[Mjsx2002]

25 May 2022 at 20:53:55 #827308

I’m sure this has been asked many times so apologies for that.

I’m in the very early stages of looking into the possibility of doing this in late june/early july and have a few queries which I hope someone could help with.

The general idea is to fly in, hire a car, drive to Interlaken on day 1, drive the 3 passes looping back to Interlaken on day 2, doing the drive again (because why not?) on day 3 and then flying home on day 4.

Firstly, is all that a) possible and b) realistic?

I’ll be flying in from the UK so would it be best to fly into Zurich?

I have only started looking into the possibility today so it’s very early days at the moment!

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[Removed user]

26 May 2022 at 0:03:18 #942348

Perfectly possible.

I’ve done all the ‘big’ passes many times in my 60 years, in the ‘early days’ in my Dad’s trusty Austin 1100’s! Although not the Susten pass way back as it only opened as a modern paved road in 1964 specifically for tourism.

Have you considered taking your own car from the UK ?

Don’t forget there is also the Gotthard pass road, and the Nufenen Pass – circuits can be done to include these as well.

One of my favourite vistas from those passes is the Steingletscher on the Susten Pass.

Also, don’t miss taking the ‘private’ side road off the summit of the Grimsel to the Oberaarsee / Oberaargletscher. This is the source of the river Aare that flows as a huge river through the capital Bern

[Removed user]

26 May 2022 at 6:50:17 #942349

Hi Mjsx2002 and welcome to MySwissAlps.com!

At http://www.myswissalps.com/car/trafficinfo you can read about the passes and some traffic info, that might be useful for you.

Also have a look at http://www.myswissalps.com/car/drivinginthemountains for practical tips on how to drive in the Swiss Alps.

Note, that the traffic regulations are a bit more strict that in other countries, to learn more please visit http://www.myswissalps.com/car/trafficregulations.

Make sure to get a motorway vignette: http://www.myswissalps.com/motorwayvignette

Happy and safe driving,

Ildiko

[Arno]

26 May 2022 at 11:12:46 #942350

Hi! You can certainly drive as planned. If you like a bit more variety, day 1 to 3 of this itinerary suggestion might be interesting: http://www.myswissalps.com/plantrip/doityourself/sampleitineraries/passroadsdrivingtour. I wouldn’t drive as far as St. Moritz on day 3, but rather stop in Andermatt or cross over to Brig for your return journey on day 4.

Of course this is very different from having just Interlaken as a base town, so plan whatever appeals to you most! I hope you’ll enjoy your journey.

[Mjsx2002]

26 May 2022 at 18:05:04 #942351

Thanks for the replies. Very helpful to know that it’s possible and realistic.

I’ve considered using my own car, but that would add extra days onto it and also if something does go wrong I’d rather it go wrong with a hire than with my own car. I’d also be driving on the ‘right’ side which might be a help.

I’m happy to do the same thing on successive days because knowing me I’ll miss something the first time and regret it!

[Removed user]

26 May 2022 at 18:22:18 #942352

Hi Mjsx2002

if you rent it, have a look at this page, you might find some useful information: http://www.myswissalps.com/car/carrental

Ildiko

[Removed user]

27 May 2022 at 0:26:05 #942353

Driving a UK car on Swiss roads is common and not difficult. In some cases the fact that the steering wheel in on the ‘UK side’ can help not hinder. Also, my father drove for 50+ years in UK cars but once hired a left hand drive car and simply couldn’t get used to it so kept bashing the kerb!

Last time my car ‘went wrong’ in Switzerland I got way way better service from the local dealers than I get in the UK…