Switzerland 13 days April trip with 2 kids

  • Removed user
    Participant
    72625 posts
    7 March 2017 at 8:20:18 #810996

    Hi,

    I have been through the forum posts. They are very interesting, but at the same time confusing :S

    We are a family of 4 (2 adults, 1 child aged 4yr old & 1 infant aged 11months).

    We will be reaching Switzerland on 1st April17 06:35hrs at Zurich Airport and departing flight on 14th April17 at 07:00hrs. I have booked all days in Winderswil since I did not want accommodation changes with 2 kids along.

    I need advice on our itinerary for 13 days. We want to focus on sightseeing and visiting places which are children friendly and doable with 2 kids. 1-2 easy mount excursions. My little one has breathing problems and hence I do not want to risk going to many icy/mountain excursions. Chocolate and cheese factory are a must. 1 trip of each mode of transport easily doable with 2 little ones (example, 1 boat trip, 1 cable car, 1 cogwheel, etc) to experience all. I do not want to make our outings hectic by having to do too much in a day. Just want to have enough to have a peaceful enjoyable daily trips

    The weather shows a mix of sunny, cloudy, chilled, rainy and showers during our stay. Have put the below for easy reference.

    Date Hi/Lo Precip Snow Forecast Avg. HI / LO

    Sat 4/1 10°/-1° 1 MM 0 CM Mostly cloudy 10°/2°

    Sun 4/2 12°/2° 0 MM 0 CM Periods of clouds and sun 10°/2°

    Mon 4/3 13°/3° 0 MM 0 CM Periods of clouds and sun 10°/2°

    Tue 4/4 14°/3° 0 MM 0 CM Mostly sunny 10°/2°

    Wed 4/5 14°/2° 0 MM 0 CM Mostly sunny 10°/2°

    Thu 4/6 14°/3° 0 MM 0 CM Mostly sunny 11°/3°

    Fri 4/7 16°/5° 1 MM 0 CM Periods of clouds and sun 11°/3°

    Sat 4/8 16°/5° 0 MM 0 CM Mostly cloudy 11°/3°

    Sun 4/9 16°/5° 0 MM 0 CM Mostly cloudy 11°/3°

    Mon 4/10 15°/5° 3 MM 0 CM Cloudy with a few showers 11°/3°

    Tue 4/11 15°/0° 6 MM 0 CM Partly sunny with a shower 11°/3°

    Wed 4/12 11°/-1° 3 MM 0 CM Colder with a little rain 11°/3°

    Thu 4/13 11°/0° 0 MM 0 CM Partly sunny 12°/3°

    Fri 4/14 14°/-1° 0 MM 0 CM Sunshine and some clouds 12°/3°

    Appreciate if I can have some suggestions considering the above. Feel free to add on tips/schedules/points you feel will make our trip better in terms of travelling as a family.

    Thanks.

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    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    7 March 2017 at 8:48:31 #859722

    Hi Saherh and welcome to MySwissAlps!

    So you are staying in Wilderswil I think? It is near Interlaken… From Interlaken you have any opportunities for trips on the lakes nearby or mountains. I would caution against going too high in the mountains with your child however. Perhaps Mt. Rigi or Pilatus near Luzern could be ok (around 2000 meters) but I would consult with your doctor before traveling.

    Have a read through the activity options around Interlaken and Luzern (German spelling) to see what may appeal to you. There are also many boat trips possible nearby as well, such as Lake Thun, Brienz and Luzern.

    Perhaps a day trip to Montreux on the Golden Pass panoramic train would be of interest as well as the Gotthard Panorama Express train to Bellinzona.

    I hope that helps get your trip planning started. Let me know if you have further questions or concerns.

    Regards,
    Lucas

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    7 March 2017 at 8:57:47 #859723

    Any sugeestions/caution points keeping the rainy days in mind?

    Also any limitations to use of stroller on any trips?

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    7 March 2017 at 11:12:05 #859724

    Hi Saherh,

    Weather forecasts for Switzerland are only useful from about 3 days ahead of time. The forecasts for April in early March are not realistic as mountain weather changes really quickly. Please see myswissalps.com/weathe r for more information. Various pages mentioned by Lucas suggest things to do for both good and bad weather. The key is to be flexible and plan by the day.

    DD123
    Participant
    20 posts
    7 March 2017 at 15:33:47 #859725

    Hi Saherh, re the Chocolate Train, I believe it doesn’t officially run in April, but to my understanding you can take the exact same route using ‘regular’ trains via the SBB website.

    Removed user
    Participant
    72625 posts
    7 March 2017 at 16:24:58 #859726

    Good point DD123!

    The chocolate train itself doesn’t begin operating until May – but yes people can still travel by a regional train on that route.

    Lucas

    Removed user
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    72625 posts
    8 March 2017 at 0:57:52 #859727

    We will be reaching Switzerland on 1st April17 06:35hrs at Zurich Airport and departing flight on 14th April17 at 07:00hrs. I have booked all days in Winderswil.

    1 trip of each mode of transport easily doable with 2 little ones (example, 1 boat trip, 1 cable car, 1 cogwheel, etc)

    Hi saherh,

    Some cable cars and funiculars etc will be operating all the time while you are there, but others will be closed or operating only for part of the time, so you will need to organise your activities around the opening/closing dates.

    Open/operating all the time while you are there:

    Cable car to Grütschalp, train to Mürren

    Firstbahn gondola

    Cable car Stechelberg-Gimmelwald-Mürren

    Allmendhubel funicular (Mürren)

    Boats on Lake Thun and Lake Brienz

    Open only part of the time while you are there:

    Wengen to Männlichen cable car (closes 3 April)

    Open-Air Museum Ballenberg (opens 13 April, 10 am to 5 pm).

    The following trains and funiculars will not be operating while you are there:

    Harderbahn to Harder Kulm (does not open until 14 April)

    Schynige Platte train (does not open until 27 May)

    Brienz-Rothorn train (does not open until 3 June)

    Reichenbach Falls funicular (does not open until 4 May)

    Wengen and Mürren are lovely villages to stroll through, with suitable surfaces/gradients for strollers. Wengen has a lookout with wonderful views. If you scroll down the following thread a bit to my post of 11 Apr 2016, there are directions and a map.

    http://www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/lauterbrunne nmurrengrindewaldwenge ngrutschalp

    Wilderswil itself has a lovely little nook of beautiful traditional houses, a small square with park, and a covered wooden bridge over the Lütschine River, that dates from 1738 and is just a few minutes’ walk from the station. To get there, cross the tracks at the station crossing, go down Bahnhofstrasse, continue in the same direction along Allmendstrasse to the bridge and Lütschine river (map and some photos attached).

    >> Also any limitations to use of stroller on any trips?

    On some forms of transport you will need to fold the stroller and carry the child, due to lack of space (e.g. funiculars, gondolas). Gondolas might be a bit tricky to board, as they don’t actually stop moving, although they do move very slowly for boarding.

    Wilderswil station does not have raised platforms, so you will need to decide whether you can lift the stroller onto the train, or whether you need to fold it and carry the child to board. Some trains have low floors, but others have some stairs.

    I haven’t been to the Ballenberg Open Air Museum yet, but according to their website, the west part of the museum is less steep and has more easily-accessible houses than the East part. There are bus stops for both the east and west entrances.

    http://www.ballenberg.ch/en/v isiting/access/east-entrance/

    Alpenrose

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