Itinerary review 6 nights Lauterbrunnen & Zermatt

Please let me know if my itinerary is too ambitious if there is something nearby that I should consider.

Arrive Zurich Airport Thursday, May 26 at 7:50 am. I will have a Swiss Travel Pass and will be traveling with my husband. We love to hike and take pictures.

Day #1. Take train to Bern. Tour of Old Town. Have lunch. Travel to Thun. See castle, then take boat towards Interlaken. Should we stop in Speig? Are we trying to do too much in 1 day? We could do Lake Thun and Brienz on another day.

Spend 4 nights in Lauterbrunnen.

Depending on weather, one day go to Jungfraujung, walk to Monchsjoch hut, on way down hike Eiger trail, take train to Klein Scheidegg, have late lunch, if not too tired, hike Lauterhorn Trail to Alpiglen then take train to Lauterbrunnen. Do we go through Wengen or Grindelwald on the way back?

Another day go Schynige Platte, see Alpengarden , then hikeThe Panoramaweg.

Another day, take our bike on a cable car to Grutschalp, and the a mountain train to Murren. We can then ride our bikes down to Lauterbrunnen. Is it too much to see Stabbach Falls and Trummelbach on this day also?

Next we go by train to Zermatt for 2 nights. The plan is to go to Gornergrat one day. What else could we do in Zermatt? We will leaveearly the following day on the Glacier Express to St. Moritz.

Hi Guys,

You're itinerary is certainly full!

Day One. If you're not going to leave Bern for Lauterbrunnen until after lunch, you won't have much time left for anything else. Might I suggest later spending a day on Lake Thun and visiting the Beattenberg Caves as well as Thun and Interlaken.

Your planned trip to the Jungfraujoch sounds too ambitious. Firstly, make sure you catch an early train. It would be more do-able if you walk to the Monchjoch from the Jungfraujoch (the altitude makes it slow going) and have lunch there, then take the train back to Kleine Scheidegg. From there you could walk through Wengernalp to Wengen, then take the train to Lauterbrunnen. Trying to get to Alpiglen on the same day would be a bit much. A good 2nd day trip would be taking the train to Kleine Scheidegg, then walking the Eiger trail, then on to Grindelwald, returning via the Maennlichen Gondala, walking to Kleine Scheidegg and taking the train back to Lauterbrunnen. These are just suggestions thatcan be varied depending on weather/ fitness etc.

I don't know how long it takes to ride from Muerren, but your plan sounds good. The Staubach falls are quite close to town, the Trumellbach are further out, but it's a dead flat road ride, just watch out for the tourist coaches heading out to Stechelberg.

As for Zermatt, hike up to the Berghaus Matterhorn if it's open (Too early in the season? Check with the Alpin Centre Bahnhofstrasse 58) and have lunch. This is where climbers stay overnight before climbing the Matterhorn. If you're fit, you can hike from Zermatt (long day) or catch the gondala to Schwarzsee and hike form there. If you want to catch the gondala back to town be aware the last car leaves about 1700. Fantastic view!

Last words. Less is more. Don't try and squeeze too much in or you'll just end up stessing about the timetable.

Enjoy your trip!

In addition to Alan's knowledgeable comments, I have a comment about your time at Schynige Platte.

I don't know what the Panoramaweg is, but if it is a trail or trails around Schynige Platte, that is a really nice set of views. Fairly easy walking.

If it is the trail to First, that is a strenuous hike at high altitude, known to take a lot longer than you might think if you are not used to hiking at high altitude.

www.myswissalps.com/hi king/first-schynigeplatte

There are some significant ascents and descents at high altitude.

map.geo.admin.ch/?topic=swisstopo&lang=d e&bgLayer=ch.swisstopo .pixelkarte-farbe&X=168200.00&Y=64 1580.00&zoom=5&layers= ch.swisstopo.swissimag e-product,ch.swisstopo.s wisstlm3d-wanderwege&layers_visi bility=false,true

Slowpoke

Hi all,

Silvia, you've received some excellent tips in order to refine your itinerary. A Swiss Travel Pass seems to make sense indeed. Please visit this page for all information on validity and purchase options. I'd recommend either www.swissrailways.com/ en or, if you're interested in a 1st class pass, www.raileurope.com as they currently have this promotion.

Slowpoke, I think this is the Panorama trail that's been referred to. It's much less strenuous than the First-Schynige Platte route.

Hi AlanPrice,

This seems to be your first post here. Welcome to MySwissAlps and thanks for your great input! What trips to Switzerland did you make, if I may ask?

Hi Annika -

Thanks.

We've been on that Panorama trail and wandered around in that area.

Great views down to the lake, as well as toward the Jungfrau Massif.

Slowpoke

Grüezi Annika,

I've been travelling to Switzerland every few years since 1978, mostly to go hiking in the German speaking areas. I've walked from Altdorf to Interlaken, Grindelwald to Kiental done some climbing at Leysin, Arolla and Kandersteg. In Zermatt, my wife and I take a holiday apartment for a week and do day trips from there.

I'm planning a trip for friends at the moment and I made a short video with Google Earth Pro to give them a taste. It's a great tool to explore the alps.

youtu.be/_Npea2RYD-g

Cheers

Alan

Wow. Thank you all for your help. Yes, I have Swiss Travel Pass.

Here is my new thinking:

1. After arriving in Zurich, see Bern on my way to Lauterbrunnen. When I checked the timetable, it says there is construction on the train track to Interlaken. That is why I thought I would take the boat rather than the train. Do you know if the delay will be substantial?

2. Based on your suggestions, I will leave Lake Thun for another day and visit the caves. Would it be too much to also see Lake Brienze?

3.To clarify, I am planning on walking only from the Monchjoch from the Jungfraujoch. I will limit myself to one other walk that day, rather than doing two.

4.The house I am renting has 2 bikes for us to use That is why I am thinking of riding to the falls and Murren. Can anyone suggest a good route that is mostly downhill?

5. Is Berghaus Matterhorn the same as Klein Matterhorn?

Hi AlanPrice

Great video.

Very useful for converting enthusiastic ideas for extensive hikes by inexperienced hikers into realistic assessments of the ups and downs. I'm used to interpreting topos, butthe view you have provided is still very useful to me.

Thanks for posting it.

Slowpoke

Hi Sylvia-

First day-

You certainly have time to visit Bern. Will you be jet lagged?

My "quick trip to Berne" involves walking down from the Bahnhof to the Nydegg Bridge through the old town. Two places to eat by the bridge-

The Old Tram depot is a good place for the average traveler. Wide range of foods and beers.

The Brasserie Bärengraben ( across the street) has a sophisticated menu and very high quality.. Not cheap. Not very big. Hard to get in unless you are there early or between normal meal times.

From the Nydegg Bridge I always walk up the short steep climb to the Rose Garden. Splendid views of Bern, and a cafe as well.

To return, I sometime walk, or else catch the tram that stops in front of the Brasserie ( #12, I recall) and ride back up a few stops to the Bahnhof. Buy your ticket from the machine before you get on the bus. I think you need 1 or 2 zones ( see the map on the ticket machine) - tickets are priced by zones.

#1 -

Regarding construction on the train line, on May 26th, when there is construction on any route, and especially a busy route like that one, a replacement bus is always provided if the train is completely blocked.

Biggest nuisance is hauling luggage on and off.

May 26th in particular - I have read the notice for May 26th, and note that the timetable already allows for the delay. Looks like it only adds a minute or so, but the number of trains may be reduced. I'd not worry about it; just use the timetable. If you miss one, the next one will be along in a short while.

Also, there is an alternate (local) line that goes by way of Belp (where the airport is) You could always take that. It is a pretty valley.

#2 -

I am sure that visiting the caves would be interesting. My own approach to visiting Switzerland is to try do things that I cannot do elsewhere. So, I have never visited the caves during many trips to the region. On the other hand, I've seen quite few caves elsewhere....

<""4.The house I am renting has 2 bikes for us to use That is why I am

thinking of riding to the falls and Murren. Can anyone suggest a good

route that is mostly downhill?">

The entire floor of the Lauterbrunnen Valley from Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg and beyond is almost flat, and offers lots of things to stop and stare at.

Down hill rides could be quite steep.. You can take a bike

I'd not bother to go up to Mürren...my opinion.

Slowpoke

Hi Alan,

Well, you're definitely an experienced Switzerland visitor! Great that you're helping out friends now. That's a very nice video by the way. Google Earth for sure is a beautiful tool to explore regions and plan for your trips.

Hi Sylvia,

I've never been on Lake Brienz. On the map it looks less interesting than Lake Thun. I may be selling Brienzsee short, but lake Thun has plenty to do to fill a whole day, if you want.

Speaking of maps, if you're into that sort of thing, the Swiss topo maps are stunning! The 1:50,000 cover a good size area and the 1:25,000 give more detail. They are truly works of art.

The Kleinmatterhorn and the Berghaus Matterhorn are in different places. The Kleinmatterhorn is a separate peak in the chain of mountains that stretch from the Matterhorn to the Monte Rosa. The name translates as "Little Matterhorn". There's a cable car that goes all the way. The viewing platform gives a fantastic 360 Deg view. As well, there's an ice grotto to visit which is a bit of fun. A word of warning, it gets very cold up there, so dress appropriately.

The Berghaus Matterhorn is on the Matterhorn itself, at 3260 mt. On maps it is sometimes labeled as the Hoernlihuette, which is an older building on the same site. It's quite a strenuous walk from Schwarzsee, but well worth it. If you continue up a little further, you reach the first fixed rope where the real climbing starts, if there's not too much snow. This link is for a short animation I made of the area. Sorry it's a bit buggy, it was my first try.

youtu.be/sZsp8dOx6MA