Rent a car or public transportation?

Hello,

I will be in Switzerland in 2.5 weeks and am trying to decide if I should rent a car or just utilize public transport, which I've heard is very good. I'm flying into Zurich but then staying my first night just outside Interlaken, and the remainder of my nights in Wengen.

I'm not a fan of public transport because I am a serious explorer and need the flexibility to go many places in a single day. I only have 4 days in Switzerland so this is of serious importance to me with this trip as well. I don't want to waste any time waiting for trains, buses, etc. and typically don't like planning my day around this. However, I am nervous about driving in these areas of Switzerland. I am from the US and don't live in an area that gets much snow (most years none at all).

Can someone please advise what road conditions in and around the Wengen area will be like? I would also love any suggestions for an itinerary in this area - 3 nights/4 days.

Thanks so much!

Sabrina

Hi Sabrina,

I see your point of being flexible and move around quickly, but a car isn't very useful in the Jungfrau region. I recommend using the excellent train and cable car network. Wengen can't be reached by car, just by train. So you would need to park the car in the valley and not use it much anyway, as most of the area is car-free.

In Summer, a car can be useful to explore the mountain passes, or remote valleys, but most other areas can be reached just as easy or even better by public transport. In Winter, many areas in the mountains can't be reached by car (that goes for Wengen all year round), and I would not advice driving on snowy reads if you're not used to that.

I'm sure you'll like the trains and cable cars around Wengen. Have fun!

Hi Arno,

Thanks so much for your reply. This was very helpful. I purchased the Swiss Pass for 4 days to offer maximum flexibility while using public transport. It does seem to be quite efficient all throughout Switzerland after further research.

Thanks for the link to the Jungfrau page as well, I plan on looking through that today.

Based on what I've seen so far, the top things that have interested me are the train up to Jungfrau , the Schilthorn cable car, and the Grindelwald first zip line/flyer. Any thoughts on if these are all worth checking out while staying in Wengen?

I also received suggestions from friends who have visited the area before to check out Gimmelwald and Murren. Do you have any thoughts/information on these areas and if they are worth visiting?

Thanks much,

Sabrina

Hi Sabrina,

You can check out the Jungfraujoch and Schilthorn pages for more information, but I think they're absolutely worth it (when the skies are clear). The First Flyer has limited opening hours and is only operations is the weather permits it, please see here.

Gimmelwald is a tiny village with no activities, but the location is stunning. You can easily visit it on your way up to Mürren and the Schilthorn.

Hi Arno,

Thanks so much for the additional information and the links! :) I'll be sure to read through all this.

Sabrina