14 hour Zurich layover – What mountain to visit?

Hi Galigutt,

You can use the timetable that Lucas linked to in order to work out travel times.

If, heaven forbid, the weather is overcast and rainy then a trip up the mountains may not be worthwhile. Looking at the inside of clouds can be fairly dull. You need a Plan B for bad weather. You can always check the weather the day before you arrive at http://www.meteoswiss.admin.c h/home.html?tab=overview or check the webcams at http://www.rigi.ch/en/Informa tion/Webcams or http://www.pilatus.ch/en/nc/l ive/

For what it is worth I enjoyed Pilatus more than Rigi. Dress warm – it will be cold up top even if the sun is shining.

You don’t say what time your stopover in Zurich starts and ends – what time do anticipate leaving the airport and what time do you need to be back?

Hej,

As was stated above, a trip up any of the mountains in Switzerland is a waste of time and money if the weather is not cooperating, so a Plan B is a good idea if you don’t want to potentially waste the 14 hours that you have. In such a situation, I think that Zürich and/0r Luzern would be your best bet, but I leave it to you to do your own research and decide what is best for your interests.

If, on the other hand, it appears that the weather is going to be nice, then by all means go to one of the mountains. Rigi and Pilatus have great views (I would prefer Pilatus myself) and this is why they are so popular with many tourists from afar. However, there is another mountain you can get to from Zürich which is more popular with Swiss and German tourists, the Säntis. At 2502 M, it is considerably higher than either the Pilatus (2128 M ) or Rigi (1798 M).and if the weather is favourable you can see six different countries from up there: Switzerland (of course), Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, and maybe even Italy and France. Check the Roundshot on the Säntis a number of times to give yourself and idea of what the view can be like up there. saentis.roundshot.com/ When I was there in July (many, many years ago) it was cold and very windy, so just imagine what it is almost certainly going to be like by the end of November. You can also learn more about the Säntis by looking at this on Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ S%C3%A4ntis

Hi again,

The distance to the Säntis from Kloten is definitely greater than to the two other mountains that have been discussed. As you can see from the attached maps, it takes about 1 hr 22 minutes to get from Kloten (the train station is right under the terminal) to Urnäsch, with a change of train in Gossau, and the post bus ride from Urnäsch to Schwägalp takes about 25 minutes. So it is definitely do-able. However, because of the relatively short time you have, I would only consider this excursion if on the very morning all the weather predictions were calling for crystal blue skies. The same-day weather predictions in Switzerland are pretty good. Then and only then would I do it. Otherwise, I would determine if the weather for the Pilatus and the Rigi was going to be any better, and if not, I would swing into my “Plan B”. I agree with Slowpoke that it would be better to be doing a “Plan B” around Luzern on a poor weather day rather then over in the area around Saint Gallen. I would be sure to dress warmly in either case and would certainly bring along an umbrella. Luzern is one of the wettest cities in Switzerland.

Hi Alpenrose-

Those are useful pictures from Rigi Kulm. Nice to have a clear day.

May I have your permission to re-use them in the My Swiss Alps forum with attribution?

The view of the Zugersee in Nr. 1 and Nr. 2 reminds me of the nice walk around the larger wooded peninsula north of Immensee. A little rough in spots, but nice views of the lake and Rigi Kulm. The Lake Hotel Baumgarten on the southeeastern shore is locally popular for fish cooking. The lake boat docks right at the restaurant, so a relaxing excursion on the lake, from Zug for example, is possible.

The view of the Rigi from the restaurant is sort of the inverse of your picture.

Slowpoke

Hi Alpenrose-

Here are two more pictures of the Rigi, Küssnacht am Rigi, and the Zuger See, taken from Hammetschwand, on Bürgenstock.

One more angle on the northern slope of the Rigi.

Slowpoke

Thanks-

I always enjoy the walk to Hammetschwand along the Felsenweg from Bürgenstock, with the reward of great views and a nice meal, especially if it is a clear day. In addition the view toward Zug, you have nice views past Dallenwil in the direction of Titlis, and can look right at Pilatus. Thoughtful of

the Swiss to put a nice place to eat up there, as well. 😉

It is lot easier to get there these days, now that the funicular from Kehrsiten up to Bürgenstock is running again.

I’m sure that they are shut down at Hammetschwand for the Winter, now. Once the weather gets cold enough for snow, they close the Felsenweg.

Slowpoke