[Alp_Explorer]

12 July 2022 at 12:01:55 #827753

Hello,
I will be traveling to Switzerland in July for 9N/10Days with a Swiss Travel Pass and this is the current itinerary that I’ve planned and I need help with the last 3 days of the trip.
First 4 days in Wengen(Base 1)
Next 3 days in Zermatt(Base 2)
Last 3 days (??? Need help planning this part) Keep in mind that on the last day my return flight is at 6pm from Zurich.
Option 1: Initially for the last 3 days I had planned to take the Glacier Express from Zermatt to Chur/St Moritz and stay the night in Chur/St Moritz. Then next day take the Bernina Express to Tirano and Bernina bus from Tirano or Lugano and stay the night in Lugano. On the 3rd day explore Lugano in the morning and leave for the airport by 2pm from Lugano as it is only 2hrs away from Zurich. But, right now the bus tickets for Tirano to Lugano are SOLD OUT :(. So I don’t know what to do after Tirano, should I go back to Chur/St Moritz? Won’t that be a waste of 4 hours seeing the same scenery again? Also if we go with this option where do you recommend staying St Moritz or Chur? Chur is $200 cheaper to stay for 2 days than St Moritz.

Option 2: Take Glacier Express to Chur and from Chur go to Luzern. Overnight in Luzern and the next day go to Mt Titlis. The last day go around the the lake in Lucern and then head to the airport in the afternoon. In this option, I miss the opportunity to take the Bernina Express train which is included in the Swiss Pass.

I’m open to other options as well. Looking forward to your suggestions. Thank you for taking your time for reading this.

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[dayhikers]

12 July 2022 at 20:06:32 #944231

Spend your last 3 days in Lucerne. That’s what we did on our last trip. Beautiful scenery, lake, mountains, pretty town, lots to see and do. Only an hour or less by train to Zurich airport (choose a thru train, not one with a change in Zurich HB).

[Anna]

12 July 2022 at 20:40:46 #944232

Hi Alp Explorer,

Welcome to MySwissAlps.

I’m sorry you couldn’t get hold of any tickets for the Bernina Express bus from Tirano to Lugano. In this case I would go with Option 2. You’ll miss the Bernina Express but at least you get to go on the Glacier Express. And Lucerne is a great base for the final leg of your journey.

regatds,

Anna

[StevefromHou]

13 July 2022 at 15:25:46 #944233

Hello Alp Explorer

Wengen and Zermatt are great so far.

I love riding the trains in Switzerland.

My random thoughts.

Take Glacier Express from Zermatt to Filisur (I didn’t find much to see/do in Chur). You can take a regular train up to Davos from Filisur and catch the Bernina Express to Tirano. Instead of taking Bernina Express bus to Lugano you can use the Italian trains to get to Lugano.

I have stayed in Filisur and made the simple walk/hike to the famous Landwasser Viaduct observation deck. I also took the longer hike down to the base of the viaduct. I took the train from Filisur to Preda then hiked back thru the Unesco World Heritage site along the Bernina Express route to Bergun (only about 4 or 5 miles). I have stayed in Tirano overnight at Eco Rooms & Breakfast run by family with restaurant on corner near train station, very good deal but not much to see/do in Tirano (Pizza is half price from Switzerland).

Another good suggestion that someone else mentioned was Lucerne for a base. It would be a different view of Switzerland from Wengen or Zermatt and some fun day trips are available including some boat rides and also as mentioned the ease of getting to Zurich airport with a direct train from Lucerne. I always stay in Lucerne the night before flying back home, the trains are often and only takes about 1 hr 5 mins.

Have fun!

[Alp_Explorer]

14 July 2022 at 0:31:03 #944234

Thank you dayhikers, Anna and Steve for taking your time out to reply to me. I really appreciate it. I have decided that I will be extending 1 day extra in Zermatt and then taking the glacier express next morning at 7:52am to Chur and from there go to Luzern. Reach Luzern around 5pm, check into the hotel by 5:30pm. Spend the evening around the city. The next morning head over to Mt. Pilatus golden round trip with lake cruise and then in the afternoon catch the train to Zurich. How does it sound?

[Removed user]

14 July 2022 at 7:26:31 #944235

Hi Alp Explorer,

it sounds great, I think. In case, you need it, you find the route description of the Pilatus Golden round trip here: http://www.myswissalps.com/pilatus/gettingthere.

Take care,

Ildiko