Where to begin the trip in Switzerland?

Hi, Myself and my family are looking to visit Switzerland for 4 days in March. We would be landing at Zurich airport and would like to visit Bernese Oberland, The Jungfrau region, Mt. Figi, Zermatt and also travel on Glacier express. If you could please let me know whether 4 days is sufficient for my trip, where to begin my trip from and what would be the central point for my accommodation?

Many thanks in advance.

Hi Rajiv-

Welcome to the forum.

<<"We would be landing at Zurich airport">>

I suggest you begin your trip at Zürich....'-)

I have not checked the time table to figure out an itinerary, but I think you might just possibly manage to fit all of that into a 4 day trip. You may not have much time at any one place, however. What do you wish to do at each of those locations? How long do you wish to spend at each one?

The time table will help you:

www.myswissalps.com/ti metable

I suggest that you spend a fair amount of time with it, to see how all that fits together.

You probably want to go via Luzern first (and visit the Rigi..there is no Figi, as far as I know) thence to the Bernese Oberland, then to Zermatt.

However, it might work in the other direction if you go from Zürich to Chur to pickup theGlacier Express to Zermatt, then the BO, then the Rigi.

See what the timetable tells you

The Glacier express terminates or starts in Zermatt. You may only be able to ride a short portion of the route. Other "regular" trains run on the same tracks throughout the day.

You did not say where you wish to finish...it makes a difference for planning.

I don't think that y0u can do it all from only one "sleep" point...I hope that more experienced travelers can correct me. Work with the timetable will help you decide about that.

Slowpoke

Thank you Slowpoke. That's very helpful.

We do not wish to see any city life and would like to enjoy the beautiful mountains.

Day 1: We will arrive in Zurich in the late evening and we could catch a train to Luzern first, stay overnight there and the next day visit Mt.Rigi and in the evening to Interlaken.

Day3: Visit BO, The Jungfrau region and nearby areas. (Is this possible in one day?)

Day 4: Travel to Zermatt and catch Galcier express train or Bernian express ( not sure which is better?) and stay over night to somewhere close to Zurich.

Day 5: visit local attraction in Zurich and catch a flight in the late afternoon.

We could add an additional day if needed to explore other areas.

Do you think this is possible??

I believe Glacier express from Zermatt to St.Mortiz takes 8 hours and we do not wish to do a whole 8 hour trip. We would like to enjoy travelling on the Glacier express but only part of the journey. Could you suggest what are the best options where we can view the beautiful scenery and mountains via travelling on Glacier express or Bernian express.

Secondly, where are the the beautiful places to visit in the The Jungfrau region and cost of a ticket to top of Europe Station ( I could not find the ticket price on the website). We will be buying a family card travel pass and will that cover the trip to top of Europe station ?

And lastly, are there any other places to visit which has beautiful mountains and scenery apart from the ones which I mentioned?

Thanks,

Raj.

Hi Raj-

One part at a time-

Please work with the timtable as linked previously.

It will help you answer your own questions.

<<"We do not wish to see any city life and would like to enjoy the beautiful mountains.">>

Swiss cities are not very large and you have said that you do plan to visit Zürich and see the attractions. I do not understand these two comments, taken together..

In Zürich , you can walk around for a few hours and see the old town and Bahnhofstrasse. The banks of the lake, normally a pleasant place to walk, will likely be dreary in March. Maybe, by the end of March, there will be signs of Spring.

However, Luzern is more interesting to visit - a short walk takes you to the Lion of Luzern, and other appealing attractions.

You can see the beautiful mountains all around the city and the lake. You can take a boat ride to the cograil at Vitznau for the trip up the Rigi. The southernmost part of the lake is most beautiful, and the mountains come down very close to the lake. If you go up on the Rigi or Pilatus, mountain ranges further away are visible.

<""Day1 and day 2: We will arrive in Zurich in the late evening and we could catch atrain to Luzern first, stay overnight there and the next day(day 2) visitMt.Rigi and in the evening to Interlaken. ">

You can do this.

<<"Day3: Visit BO, The Jungfrau region and nearby areas. (Is this possible in one day?)">>

It would take a few weeks to see all that the area has to offer.

You need to choose for a small sample. Also, if the day you pick has cloudy weather, which is not uncommon in March, higher altitude may be nothing but clouds. The weather changes suddenly in the Alps. Most people allow at a minumum two days near the Jungfrau, to increase the chance of good weather.

Look through this to help refine this part of your trip.

www.myswissalps.com/be rneseoberland

and-

www.google.com/search?q=panorama+map+jungfra u+region&tbm=isch&imgi l=lKhuyk_qwmJ26M%253A% 253BSgkKsERZRXJAkM%253 Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25 252Fvoyagista.com%2525 2F2013%25252F10%25252F 07%25252Fswitzerland-hiking-bernese-oberland-top5%25252F&source=iu& pf=m&fir=lKhuyk_qwmJ26 M%253A%252CSgkKsERZRXJ AkM%252C_&biw=1001&bih =602&usg=__EADsjsPXQW1 lABnfXWM36iehlFc%3D&ve d=0ahUKEwj8t_ejuZjKAhU IPD4KHQVTDbwQyjcIMA&ei =Hr6OVvywIoj4-AGFprXgCw#imgrc=lKhuyk _qwmJ26M%3A&usg=__EADs jsPXQW1lABnfXWM36iehlF c%3D

<<" Day4: Travel to Zermatt and catch Galcier express train or Bernian express( not sure which is better?) and stay over night to somewhere close toZurich.">>

Possible. Include the upper (older) very scenic route from IO/Spiez to Brig and Visp via Kandersteg.

From Visp to Zermatt you are on the Glacier Express route, and do not need to ride the actual Glacier Express Train to see the sights.

I suspect that you will not have time to go up to the higher mountains at Zermatt, but will probably need to turn around soon after you arrive. You can reach Zürich or Luzern ( which is a place near Zürich) easily.

<<"Day 5: visit local attraction in Zurich and catch a flight in the late afternoon.">>

Zürich is a city.

<<"We could add an additional day if needed to explore other areas.Do you think this is possible??">>

I am sure that you could add another day and see the areas you have described more fully. Or, go to other places within about 1/2 day of Zürich. Many people spend weeks seeing the nicer parts of Switzerland.

<<"We would like to enjoy travelling on the Glacier express but only part of the journey. ">>

Zermatt to Visp.

<<"Could you suggest what are the best options where we can view the beautiful scenery and mountains via travelling on the Glacier express or Bernian [Bernina] express.">>

Not within your time constarints, and, you have clearly said that you do not want spend 8 hours on the Glacier Express ....which could be a good way to add time.

<<" Secondly,where are the the beautiful places to visit in the The Jungfrau region">>

See the link above for the Berner Oberland and look for the link in it for the Jungfrau Regionwithin it.

<<"and cost of a ticket to top of Europe Station ( I could not find theticket price on the website). We will be buying a family card travelpass and will that cover the trip to top of Europe station ?">>

I don't know much about the rail passes. I leave that to the experts - Arno and Annika, the forum moderators.

<<"And lastly, are there any other places to visit which has beautiful mountains and scenery apart from the ones which I mentioned?">>

There are many regions which fit that description. The upper and lower Engadine, the regions around Lac Bienne/ Bielersee, Appenzell and Säntis, Saas Fee, Martigny, to mention a few.

These may help -

www.myswissalps.com/ge ttingstarted

www.myswissalps.com/wh eretogo

www.myswissalps.com/ac tivities

Even in regions which are in themselves mountainous, there are frequent sights of the Alps on the horizon. The attached image was taken between Luzern and Bern, in the Emmental. It is a region of rolling hills.

Slowpoke

Thank you for your help.

<<"Even in regions which are in themselves mountainous">>

was a mistake,

I should have said ",,,,,which are NOT mountainous.">>

Sorry

Slowpoke

Hi Raj,

If you can add an extra day, please do! Lucerne, the Jungfrau region and many other places offer much more than you can possibly see in a day. You need time to be flexible for weather changes, see Slowpoke's comment.

You could do just the Brig to Chur leg of the Glacier Express.

As for a rail pass: there is no family card travel pass, it works slightly different. You can buy a Swiss Travel Pass, and the Swiss Family Card is a free add-on for children up to 15 years old. They travel along for free anywhere with that card. To find out all about the pass (how it works, where to buy, what's included), please see myswissalps.com/ swisstravelpass.