Zurich-Montreux-Lucerne-Black Forest in October
SwatiA is planning a 6-day trip to Switzerland with an elderly couple. They want to check if their itinerary, which includes visits to Montreux, Lucerne, and the Rhine Falls, is feasible without being too hectic. They are looking for advice on possibly dropping some activities.
- Consider dropping the visit to Stanserhorn to avoid a hectic day.
- Research train options for the Black Forest trip as it may be busy when combined with Rhine Falls.
- Remember that your Swiss Travel Pass won't cover transportation in Germany, so adjust your plans accordingly.
AI-generated summary-
We have already taken a STP for 5 days (4 + 1 free)
Tentative Itinerary:
Day 1 – Zurich to Montreux by train. Explore Chateau de Chillon Castle and Lakeside Promenade Fleuri. Overnight Montreux.
Day 2 – Visit Maison Callier Chocolate factory & the Gruyere cheese factory and Gruyere village from Montreux and return in the evening. Overnight Montreux.
Day 3 – Montreux to Lucerne by train. Trip to Titlis via Engelberg. Overnight Lucerne
Day 4 – Visit Stoos steepest funicular first and then move on to experience CabriO to reach Mount Stanserhorn. Overnight Lucerne.
Day 5 – Visit Mount Rigi OR Mount Pilatus and then proceed to Zurich by train. Overnight Zurich.
Day 6 – Rhine Falls and Black Forest day trip.
Just wanted to check if the above itinerary looks ok? Are we missing anything which can be accommodated or anything that should be removed from the above?
We will be travelling with an elderly couple so don’t want to make it too hectic.
Regards,
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Hi SwatiA
Looks pretty good!
Day 4 might be pushing it travel-wise. But you can always cancel Stanserhorn plans depending on how your group feels after Stoos.
Day 6 – Have you looked into how to travel to the Black Forest by train and what you can do there in an afternoon?
At least a couple of your proposed days might be ‘too hectic’.
Zurich – Black Forest is just about possible but adding the Rheinfall in the same day might not be.
Hi Swatiaa –
Why do you wish to visit the Black Forest Region?
Why do you wish to visit the Rheinfalls in October, at low flow season?
Slowpoke
Thanks everyone for reviewing our itinerary.
I think we can drop Stanserhorn as you are right it might become a bit hectic.
Also we are planning to take viator's day trip to Rhine falls and Black forest from Zurich. Didn’t realize October will be a low flow season 🙁 Is it worth going there still?
Hi SwatiA –
<<“Also we are planning to take viator’s day trip to Rhine falls and Black forest from Zurich. Didn’t realize October will be a low flow season 🙁 Is it worth going there still?”>>
You asked the wrong person and should get other opinions. Although I am biased, in part because I live in the USA and have visited both Niagara Falls, I found the Rhine Falls to be underwhelming. Others disagree. My personal perspective is that there are a lot of waterfalls around the world……..not too many Jungfraus. 😉 The flow is most powerful in the late Spring, due to snow melt.
I’d consider Stein am Rhein as an option in the region..
I’ve not been to the Black Forest, so I cannot comment.
Also, although it would not be easy and perhaps impossible to do without major rearrangement of your schedule, I note that you have chosen not to go to the Jungfrau Region. Have you seen it before? It is probably the single most spectacular scenic tourist region in the country, and uniquely Swiss, even if you do not go up to the Jungfrau.
Schilthorn is available:
schilthorn.ch/en/Infos /Timetable__and__Tarif f
http://www.myswissalps.com/sc hilthorn
Slowpoke
Hello,
The “Black Forest” is a large area so would be good for you to do some research about what you would like to see and do, perhaps in the same general area. Including the Rheinfall with the “Black Forest” on a day trip from Zurich would be busy. Your STP will be of no use in Germany, so perhaps, just perhaps, a trip to Stein am Rhein coupled with the Rheinfall might be a more sensible option. Don’t forget that the hours of daylight are now much fewer than in the Summer.
Don’t worry about less than encouraging comments about the Rheinfall. Of course the flow rate (débit d’eau) will be less than in the Spring but we are now in October, not April or May, and so if you are here now you just go there and enjoy it as it is. It’s not Canada’s Niagara Falls, nor Victoria Falls, nor Iguaçu, nor Venezuela’s Angel Falls; it is Switzerland’s Rheinfall. Waterfalls all have small or large differences and bigger isn’t always better. The Rheinfall is unique and its setting is certainly unique. May I assume you have looked on YouTube to see what it is like ? If you do go, spring for the boat ride out to the Felsen (see attached photo) and climb up to the top.
By the way, you mention all your “overnight”s except for Day 6. I assume that is Zurich.
Attachments:
Hello again, Swati.
I just read your posts again and noticed the word viator’s. I guess I missed it until now because it wasn’t capitalized. Is this a bus tour company ? If so, I assume they have an itinerary and so you know exactly where they plan to take you in the “Black Forest” and you are happy with that. You’ll certainly do better on a bus than you could possibly hope for using the DB (German Railways). If the Rheinfall is only a short stop on a one-day bus tour you probably won’t have time to go out on a boat to the Felsen. You’ll get to snap the photos that tour bus tourists always seem to take from the same spots and then you’ll be herded onto the bus to move on, and then on, and on. I’ve also just realized that your STP is for 5 days and we are looking here at Day 6 so that would explain why you are bus touring on this last day. Sorry for the ramble, and enjoy your Day 6 !
Hi Peterli,
Viator offers tours/packages that are carried out by local tour operators throughout the world, including Switzerland. The tour mentioned here is this one: https://www.viator.com /tours/Zurich/Black-Forest-and-Rhine-Falls-Day-Trip-from-Zurich/d577-2460FOREST.
Hello Arno,
Thank you for clarifying what Viatour is. The only bus company (other than postal car) I have ever used in Europe is Wittwer Transport in Neuchâtel. Our school travelled across France and Spain in two Wittwer buses many years ago, and last year I saw a spanking new one in Avenches, waiting for folks to clamber back on board after visiting the Aventicum Amphitheatre. These days I do most of my traveling by car.
I was wondering if the Titisee was going to be on the “Black Forest” itinerary and see that it is. There is a DB train that runs from the Schluchsee to the Titisee and then on down to Freiburg. The problem is that Schluchsee is the end of the line, so you need a car, bus, bike, or motorcycle to get to Schluchsee. I once took the train from Schluchsee to Freiburg, and the car was full of school-kids who made great fun of the name of the first stop at the NW end of the lake (actually a reservoir), a place called Aha.
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