[Dan579]

13 June 2017 at 16:44:40 #812255

Hi,

we are a couple of late forties & we love beautiful landscapes & places , slightly into hiking but not too much into skiing, Below is my itinerary for coming September in a very raw form , please critically evaluate it regarding its feasibility & doablity and please advise if any changes are to be made. Secondly we want to cut 2 days from this itinerary so please advise from which place these days should be reduced. Thank you very much in advance for your time & advice.

Day 1 Flight to Zurich arrival in the late evening & proceed to Lucern

day 2 : Do Lucern lake cruise (boat trip from luzern to Weggis or Vitznau & other must see places in lucern

day 3: Go to mt titlis,

day 4: to mt rigi,

day 5: to mt Pilatus

Day 5 : proceed to Lauterbrunnen/ Wengen/Grindelwald/

day 6 : Jungfraujoch, Wengen, Lauterbrunnen and Grindlewald in a day.

By following the following advice

“There are two routes, either via Wengen to Kleine Scheidegg or via Grindelwald to Kleine Scheidegg and then to Jungfraujoch. There is nothing between them. Many people go up one way and down the other.

There are two ways to get to the Jungfraujoch. All travel is by train.

Interlaken Ost – train to Lauterbrunnen – train to Kleine Scheidegg with a stop in Wengen- train to Jungfrau

Interlaken Ost – train to Grindelwald – train to Kleine Scheidegg – train to Jungfrau”

Day 7 Interlaken Ost – train to Lauterbrunnen – bus to Stechelberg – two cable cars to Mürren – two cable cars to Schilthorn

Interlaken Ost – train to Lauterbrunnen – cable car to Grütschalp – train to Mürren – two cable cars to Shilthorn

Day 8

Interlaken to spiez to thun to bern to Zyteglogge

Day 9 At leisure or fill in if something is left out in the previous 3 days

Day 10 take golden pass train to montreux, one night stay in Vevey or montreux & with a visit to Lake Geneva

(Section 2: Interlaken Ost to Zweisimmen &Zweisimmen to Montreux)

Day 11 travel to Zermatt and Kandersteg, spend 2 days

Day 13 take train from brig (switzerland) to domodossola (italy) & back to locarno/lugano

spend 2 days stay 2 overnight locarno/lugano , proceed to Ticino, Bellinzona & then to lake como

Day 15 spend 2 days in Lake Como & Bellagio & then Back to Lugano

Day 17 Take train from Lugano to chur & then go to Poschiavo valley, stay overnight &

Day 18 then back to chur, explore chur for few hours & then to Zurich in the late afternoon , travel to & back from Rhine Falls enjoy the Zurich nightlife

Day 19 Zurich last day, go to veg restaurant, chocolate tour, zurich lake , old town walking tour spent half day in Zurich , take flight back home

Thanks & Regards,

Dan579

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[Removed user]

14 June 2017 at 6:13:23 #865075

HI Dan79 and welcome to MySwissAlps!

I don’t have much to add – very thorough itinerary. Days 6 and 7 are quite busy (depending on how much time you want to spend in those towns or if you are just passing through).

It is hard to cut out days (as I’m sure you have found!) Perhaps I wouldn’t worry about seeing Mt. Pilatus and Mt. Rigi and Mt. Titlis….maybe 2 of the 3 would be sufficient – but it is your holiday!

Is there any day or activity you are leaning towards removing?
For your trip have you looked into a Swiss rail pass like the Swiss Travel Pass?

Lucas

[Dan579]

14 June 2017 at 8:06:40 #865076

Thanks Lucas for your reply.Yes we are planning to buy the Swiss Travel Pass for 15 days, I shall be glad if you could help in throwing some light on a) Which is the best 2 out of three “Mt. Pilatus and Mt. Rigi and Mt. Titlis.” b) is the day 6 and day 7 itinerary doable or impossible c) where should one stay in the Lauterbrunnen/ Wengen/Grindelwald/interlaken region based on the budget accomodation criteria since we can always move around since we have swiss pass d) Can we do day 2 to 5 by making Zurich as the base since more budget hotels are available in zurich.e) what is the train from Ticino to lake como & from Lake como to lugano f) which is better to stay locarno or lugano. Please also advise of budget accommodations or airbnb at each side if you are aware. thanks for your time .

[Removed user]

14 June 2017 at 10:40:08 #865077

Hi Dan,

A) Oh, yes, picking those 3 mountains is always tough – Pilatus and Titlis are sort of similar (scenery-wise) so I tend to say one of those 2 and then Rigi (as it is a bit different). Everyone seems to love the transport methods getting up and down Pilatus (round trip). So I lean towards Pilatus and Rigi – be sure to read through those links above though to help you choose.

B) Day 7 is really ok actually. Day 6 is possible but play it by ear – pick two of the 3 towns you prefer to visit and drop the 3rd one if time or energy levels doesn’t permit – and get an early start!

C) Have you read through our best budget hotels in Switzerland web page? We list one or two for each town you are looking at, so there should be an option available that works for you in each town (depending availability).

D) Day 2 to 5 can be done in Zurich – but Luzern would be much more convenient if you can find a budget hotel that works for you there (see web page above).

E) You can find the trains and schedules for trips around Switzerland here.

F) I haven’t been to either town, perhaps another member has and can chime in. What are you looking for there? What do you mean by “best”? See the tourism websites for more details: Locarno, Lugano.

Cheers!

[Mageo]

14 June 2017 at 22:45:34 #865078

Hello,

We have stayed at Lugano and Locarno. Particularly enjoy staying at the Lugano Youth Hostel. It is run by a family who are very good hosts and it is situated in lovely gardens. We plan to return in September. We are seniors!

Mageo.

[Dan579]

15 June 2017 at 6:51:45 #865079

Thanks for your reply, Is youth hostel good for seniors also ?

[Mageo]

15 June 2017 at 7:00:48 #865080

We have stayed in a lot of youth hostels and found that there have been a lot of families and quite a few seniors there, with usually a pleasant atmosphere. The Lugano Youth Hostel has a very well equipped kitchen for the use of residents.

[Dan579]

15 June 2017 at 7:15:20 #865081

Thanks Mageo, Can you please name a few more which are reasonably good accommodations in Switzerland as per your experience.

[Mageo]

15 June 2017 at 7:53:43 #865082

We have stayed at more hostels in the UK than anywhere else, however, found Luzern to be very good. They are usually basic accommodation with breakfast included in the price. As we are confident in the Swiss youth hostel standard, we plan to stay in the following hostels for our next trip: Grindelwald, Lugano, Luzern, Leissigen, Zermatt, St. Moritz & Solothurn. We will also rent a unit for longer stays. You can find the full list and information on http://www.youthhostel.ch We have stayed at a very pleasant BandB, a farm house ten minutes walk from Gruyeres, http://www.lafermedubourgoz.c h, run by a very helpful lady. We plan to stay there again, as a base to explore French speaking Switzerland. Mageo.

[Dan579]

15 June 2017 at 8:43:35 #865083

Thanks a ton

[Removed user]

15 June 2017 at 23:30:06 #865084

Wow…19 days…sounds fabulious… With that kind of time I would see some other regions like – Lac Neuchatell. Also spend more time in Zermatt..view the Matterhorn..car free beautiful town. Enjoy

[Dan579]

16 June 2017 at 13:34:04 #865085

Thanks, can anyone help us in finding the right place to stay in the interlaken area, should it be Interlaken, Grindelwald, Murren Lauterbrunen or wengen

[Removed user]

16 June 2017 at 15:07:12 #865086

Hi Dan,

I don’t think you can go wrong with any town there. Interlaken can be a bit less interesting by many accounts. You may prefer the more authentic swiss style charm of the smaller towns you mention – each have their own merits as bases to explore from.

Be sure to read through our where to stay link, to find our information pages on all these towns, as well as what to do in each town and hotel accommodation options.

Lucas

[Slowpoke]

16 June 2017 at 23:03:10 #865087

Hi Dan –

<<“Secondly we want to cut 2 days from this itinerary so please advise from which place these days should be reduced. “>>

You could easily combine Day and Day 4. Take the boat to Vitznau ( once per hour from Luzern) ride the cograil up to Rigi-Kulm, and return via cograil to Arth-Goldau and train to Luzern ( or back to Vitznau, returning the way you came.) The third option is to use the Luftseilbahn ( cable way) from Rigi-Kaltbad to Weggis, but you are then a 10-15 minute downhill walk to the ship landing. Lake boats back to Luzern from Weggis ship landing.

The timetable will help you figure out the times, especially if you combine it with this map:

http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable

map.search.ch/?pos=679472,208912&z=16

Zoom in further to see the transport lines – trains, cableways.

In the menus, under Points of Interest/Traffic you can turn on a layer which shows transport stops.

And, Pilatus is only a half day trip.

Luzern has quite a bit to see:

http://www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne

In the Jungfrau region, I personally prefer Wengen. Interlaken is a good transport hub for the rest of Switzerland. But, if you want the Alpine experience at the cost of some time to travel out to Intelaken, Lucas has offered excellent suggestions.

Here is why:

http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/tips-about-wengen-and-the-jungfrau-region-by-kim

Slowpoke

[Dan579]

17 June 2017 at 12:30:52 #865088

Thanks Slowpoke for your reply, I have few questions & shall be grateful if you could help in answering them;

a) I am bit confused whether should I choose Mount Titlis or Stanserhorn, which one is better, Can I do all the Must see attractions with Mt Pilatus, Mt,Rigi , Mount Titlis/ Stanserhorn, kapelbridge,Museuem of Transport etc in 3 Days , if not should I increase the duration by a day or cut on any of the sightseeing.

b) I have now thought of Wengen as the base rather than Interlaken, Can you please advise what all easy and scenic hikes can be done in the day 6 to day 9 of my itinerary and also would you suggest me to add any more sightseeing opportunity in the same number of days or by increasing the number of days in wengen?

c) is the Bernia express train from Chur to Poschiavo valley worth a ride or should I drop Day 17?

[Slowpoke]

17 June 2017 at 13:58:45 #865089

HI Dan-

There are enough “must see” destinations in Switzerland to fill many dozens of days. The more that you read, the more that you will add to your list.

So, you have to make choices based on your personal preferences plus a study of travel times, using the tools I linked above. This My Swiss Alps web site has an excellent search function. A lot of information is available by using it, to help you understand things to do.

a.- The Rigi is different from the higher mountains. So I’d pick the Rigi and not all three of the others. Pilatus is closest to Luzern, with Stanserhorn also relatively nearby. Pilatus has the most dramatic trip up, on the very steep cograil train.

This topic was discussed before in this thread in two posts by Lucas. He gave you links to information about three of the mountains. Here is a link to the fourth, which I found by using the search tool. –

http://www.myswissalps.com/st anserhorn

Please look at the map to understand how small Luzern is.

You can walk around the old town and see the Kapellbrücke in an hour or so. There is a tram or bus to the transport museum, and I like to walk back to the old city along the lake shore from there.

b.- The report by Kim that I linked you to discusses a variety of hikes in the region.

These links describe hikes in detail:

http://www.myswissalps.com/hi king

Scroll down the list to find hikes. You did not Please note that late September has a small chance of snow which could close the higher trails, although the attached photo was taken in the last week of September in 2009, on the easy very scenic walk from Männlichen to Kleine Scheidegg.

There is more information here:

http://www.myswissalps.com/be rneseoberland

which includes this useful link:

http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfrauregion

c.-<<“is the Bernia express train from Chur to Poschiavo valley worth a ride or should I drop Day 17”>>

I can not tell you what is “worth it.” You have to make your choices based on personal preferences. Trains on the the Golden Pass route from Interlaken to Montreux and return, or to Brig via Kandersteg and return are both easy to reach from the Jungfrau region.

If you choose to do the Bernina Express, make sure you understand the times involved to get to your start point and finish point, using the timetable and the map that I linked above. Only you can decide if you want to take some of the famous scenic rail trips.

http://www.myswissalps.com/ac tivities/scenictrips/t rain

This map may help you understand the options:

http://www.sbb.ch/content/dam /sbb/en/pdf/en_bahnhof -services/en_am-bahnhof/en_unsere-bahnhoefe/panoramic-routes.pdf

Slowpoke