[Removed user]

27 January 2018 at 10:28:49 #814166

Hi,

I am new in the forum and will visit Switzerland first week of April driving from UK and will be basing in Zurich.

Can you please comment on my itinerary if achievable, if not I’ll change it.

Day 1: UK to Zurich

Day 2: Explore Zurich

Day 3: Mount Titlis

Day 4: Zurich to Geneva, Geneva to Montreux, Montreux to Lucerne (via Golden Pass), Lucerne to Zurich

Day 5: Zurich to Lucerne, Lucerne to Weggis by boat, Weggis to Rigi by cable car, Rigi to Virznau, Vitznau to Lucerne by boat, back to Zurich

Day 6: Zurich to Bern, Bern to Interlaken, Interlaken to Lucerne, back to Zurich.

Day 7: Drive back to UK

I would assume that a 4 day Swiss travel pass is a lot cheaper than point to point or half fare card.

Thank you very much.

ogiboy

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[Removed user]

27 January 2018 at 11:53:38 #875240

Hi ogiboy and welcome to MySwissAlps!

I understand then that you will be leaving the car in Zurich and exploring Switzerland by train?

Day 1 is a long one!

Days 4 & 6 are long as well….are you hoping to spend any time in these towns? I wouldn’t go any further than Montreux from Zurich, for example, in one day. I’d also not base yourself in Zurich. Maybe Luzern and/or Interlaken depending on what you want to do in the areas.

What are you hoping to see and do in Switzerland?

Use the Swiss railways timetable here to find travel times between all those towns/destinations to see if the trip is worth it for you. If you did follow your itinerary the Swiss Travel Pass should be the best option for you yes.

[Removed user]

27 January 2018 at 15:06:47 #875241

Hi Lucas,

Thanks for your quick reply and comments/suggestions. Appreciate it very much.

Yes, we’ll leave the car in Zurich (or Lucerne as you’ve suggested) and travel by train.

As for Day 1, I will cut the trip halfway from Calais to Zurich and have an hour or 2 rest before continuing.

Day 4, yeah, I agree, it really is too long, might drop Geneva and spend a couple of hours in Montreux.

Day 6, probably just spend an hour each for Bern and Interlaken, Lucerne will be in Day 5.

We hope to see Titlis and Rigi and sightseeing of the scenic views of Switzerland’s lakes and mountains.

I forgot to mention that we are travelling as a family with kids aged 18 and 13.

Thanks again.

ogiboy

[Removed user]

28 January 2018 at 4:19:57 #875242

>> Day 4: Zurich to Geneva, Geneva to Montreux, Montreux to Lucerne (via Golden Pass), Lucerne to Zurich

If it were me, I would plan to put the best scenery at the beginning of the day, when you are still fresh enough to enjoy it to the full: i.e. travel first to Luzern, then the Golden Pass route to Montreux. That will take just over 6 hours.

After spending a bit of time in Montreux along the lakeside, I would skip Geneva and take the fastest route back to Zürich (usually via Lausanne).

Sunset will be about 8pm. Make sure you get to Lausanne before then, so you can appreciate the beauty of the Lavaux vineyard terraces (a UNESCO World Heritage site) before dark.

You might also want to avoid the commuter rush out of Lausanne, although without luggage that shouldn’t be too much of a concern. If I remember rightly, most of them will have alighted by the time you get to Yverdon-les-Bains.

The fast route back to Zürich (skipping Geneva) will take between 2.75-3.0 hours.

>> Day 5: Zurich to Lucerne, Lucerne to Weggis by boat, Weggis to Rigi by cable car, Rigi to Virznau, Vitznau to Lucerne by boat, back to Zurich

The cable car from Weggis to Rigi Kaltbad is closed for maintenance from 3–27 Apr 2018. You can go up from Vitznau and down via Arth-Goldau if you like.

If you will be doing this trip on 1 April or 2 April, you could consider doing it in reverse. When I went up to the Rigi from Vitznau, the train was full on departure from Vitznau. Those joining the train at Rigi Kaltbad (from the cable car) had to stand (although it’s only about 12 minutes).

>> Day 6: Zurich to Bern, Bern to Interlaken, Interlaken to Lucerne, back to Zurich.

This would be a repeat of some of Day 4. I would skip Interlaken and travel from Zürich to Luzern (via Arth-Goldau for some nice lake scenery along the Zugersee), then to Bern via the Emmental (put via Trubschachen into your timetable search). That would take around 3 hours. I would then spend the day in Bern, before returning to Zürich by the fastest route.

Alpenrose

[Removed user]

28 January 2018 at 9:12:52 #875243

And with the kids, the 13 year old will be covered by a Swiss Family Card (free when ordered with Swiss Travel Pass). The 18 year old qualifies for a discounted youth version of the Swiss Travel Pass.

Have a great trip!

[Removed user]

28 January 2018 at 10:12:08 #875244

Thanks Lucas and Alpenrose666 for all you helpful advice.

Much appreciated.

Kind Regards.