What to do in Locarno after Wilhelm Tell Express?

Hi ,

If we take Wilhelm Tell Express trip to Locarno , is there anything we can do when we reach Locarno ? or the option would be to take a train back to Luzern ?

Best

MK

Hi Mk-

<<"is there anything we can do when we reach Locarno ?>>

When are you going?

The lake front a has a pleasant walk.

The Madonna del Sasso is not to be missed.

www.myswitzerland.com/ en-us/locarno.html

My Switzerland is a useful web site.

Even if all you do is turn around and go back, you will have had two spectacular journeys. Perhaps on the return you will not take the boat, and instead ride the train to Arth Goldau and Luzern.

An option is to take the train through the Centovalli to Domodossola, then to Brig and onwards to your Swiss destination. Limited schedules.

Slowpoke

The return route via the Centovalli railway that Slowpoke mentioned is a good option. It will be a long day but you will have seen a lot of Switzerland and some of Italy. Schedules are in the timetable.

Thanks a lot Guys, this is really helpful :)

On a side note, can I use my Swiss Travel Pass to go to Italy and come back using Swiss Railways ?

If yes, then is there anything which can be done in 1 day ?

Thanks

MK

Hi MK,

The Swiss Travel Pass covers a few routes in Italy, including the suggested route. Please download the map for details: myswissalps.com/ swisstravelpass/ validity.

Thanks Arno,

One more thing, if I come to Brig as per suggestion of Slowpoke , is it possible me to take Glacier Express from Brig to Zermatt and then from Zermatt take a normal train back to Luzern ?

So plan will be :

1. Take Wilhelm Tell exp from Luzern in the morning and Reach Locarno towards end of trip.

2. Go thru Centovalli to Domodossola, then to Brig

3. Take Glacier Exp from Brig to Zermatt

4. Take normal train ride back from Zermatt to Luzern

is above plan doable ? as this will cover 2 scenic trains , or its asking too much to do in 1 day

Best

MK

Hi MK,

I would avoid the Glacier Express for the one hour ride from Brig to Zermatt. I'd rather take a regional train and avoid the reservation fee. The views are the same.

However, including Zermatt is way too much for one day. It would be a nice 2 or 3 day journey, with some time along the way to explore. Even without Zermatt it will be a very long day, but doable. It takes at least 5 hours to get back to Luzern from Locarno via the suggested route. Please see the timetable referred to in my other post.

Thanks for inputs,

I will avoid Glacier Exp and Zermatt altogether , will go back from Locarno as per suggested route and take normal train back from Brig to Luzern.

Thanks Again

MK

Enjoy the day! Let us know how it went, if you can.

Kind regards,

Arno

The fastest route to Luzern from Brig goes via Visp and the new "basis tunnel" to Spiez and bern. Two hours and 11 minutes.

The tunnel is boring.

If you can find the time, use the slower route of the Lötschberger train up and over the mountains from Brig; to see that in the timetable, use "Kandersteg" as a "via" or "connection"

It does add an hour to the trip, and it may not fit in your long day... use the time table.

Spectacular rail journey. Sit on the left as you leave Brig.

Slowpoke

Awesome, thanks a bunch...

You guys are Rockstars :)

Hi MK-

I asked when you were going.

Did not see that answer.

Here is why-

A scenic trip is a lot less scenic after dark.

www.timeanddate.com/su n/switzerland/brig-glis

Slowpoke

Hi Slowpoke,

My apologies, I missed that question.

We will be doing this trip sometime end of May, either 29th or 30th May.

Best

MK

Hi MK-

That should not affect your trip plans for that particular trip.

I did give you a link for sunset times.

Please be sure to check the timetables carefully. The Lake Lucerne boat schedules change on the 28th.

www.lakelucerne.ch/en/ timetable-fares/timetable/

If your trip includes staying in the Bernese Oberland, many (but not all) tourist services will not have started up yet for the summer season in late May. Late May can have quite a lot of snow left at higher altitudes, but not enough for good skiing. The season starts to "function" in late May and early June, with most everything open by June 15th near the Jungfrau.

www.myswissalps.com/be sttimetovisit

Slowpoke

Thanks a lot Slowpoke, this really helps , below was my plan for the days in Swiss, please do let me know if I have got this correct:

1. Arrive Luzern on 28th May afternoon, spend the afternoon and evening exploring Old City

2. 29th May: Take Scenic train trip, Plan is for Willhelm tell express, as it has Boat section, and I have 1st Class Swiss Travel Pass, so guess this is best I could do for Scenic train trip. Will go as per your suggestion in the threads above

3. 30th May: Visit Mt Titlis and plan for Mt Rigi (if there is time) if not then explore Luzern town

4. 31st May: Checkout from Hotel in Luzern and Visit Rihne Falls and / or anything else you suggest and Checkin in Zurich Airport Hotel by the evening

5. 1st June: Explore Zurich and take late evening flight for back home (10PM)

We will be 6 travelers, Myslef, My wife, My parents ( 60+ ) , 2 Kids ( 8 & 10 yrs)

Looking forward for your comments and suggestions

Best

MK

Hi MK-

Only a partial answer:

There is a nice children's playground at the Lido ( beach area) by the Swiss Transport Museum in Luzern (das Verkehrshaus).

The pictures tell the story:

www.luzern.com/de/spie lplatz-lido

Ages 8 and 10 might be a little old for that, but my 8 year old granddaughter enjoyed Swiss playgrounds when we visited in 2009.

Slowpoke

PS-

<for the days in Swiss">>

In English, Swiss is an adjective. The name of the country is Switzerland.

That is a bit confusing, because in German it is "die Schweiz" and in French "la Suisse."

Thanks a ton, I will surely check that up , My kids will love it :)

Any comments on the plan in Switzerland :) will be helpful .

Best Regards,

MK

<<"Any comments on the plan in Switzerland :) will be helpful . ">>

Hi MK-

We have talked about your long day on the scenic trains.

We have not talked much about the Lake Lucerne area. We always stay there when we return to Switzerland, because the area is beautiful, and there is a lot to do and see. The attractions are varied and offer a rich selection for almost any interest. There are various mountains visible from the city or nearby by train (Titlis). Museums; the old city, nice walks, lake boats, etc....

www.myswissalps.com/ce ntralswitzerland

www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne

We have no trouble spending a week in the area, and then do different things in the area on our next trip.

So, with that perspective, I and the forum moderators always suggest Luzern as a particularly good place to visit for the first time visitor to Switzerland.

On the other hand, if someone wants to go to Zürich, I ask them why? There are many good reasons to visit Zürich, but , for me they are cultural not scenic. In fact, it is my favorite city in Switzerland, but that is not for major tourist attractions. So, do you know why you want to explore Zürich?

www.myswissalps.com/zu rich

What are your interests with your diverse ages?

So, to talk about your last day or so - including or near to Zürich - becomes a matter of very subjective and personal interests.

Certainly, a walk through the old town on both sides of the river is interesting. Find your way to the Lindenhof, for a nice view of the river and the city.

However, for some other things in the area, personal preferences play a strong role for me. For example - the Rhine Falls are a favorite place for many visitors. We went there once and would not do it again. However, our own history helps explain that. We have seen Niagara Falls here on our border of the USA with Canada, and even though the Rhine Falls are powerful, they do not impress us as much as Niagara does. So, I cannot offer a balanced opinion about the Rhine Falls.

If I had time to spare in that area, I'd consider Stein am Rhein (but not on a a weekend, when the tourists are excessively evident). If I had time, and my kids were patient with me, I'd go all the way to St. Gall and visit the Abbey and the library.

I'd take the train up to Uetliberg, above Zürich, make the short climb to Uto-Kulm and eat at the nice but not cheap restaurant looking out over Zürich. Then, I'd walk to Felsenegg and ride the self -service cable car (Swiss coins required) down to Adliswil and catch a train back to Zürich. Or, I'd stop at the mountain inn at Uto-Staffel about 600 meters along the trail to Felsenegg and eat there. Splendid views.

Personally, I'd stay in Luzern or on Lake Lucerne near a train station, and go to Zürich at the last minute. If I were to stay near Zürich airport, depending very much on my flight time, I'd almost surely stay in downtown Zürich, not at the airport. More choices for where to eat, and to take a short stroll around the town or along the lakeside. There are anywhere from 5 to 10 trains per hour from Zürich main station to the airport, and there are luggage lockers at the station, as well as a left luggage office. I might ship my heavy bags to the airport on the day before I leave. I'd avoid a cab unless I had good reasons to use one - the short ride costs 65 CHF, or more if traffic is heavy.

So, perhaps you have asked the wrong person about the last part of your trip. ;-)

Slowpoke

Hi Slowpoke,

I am really glad that we had this discussion and I would agree with your suggestion about spending more time in Lucerne area. Actually initially issue was how to best use the 4 Day Swiss Travel Pass we have, as we were there for 5 days so one day would need to be without pass. It could have been either first day or last day. As we were coming from Paris via Basel , I initially thought I could use Travel Pass form Basel onwards and on 4th Day move to Zurich so most of our longer train journey is covered with Pass and Last day will use Zurich day pass or something to roam around there. That was only intention to move to Zurich :) . But what I did not realize that I had already changed my plans and was going to purchase point to point train tickets to Lucerne from Basel and use my Travel pass till last day.

Now with this discussion I really think that it will be not worth moving out for a day from Lucerne and then get in to Zurich hotel just for night. It provides more flexibility and would be less tiring. Even if we want to go to Zurich we can go last day afternoon for few hours and keep our luggage at left luggage on Zurich railway station.

I would check with hotel if I can extend a day in Lucerne and cancel the Zurich hotel without incurring any major charges , staying at ibis Budget at both the places.

I would like to thank you again for your suggestions and opinions, it really makes lots of difference.

I will update this thread if I am able to successfully change the reservations. :)

Best

MK

Hi MK -

With a 10 PM departure time, that plan could work well. Hope the hotel situation works out. You are there before the height of the tourist season, so there is a good chance that it will. That late departure gives you lots of options if you store your luggage at one of the stations. If you do decide to visit Northeast Switzerland, many trains to that region go through the airport, and you could even leave your luggage there or check in for your flight. I recall that most airlines let you check in within the 23 hours and 59 minutes preceding your flight.....does yours?

This may be helpful:

www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/manned-luggage-storage-cost-zurich-train-station

and, if you start here:

www.sbb.ch/en/station-services.html

and search for a particular station in the entry window, after you select a particular station from the list that appears, you can look at the "tabs" and can get to a description of the luggage storage facilities (under equipment) and opening ours for the left luggage office ( under services)

For example:

www.sbb.ch/en/station-services/am-bahnhof/railway-stations/bahnhof-finden.posid.3000.html

If you do wish to spend some time in Zürich, some ideas were discussed in this rather long thread:

www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/swiss-itinerary-for-december-2015

Rather far down the thread ( on Nov 3) I posted a map and there is discussion about where to take a walk in Zürich

Also check this link:www.myswissalps.com/fo rum/topic/need-help-in-my-planning#cq6cUaDW9mqS6 v8AAFcRTQ

In that link, Arno notes that the Rhine Falls are at their best about the time you are traveling....lots of water flow from the Spring rains and snow melt.

So, if you really want to go there, it is a good time of year.

Too many choices! ;-)

Slowpoke