Our first trip to Switzerland

Welcome Bernadette! Great that you get to visit Switzerland for the first time this December. Central locations for exploring Switzerland would be Lucerne, Interlaken and maybe Zermatt or nearby towns. All three allow you to make day trips and get up to viewing points and snow parks. Affordable and centrally located hotels near railway stations are to be found at the Lucerne, Interlaken and Zermatt hotel pages. From Lucerne, you could visit Pilatus and Rigi. Interlaken gives access to a stunning mountain region including highlighs such as the Jungfraujoch and Schilthorn. Getting to Zermatt requires some traveling time (please consult the timetable to plan all trips) and you'd also be fine just staying on the northern side of the alps. But if you definitely want to visit three towns and get to see different regions, Zermatt or Saas-Fee would be good options, especially if you get there through the scenic regional Lötschberg Express via Kandersteg and Goppenstein. Don't forget to visit the Gornergrat once you're there.

Yes, an 8 day Swiss Pass would definitely be the most comfortabel way of traveling, especially if you want to include longer train journeys and plan to travel nearly each day. You can get a Saver Pass, but you may also qualify for the even cheaper Youth Pass.

I hope this gets you started!