Lucerne to Interlaken, Golden Pass day trip

Is it feasible to take the Bernese Oberland Express to Interlaken from Lucerne, explore Grindelwald or the Wengen/ Lauterbrunnen region and Jungfraujoch, and return to Lucerne the same day? We will be in Lucerne for a month, but will have visitors for 2 weeks and definitely want to explore this region while our company is there. Would it be better to plan a couple of days in the Jungfrau region? Also, can I take the Golden Pass Line from Lucerne to Montreux and back to Lucerne in one day? Thank you.

Hi shar,

Yes, it's possible to do a trip from Lucerne to Jungfraujoch and return in one day. My personal recommendation would be to leave early in the morning and head to Jungfraujoch first. On the way back you can make a stop in Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen and/or Interlaken if you'd like to explore each destination. However the Jungfrau region deserves more than just 1 day and you should certainly extend your visit if you can.

Travelling on the Golden Pass line from Lucerne to Montreux takes about 5.5 hours. So a day trip is doable. You can reduce your travel time by taking the fast train back to Lucerne from Montreux via Lausanne (about 3 hours journey).

Be sure to use the SBB timetable to find train schedules and plan your journey.

Regards,

Anna

Hi Shar!

The obvious route from Lucerne to Interlaken is indeed the Luzern-Interlaken Express, which is also considered to be the northern leg of the GoldenPass route: https://www.myswissalps.com/goldenpass/gettingthere.

Whether it makes sense to stay in the Jungfrau area for a couple of days, depends on your exact plans. If you want to visit only one or two sights there, day trips from Lucerne are just fine. But if you'd like to explore more, it would be good to choose a base there for a few days. You can study the activities you may be interested in for the Jungfrau region and the wider Bernese Oberland area here: https://www.myswissalps.com/berneseoberland/activities. Tips for base towns and accommodation can be found at www.myswissalps.com/jungfrauregion.