May 12, 2011 - 9:25 AM
Annika -
Thanks so much for your input, I really appreciate it.
We will be using the service that will deliver our bags to Wengen so we'll be pretty free from bags - but not completely. If we do go to the fortress on the day we arrive, I thought we'd take a train to Stans as they have a luggage locker and then we'd take the 5 minute train to Stansstad and walk to the fortress. Since we arrive at 8:00am, I need to keep my family (my Mom, my sis, my hubby and my two teens) awake - I know if I let them go into their chalet at 4:00pm, they'll all go to bed, not good.
I'm glad to hear its worth the visit - because it is so far from Wengen. Unfortunately we will not be in Bern during Sat/Sun - so we can't make the trip from there. I figure we can just see how things go the first day: If everyone is up to it, we just go see the fortress and then get into Wengen about 6:00pm that night. If everyone is just whipped because of the flight (its my Mom and Sisters first trip to Europe) then we don't do it. If we don't do it, we will then do it the following day - if I can get everyone up early. If they don't cooperate, then we do not see the fortress.
Here's my itinerary, with a few questions:
day 1 - arrive Zurich, if I have a happy group - we go to the fortress then on to Wengen; otherwise - we go directly to Wengen and spend the afternoon in town (we'll have about 2 hours to kill before checking in)
Day 2 - either long train ride back to fortress and on to Lucerne, just go to Lucerne for the day
Days 3,4 and 5 will be mixed up depending on weather:
Day 3 - train to Lauterbrunnen, walk to T falls, then take the gondola up to Murren. Walk to Gimmelwald; gondola to Schilthorn; gondola to Murren; walk to Grutshalp; gondola to lauterbrunnen then on to Wengen. Are we doing too much or can we add something? Is the walk from Gimmelwald to the glacier bowls a good idea to do?
Day 4 - Gondola to Mannlichen; walk to Kleine S; Train to Jungfraujoch; train back town to Kleine S, walk to Wengen. Will this take all day or can I plan some walks after this? Is walking from the Jungfraujoch to the moenchsich hut something we should do? We'll see the ice castles while at the top, not sure what else to do.
Day 5 - Either walk from Lauterbrunnen to Winderswil, or the Planetenweg; or Giessbach Falls - would like to incorporate a steamer ride in this as my mother would love this. Any suggestions?
Day 6 - train to Bern, if we get there early enough - it is market day so we'll go through the market; do a tour of the city and if time maybe go to Murten in the evening
Day 7 - go to Gruyeres either early in the AM or late in the afternoon to try to miss the crowds, rest of the day - just wander?
Day 8 - Golden Pass to Montreux; walk to Castle Chillon, walk to Vevey, train to Bern. How long of a day is this? Can we visit Laussane? I think the Golden Pass will take up most of our day, right?
On to the next country...
Does it sound like I have it right, or should I switch some things up to reduce the time we're on trains? Am I putting too much in one day or are these all relatively easy days? My family walks a lot, so I'm not too worried about the walking. I do, however, have to watch my Mom as she sometimes will need to stop for a while - then she's ready to keep moving.
Thanks for any input or suggestions!
Cynthia