Mountain lift pass discounts & map store in Zurich

Would be great to be pointed to a paper map store in Zurich area? Looking for paper maps for The Alpine Pass Route (1/50,000 - as a backup)

Also looking for the right pass type ( Flex Pass ? - 19 day hiking ) that I could buy before or in Zurich to use on any ski lifts / bus / trains on the The Alpine Pass Route from Zurich - Sargans via train, then hike to

Weisttannen

Elm

Linthal

Altdorf

Engelberg

Mieringen

Grindelwald

Laterbrunnen

Greisald

Kandersteg

Adelboden

Lenk

Gsteig

Col Des Mosses

Montreux

Thank you,

Roark

Hi Roark -

Welcome to My Swiss Alps. Here is a start. If you tell us about your competence level as a hiker....sounds like you are experienced....we can offer more comments. Also, do you have an itinerary? If you are hiking via SAC huts, they can fill up... reservations are normally required in good hiking season.

Have you hiked in Switzerland before? Or, have you been there? Do you know about die Wanderwege?

The most convenient map store for most travelers through Zürich is the Barth store, one level down from the railhead for tracks 3-18, across from the first set of steps leading to track 2.

This link within the SBB website has station plans for major stations throughout Switzerland:

www.sbb.ch/en/station-services/am-bahnhof/railway-stations/trafimage-maps-station-plans/station-plans.html

This map shows a shopping plan, one of a few such maps only for the largest stations:

www.sbb.ch/content/dam /infrastruktur/trafima ge/bahnhofplaene/plan-zuerich-hb-shopping.pdf

Look for location #401, Alfred Barth AG, Buchhandlung.

You'll find topos of various scales, and also die Wanderkarte ( hiking maps) with the the national network of "die Wanderwege" marked in red.

Traditionally, I have used the 1:50,000 for planning and to carry. In mountainous regions and where terrain is dangerous, the 1:25,000 (non-topo) give the best detail. Plan on spending about 20 CHF per quadrangle.

There is smart telephone app on the Swisstopo web site. Mobile phone coverage is almost universal in Switzerland, but there are a few pockets in very remote areas where you may not find service

The web site of SwissTopo...the central map organization of the Federal Land Bureau, is rich with information. Their maps are absolutely the best available. Under "Products" you can see many types of maps.

www.swisstopo.admin.ch /

map.geo.admin.ch/?topic=ech&lang=en&bgLa yer=ch.swisstopo.pixel karte-farbe&layers=ch.bav.ha ltestellen-oev,ch.swisstopo.swiss tlm3d-wanderwege&layers_visi bility=false,true&X=19 6200.00&Y=700700.00&zo om=4

Most of their paper maps are available at stores like Barth.

Barth used to have a huge map and travel book store on the Bahnhofstrasse about a block from the Bahnhof. Gone the way of many bookstores.

The Orell Füssli chain of Bookstores still exits, although their store on the Bahnhofstrasse near Rennweg may not be there anymore, there is one on Füsslistrasse, just off the Bahnhof Strasse.

www.orellfuessli.ch/sh op/home/thalia-filialen/showBundeslan d/zr/

They are good for maps and exist also at many locations in Switzerland. I also routinely use the one near the main station in Luzern.

On your hike you will pass just south of the area described in this link:

www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/the-swiss-path-and-southern-lake-lucerne

Here are some other useful links:

www.schweizmobil.ch/en /schweizmobil.html

map.wanderland.ch/?lang=de&route=all&bgLa yer=pk&resolution=5&X= 559615&Y=142485&layers =Wanderland

and general information at a basic level here:

www.myswissalps.com/hi king

Slowpoke

Hi Roark,

You'll find information about the maps Slowpoke referred to here: myswissalps.com/ hiking/maps. There are also links to a good online store on that page, in case you want to buy maps before you arrive. Maps are not hard to find in Switzerland, but stores don't have all of them in stock. Only the popular/regional ones are usually available.

As you will not be traveling on all days, the Swiss Travel Pass Flex may indeed work. Another option to look into is the Swiss Half Fare Card. You'll find details on the below pages. Be sure to download the coverage maps.

• myswissalps.com/ swisstravelpassflex
• myswissalps.com/ swisshalffarecard

Hi Arno-

Barth has a very complete collection of tops and Wanderkarten.

Local convenience stores... Aperto, Kiosk, Volg, do tend to carry only local maps, as you note.

Slowpoke

Thank you for all the useful information.

I have been hiking for more then 20 years. Hoath Route, Dolomite, Napal, Sierra mountain and more. I hope the signage is as great on this hike as it was on the Hoath route. I would love to stay all digital. The question remains, will my phone battery be enough each day.

I have already been to many and more of the suggested hiking map links. Question is, thee seems to be many trails, say from ELM to LINTHAL, which connect to a main trail up and over the pass. Which is the better (no ropes please) hike path?

As a traveler, I have always found great information from local(s) knowledge, rather then marketing information. This is why I post, to hear about a gem / local secret, to do, to hike or to eat at.

Update on the Swiss Half Fare Card (discount traveling) , They do not have their act together to sell in a digital world (only sold and mail via post). So we will have to wait until we arrive to get the pass. I arrive soon.

My itinerary was the list of towns and in order. As of now I have more then half the the hike booked.

Again, Thank you very much for your help and information.

Roark

Hi Roark,

I haven't done that trail, but when look at this map, there is one "main" trail connecting these towns (the thicker green line across the Richetlipass). Looking at the terrain, I don't expect ropes or any technical difficulties there. There are indeed a few side trails connecting to the main trail, but it seems to make sense to only use those if that's required logistically. If you actually want to walk to Tierfehd instead of Linthal, for example.

The Swiss Half Fare Card can be printed at home, but it takes up to 3 business days (often just 1 in reality) to receive the order through e-mail. So you need to order in time. To do so, please visit the SBB web shop at www.swissrailways.com/ en. After filling out your address, they will show the delivery options. Pick "Online Ticket" from the bottom of the list. They will e-mail the card (no delivery fees), so you can print it yourself.

There are other websites selling it too (listed here), but indeed they still physically ship it. That will hopefully change soon.

Hi Roark-

The Swisstopo web site with the hiking maps ovelaid, shows the colors of trails.

Yellow are easy, red are "mountain trauils" and blue are technical, matching the trail signage:

map.geo.admin.ch/?topic=ech&lang=en&bgLa yer=ch.swisstopo.pixel karte-farbe&layers=ch.bav.ha ltestellen-oev,ch.swisstopo.swiss tlm3d-wanderwege&layers_visi bility=false,true&X=19 8300.00&Y=720820.00&zo om=5

Slowpoke