Help with 5-day plan Jungfrau/Murren/Gimmelwald

Hello Everyone, I am planning for my 5 days Swiss trip for April 2016 and I found this great website through Google. After reading through the great tips on this website, I pieced together the places that I would like to visit. However, I need some help with my itinerary planning.

I will be flying into Zurich from Rome and I plan to make Interlaken my base for the next few days.

Day 1: Reach Interlaken at around 230pm. Any suggestions where to go?

Day 2: Jungfraujoch. Does this take 1 full day? If not, any suggestions to fill up the whole day?

Day 3: Visit one of the villages. I plan to walk from Murren to Gimmelwald as I read that the scenery is fantastic! Any suggestions to fill up this day? Is it possible to make a trip to schilthorn? Any other easy hiking trails to recommend? I would prefer easy trails as I am not a sporty person.

Day 4: visit the Old City of Bern from Interlaken. Does this take up to 1 whole day? If not, is it possible to plan another visit to some places near Bern?

Day 5: As my flight from Zurich airport is at 1145am, I was thinking if it is a good idea to stay in Zurich for 1 night. Maybe at some hotel near the airport as I am not sure if I will make it on time to the airport from Interlaken. (assuming I would check in at 945am at airport). Any suggestions?

Day 6: Depart for home at 1145am from Zurich airport.

I am still in very early planning stage so I welcome any suggestions to beef up on my itinerary!

Thanks all!

Hello jalanjalan, welcome to MySwissAlps!

April is a beautiful time for a visit to Switzerland, especially if weather conditions are favourable. It's still low season, but this won't be a problem for most of your plans. Let's look into some details:

• day 1: tips can be found at myswissalps.com/jungfr auregion. You may want to enjoy a boat trip over Lake Thun or Lake Brienz, as that's a relaxed activity after your inbound trip. Do check timetables, as boats won't be running according to the summer timetable yet;
• day 2: the Jungfraujoch trip doesn't necessarily take a full day; it depends on how long you spend up there. I do recommend the round trip as described at myswissalps.com/jungfr aujoch/gettingthere. You may combine this with a hike in the Lauterbrunnen valley and a visit to the Trümmelbach Falls (generally open from the beginning of April);
• day 3: the trail Mürren-Gimmelwald may be closed down if there's still snow. The same goes for the equally scenic hike Grütschalp-Mürren, although that's a somewhat broader and easier track that may be cleared quicker. You'll have to check snow conditions once you're there. A visit to the Schilthorn is a very scenic alternative (or addition) if skies are clear: the views are superb;
• day 4: you can easily spend a whole day in Bern, but it can also be combined with a visit to Thun and a boat ride over the Lake Thun (if you haven't done this on your arrival day already).
• day 5: tips for exploring Zurich can be found at www.myswissalps.com/zu rich. Since your flight leaves the next morning, an airport hotel is indeed comfortable: myswissalps.com/zurich airporthotels.

I hope this helps you out!

Hi JalanJalan,

I would like to share my experience with you as I just made a 10-day trip with a group of friends to Switzerland including Interlaken in Sep 2015. We stayed 3 nights in Grindelwald instead of Interlaken as it is more convenient to take a train from there to the mid-station i.e. Kleine Scheidegg before taking the Cog Wheel train to Jungfraujoch. We also did an easy tracking trial from Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg. It was a wonderful experience for us (all 60+) to walk in the mountains though we took much longer than the 1.5-hour route. We felt quite safe though at one part, there was a sign to indicate that there could be falling rocks from the mountain top. The scenery is beautiful and you can experience the depth of the valley while walking along the narrow path. There were other hikers along the path. Hence, you wouldn't feel that it is too deserted. Highly recommended for people who want to experience an easy trekking.

Day 1 - We spent the late afternoon in Interlaken after coming down from Jungfraujoch. Interlaken is quite a small city and it's more for shopping. As it was raining heavily on the day, we didn't manage to visit Harder Kulm and take the boat trip for Interlaken Lake. You may want to consider staying at Grindelwald or Wengen instead of Interlaken.

One of my friend got pick-pocketed at Interlaken Train Station while boarding the train. Hence, please stay alert when you are at the train station. Pay attention to people who try to block you from boarding the train. They work in a group.

Day 2 - Jungfraujoch

It's better to plan a day for Jungfraujoch and take your time to enjoy the beautiful scenery. Best to go in the morning. If you finish early, you can still take a train to Interlaken for sightseeing in the late afternoon.

Day 3 - Hiking

Please see my description in the first paragraph.

Day 4 - No advice as we didn't visit Bern.

Day 5 - Zurich airport

It's better to stay at Zurich for 1 night as it will take 3 hours to travel from Interlaken to Zurich. You might want to download SBBmobile to check the train schedule. This is a very useful site for your planning.

Regards

Teo-Hye Chng

Dear Annika,

Thanks for your prompt reply!

Regarding Day 3 of my itinerary, since I am going in early April, there is every chance that the snow would still cover the hike and it gets closed. In such an event, is there any recommendation of alternate plan? I am looking at an easy hike trail which probably would not be closed because of the snow.

Also, based on my plan, what transport pass do you think would represent the best value for me?

Thanks!

Hello Hye-Chng,

Thanks for sharing your experience with me. I am sorry to hear about your friend being pick pocketed.

Regarding the hike from Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg, may I know how did you get to Mannlichen?

Also, you mentioned that staying in Wengen or Grindelwald is a better idea, does this mean we have to change trains at Interlaken to get to Zurich?

Thanks!

Dear Jalanjalan,

We took a train from Grindelwald to Grund (1 station away) for the cable car ride to Mannlichen. Murren is also another possible place to stay. Understand that it is a quiet and beautiful town from another traveller. It is also a no-car zone just like Zermatt.

You will need to change train at Interlaken to get to Zurich. It takes only 30 mins from Grindelwald to Interlaken by train.

Regards

Teo-Hye Chng

Hi jalanjalan and Teo-Hye Chng,

Teo-Hye Chng, thanks for your valuable input! I'm sorry to hear about the pick-pocket incident. That's truly upsetting. Switzerland generally is a safe country, but unfortunately such things do sometimes happen at crowded (tourist) places.

Some more information for jalanjalan: the hike Männlichen-Kleine Scheidegg Teo-Hye Chng referred to is very beautiful indeed. Unfortunately, it won't be possible in April yet, as the cable car to the Männlichen will only be running from May. So you'll have to look for alternatives. The trails, city visits and boat trips I mentioned in my first post qualify. So does a scenic train trip, like a part of the Golden Pass route: myswissalps.com/golden pass. And there are hiking paths along the shores of both lakes; see the hike (Brienz-)Giessbach-Iseltwald for example.

As for rail passes: a Swiss Half Fare Card will probably make sense. Please see myswissalps.com/swissh alffarecard for details. You can calculate which pass is most economical using the tips and tools at myswissalps.com/train/ ticketspasses/practica l/chooserailpass. If you intend to purchase a Swiss Half Fare Card, please find prices at myswissalps.com/swissh alffarecard/price. For Singapore residents, buying through www.raileurope-world.com currently is the cheapest option.