will it be too hectic ? Also, which is a better option for stay : Lauterbrunnen or Interlaken ?

    Day 4 : Could you suggest any local excursion in Interlaken before boarding the train to Lucerne ?

    Day 5 : Is it okay to skip Mount Pilatus over Mount Titlis ?

    Day 6 : I am buying 5 days (4+1 day free) Swiss Travel Pass which will end on Day 6. Kindly suggest what would be the train journey cost from Lucerne to Zurich ? Also, whether the Zurich airport has lockers to keep luggage ? Whether the city’s prime locations are easily accessible from Zurich airport ?

    Regards,

    Prasad Shinde

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    12 October 2018 at 16:12:21 #897670

    Hi Prasad,

    The itinerary looks fine here – nothing too hectic.

    1. I think 2 nights in Zermatt is nice.Certainly the main attraction is skiing and if you aren’t doing that (or any winter sports) then I wouldn’t stay longer than 2 nights probably. Do note you can’t actually visit the Matterhorn. See activity and mountains options in Zermatt here: http://www.myswissalps.com/ze rmatt/activities
    2. Yes it is possible. You can check train schedules on the timetable: http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable to see if it is too hectic for you and your family.
    3. Perhaps the Ballenberg open air museum? See more details on it and other options here: http://www.myswissalps.com/in terlaken/activities
    4. Hard to say one mountain is better than another. I’d look at the mountain info pages here and see which appeals to you more: http://www.myswissalps.com/pi latus // http://www.myswissalps.com/ti tlis – I would say often people report that Titlis and Jungfraujoch are similar mountain experiences.
    5. The timetable will give you ticket costs to any destination in Switzerland. Be sure to read the instructions to make sure you get the correct price. You could store your luggage at Zurich main station while you explore Zurich (http://www.myswissalps.com/zu rich/activities) before going to the airport.
    Slowpoke
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    12 October 2018 at 17:09:45 #897671

    Hi Prasad –

    Both Zürich Hauptbahnhof (main station) and the airport (Zürich Flughafen) have lots of coin-op lockers and a left luggage office. The offices don’t stay open late at night..check their hours if you use them.

    Depending on the time of day, there are between 5 and 10 trains per hour from the main station to the airport. Take 9 -20 minutes, depending on stops. The #10 tram also goes to the airport, but takes a lot longer – 47 minutes. It is a few CHF cheaper.

    For some reason, I can’t get the price from the time table for the train, but it is around 4 or 5 CHF with a half-fare card, which I carry. Certainly less than 10 CHF without a rail discount card.

    A taxi from downtown to the airport is typically 60-70 CHF.

    If you have 4 people, the train is still cheaper.

    I always stay downtown if I am flying out in the mid to late AM or after that time. More to see and do in the city than at the airport, and a wider variety of accommodation.

    Slowpoke

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    19 October 2018 at 10:46:24 #897672

    Hi Lucas,

    Thank you so much for your suggestions.

    I have one more query : On day 2, I was planning to explore GLACIER EXPRESS train ride from Zermatt & back to Zermatt or some other destination on Glacier Express route from where I can catch train to Lucerne / Interlaken on day 3.

    Option 1 : If I wish to be back to Zermatt, kindly advice me onward as well as return journey stations

    Option 2 : If I wish to stay at good destination on GLACIER EXPRESS route which would you recommend

    Regards,

    Prasad Shinde

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    19 October 2018 at 16:15:21 #897673

    I’d go at least as far as Andermatt or Disentis if not Chur. Then on to Lucerne the next day from there. If you were to return to Zermatt that day, it’d be too long to go farther than Andermatt. To me go to Chur for an overnight before Lucerne the next day.

    Read more about the route here: http://www.myswissalps.com/gl acierexpress/gettingth ere

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