MySwissAlps.com features ads, commercial and non-commercial Zurich to Rhine falls plus Zurich visit in 1 day?
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<<“You might want to read the last bit I wrote.”>>
I did and I’m interested. I’ve seen some of that region.
Have you visited this:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Fort_de_Pr%C3%A9-Giroud
http://www.myswitzerland.com/ en-us/the-pre-giroud-fortress-1939-1945.html
I found it quite interesting.
Slowpoke
<“forget everything. i need a do-over. Im so jealous. just adopt me please. lol
thanks for all the info. i have a lot to plan. “>>
It is actually hard to go wrong with anything that you mentioned. Lots of people like the Rheinfall, and it is powerful and impressive. We rarely recommend Zürich because it is not near the Alpine scenery, but it is a nice town, full of interesting things for some tastes. Mine, in particular. I love the town. Once in Grindelwald, after some time at the tourist office and a look around to get a sense of the mountains, you could choose among all sorts of things. First is good. So are othr things. If you do look a t a map before you get there, it does help you get oriented more quickly. But, in fact, there is so much nice stuff that it will appear everywhere as you travel in the country.
You could simply pick one or two places for bases….the places that you picked are fine, then work out what your options for seeing various nearby things. It is a small country. The weather can be very different in different parts, because of the influence of the Alps, among other things. If I have bad weather, I look at the forecasts and may choose to go to another corner of the country where it is sunny.
The purpose of using the timetables and maps could be to try to cram everything in to every possible minute.
That is definitely not my intent. Rather, I hope that you can understand what is possible and interesting, and plan your time to see some of the county at a leisurely pace. The search function on this website lets you learn a lot about whatthere is to see and ways to see it. You can supplement it with more detailed information from your preferred sources.
Then, use the timetable to understand travel times. It lists trains, buses, boats, and the cableways which are public intercity ( town, village) transport.as well as many others.
Since I have been there a lot, and constantly learn about new places on this forum ( which I can sort of stick onto the map mentally , so to speak) I have ahead start on you, but the travel time planning is the same for anyone.
Slowpoke
Lisa, I never quite figured out if you are actually travelling or if you are just organising a trip for the boys?
To add my twopennyworth to the Niagara and Rheinfall discussion! In 2001 we spent some time with our daughter who was doing some post-doc research at Guelph University and we went to Niagara (the Canadian side). My husband and daughter both went on the Maid of the Mist boat but I declined. Preferred to admire from afar than be crammed into the boat the way they were! A few years ago we did a day trip to the Rheinfalls from Thun and we did the longest boat trip which took us right up to the falls then a river trip and back. Getting up close to those falls was a much more intimate experience in my opinion and I really loved it. So I enjoyed both experiences very much – they were very different and both worth while. Admittedly we have been lucky enough to visit Switzerland many times so have had time to include loads of different excursions so for a one-time only experience of Switzerland or a brief visit Rheinfalls may not be a “must do” but for those who do have time to fit it in then I would recommend it especially if you can do the river trip that we did. After all Switzerland is not just mountains and lakes and cities! River trips can be useful if the weather is overcast!
Maggie
I wish I was Going. All I do is work. Still working on my high schooler. I don’t get travel. …but now wish I did. That’s why I told slowpoke to adopt me. But you can adopt me too rockoyster. Imy son works long hours and doesn’t have time to research so im helping him.
Yes. I’m sure it would be great. But i thought he would be tired by the time he got to zurich and plans on doing everything… So its probably best to stay in zurich or go to lauterbrunnen on his way to lucerne… Before Zurich. Ill leave it up to him. He has so much. He should have stayed even longer.
Thanks to everyone on these forums he will have a great itinerary!
What a good mum you are! 😇
I’m not going. Im only the “planner”. Waaaaaah. But now its my new goal. I think he would really love the falls u suggested …its sort of on his way to lucerne from Grindelwald. I’m thinking we will leave his Zurich..his last day..to stroll around the city. Thank u 🙂
Yes. I live for them. I do for them what I never had. l promised myself they will both be professionals with the ability to have a decent life, with Gods help. Maybe one day. I will follow this itinerary. You never know right? 3.5 years of high school left.. Then college. I will be 58 by then. My boys will bring me im sure. see you then!
Hi Maggie-
<<“Admittedly we have been lucky enough to visit Switzerland many times so
have had time to include loads of different excursions so for a
one-time only experience of Switzerland or a brief visit Rheinfalls may
not be a “must do” but for those who do have time to fit it in then I
would recommend it especially if you can do the river trip that we did.
After all Switzerland is not just mountains and lakes and cities! River
trips can be useful if the weather is overcast!”>>
You have expressed my point, and much more gracefully.
If you have short time in Switzerland, and it is your first trip especially, it is my opinion that you should be seeking the most uniquely “Swiss” things that you can find within your time constraints. I this case, in my opinion, that is the Jungfrau Region, the Luzern area, Zermatt, the lower Engadine
That is what leads me into these grumpy discussions. 😉
To amplify on how priorities can vary with experience level, here is a sampling where I will stay on my upcoming trip to Switzerland in May.
You will note that very little of it is on our list for first timers.
Zürich – arrival night plus one other night
Sumiswald
Madiswill
Luzern- to eat at Ralph Thomas’ restaurant to confirm that his talents have carried over from his place in Dallenwil and to get laundry done at Jetwasch.
Rigi Kaltbad
Sugiez
Schwarzsee
Fribourg
Ligerz
An undecided day, but hoping to get the Gotthard train with the camera car if the jigsaw puzzle of places and times fits together
2 nights Zürich.
Depart.
Lisa has said that the travelers like hiking and photography.
As a consequence, I’ll be spending a bit of time on where that might fit in to their trip.
As an experienced Swiss traveler, would you recommend the Rheinfall instead of the mountainous regions or old towns to a first time traveler who likes to hike and wants to get some memorable photos? I would not, as you might have noticed.
There are many definitions of quality, but the one that comes to mind in this case is ‘Quality is to consistently exceed the customers expectation.”
That is what I try to do with my recommendations, based on my perception of the needs and backgrounds that the customer has expressed. Not based on where I will go personally on my trips to Switzerland.
If they like jodeling, I’ll look for Jodler fests.
Lisa wondered about fitting in the Rheinfall. I grumpily said the there were things that I would recommend instead that are more characteristically Swiss, and do not have comparable sights elsewhere in the world..
I tried to put it in terms that New Yorker could relate to. That is how Niagara came into the discussion.
I think we may have beaten this one to death. I’ll concentrate on embellishments that might be optional on the planned itinerary.
Grumpy Slowpoke
You wrote “My boys will bring me im sure. see you then!“
I’m sure they will fall in love with the joint and take you to Switzerland one day. But to see me they will need to bring you to Australia. 😎
Hey Grumpy,
You wrote “I think we may have beaten this one to death.“
I’m not sure, I thought I just saw it twitch. Give it one more hit. 😁
Slowpoke said << If you have short time in Switzerland, and it is your first trip especially, it is my opinion that you should be seeking the most uniquely “Swiss” things that you can find within your time constraints. I this case, in my opinion, that is the Jungfrau Region, the Luzern area, Zermatt, the lower Engadine >> and then, after getting in his last word, said << I think we may have beaten this one to death.>> Rockoyster then suggested << I’m not sure, I thought I just saw it twitch. Give it one more hit.>>
This was probably an invitation to Slowpoke, but I am going to state my humble opinion and then go away. I will preface this by recalling some of the Geography we were taught when we were in our early elementary school years. I loved it, of course, but I must say I came away with a very simplistic and somewhat romantic view of the world. Maybe my teachers were partly to blame, but they were just following the textbook. So I had this idea that Africa, for example, was this huge continent with jungles from sea to sea, and that all the kids in Norway went to school on their skis. Gee, maybe that explains why the Norwegians did so well in the recent Olympics. Anyway, my point is that we had a very distorted view of what many places in the world were like. I say all this because I feel that the physical and cultural diversity of Switzerland is ignored far too much, this because a huge emphasis is placed on certain areas (which I agree are wonderful to see) and very little is said about other areas that are also part of Switzerland. I believe that to fully appreciate the amazing diversity of this country, travelers, even during their first visit, should go to the mountainous regions (mostly in the Swiss-German part) for sure, but they should also go to the Italian part (Ticino) and the Romand part (Geneva, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura, and also the French speaking parts of the bilingual cantons of Berne, Fribourg, and the Valais. Whenever I do see anything about Romandie (the French-speaking part of the country) it is usually limited to Montreux, the Château de Chillon, the Lavaux vinyards, and, of course, cheese in Gruyères and chocolat in Broc. I can’t even remember reading any recommendations about the Ticino. Mind you, I don’t read all of the threads, this for the simple reason that many of them seem to me to be repetitive. But I do, almost every day, read the titles of the new threads in case there is something somewhat different where I feel I can contribute. I know that our travelers are more sophisticated than elementary students, even fifth graders, but I do wish that when they leave Switzerland, even if they are first time visitors, and even if they don’t have a huge amount of time available, they have experienced more than Slowpoke’s << the Jungfrau Region, the Luzern area, Zermatt, the lower Engadine >> One cannot really know Switzerland if one doesn’t visit all the regions. Alors, s’ils vous plaît, venez visiter la Romandie, e dovresti anche andare in Ticino ! Part of the reason I feel this way is because I feel that meeting and interacting with different people is very important to me. I leave you with an image that sums up the diversity of Switzerland.
Attachments:
Hi Peterli-
<<“One cannot really know Switzerland if one doesn’t visit all the regions. Alors, s’ils vous plaît, venez visiter la Romandie, e dovresti anche andare in Ticino ! Part of the reason I feel this way is because I feel that meeting and interacting with different people is very important to me. I leave you with an image that sums up the diversity of Switzerland.”>>
I agree completely. And, I agree that the Ticino is also within easy reach, and offers the wonderful rail trip over the Gotthard Pass ( uniquely Swiss) and beautiful lakes (shared with Italy). And, there are many beautiful and scenic places in Romandie that are within reach. Montreux comes quickly to mind. There could be a loop from Luzern to Interlaken/Grindelwald to Montreux to Zürich, for example. Not to mention the diversity and history ( of the Reformation, for one example) in Geneva. Time in the Emmental, to pick one region that is not in Romandie, might contribute to that goal. Especially so if your background includes knowledge of the Anabaptists, or you have lived in or near the “Pennsylvania Dutch.”
Reading books about how Switzerland works, and its history offers quite intriguing insights into how the people interact, and their unique political system. I did not start to read until after I’d traveled enough to decide that the Swiss culture deserved deeper understanding. I wondered how it could work so well, thinking about the comparative examples of Ireland and Belgium. It took quite a few trips before that happened and I began to dig into the available literature.
Harkening to my first extensive trip to Switzerland with my partner, in 1989, in two weeks we landed in Zürich, stayed in Liestal, saw Roman ruins, stayed in St. Gall, saw the Abbey library and the remains of a Jodlerfest ( unplanned) , Ftan, Bettmeralp, with a hike by the bisse between Haut Nendaz and Veysonnaz, Kandersteg, Locarno, Flüelen, Beckenried, Luzern, Brienz, visited Wengen. Passed through Gruyeres, stayed in Glion, flew home from Geneva.
I did not find my itinerary, but have looked at the labelled Kodachromes and Ektachromes in the sequence that they were cataloged. The exact order may be a bit confused at the end. Did it all by public transportation. By 1989, I had been working a few weeks each year in Versoix and traveling to customers around Europe. Weekends in easy reach of Versoix ( Geneva) tended to explore Cantons Vaud, Neuchatel, Jura. So, I wanted to see some of the other corners of the Federation, and she was willing to make a lot of short stays or one night stays. Once.
The objective was to pick places for future visits. We knew beyond doubt that we would go back. I had work in Geneva until about 2003, and we went back many times. Once, we spent almost two weeks around Luzern and the lake. But, we never did that kind of whirlwind tour again. Exhausting. Lacking in any but the slightest understanding of the culture. Saw the sights, actually spent time with a few people ( speaking English, almost exclusively). Ein Bisschen Deutsch. It took all those years to begin to achieve the goal that you express. You are aware that I have learned a lot about the goals you define. It is hard to do that in 5 days, especially since the Alpine scenery is justly famous and pretty much has to be on the list.
Switzerland is small enough to “cover” all of those places we focused on, as well as the ones you correctly note are missing, and many more in the 5 day time allotted. You have surely noted the number of visitors that do try to “cover” everything in 2 days. Because it is possible does not mean that it is a good idea, especially from the perspective that you illustrate so well. Even so, we help people who want to do that.
You write:
<<“Part of the reason I feel this way is because I feel
that meeting and interacting with different people is very important to me.”>>
It is difficult to do that in a 5 day trip.
So, we look at the visitor’s proposed itinerary for a start. We almost always ask for a proposed itinerary if we spend any time on a thread.
We work from the customer’s starting point. From my perspective, the time allotment to Luzern and the Berner Oberland is better than seeing a bit of everything.
Specifically, given Lisa’s proposed 5 day time allotment, indicating a preference for the Alpine and Central Swiss regions, how would you include the French or Italian or Romansch speaking cantons?
Slowpoke
PS- That is a very nice display of the die Wappen. The most attractive that I have seen. However, I do wonder that you did not choose to say ” blason” or “armoiries” or, even, “coats of arms” of the cantons.
😉
Hi Peterli: Just wanted you to know that I really did appreciate the analogy given by slowpoke but i do understand what you mean. When i had the Rheinfalls on the agenda, it was going to be on there as an “option” but i didnt think my son would do it because its the very last day of his trip from italy to Swiss and he was going to be doing a lot of mountains before zurich. I originally tried to talk him out of Zurich based on everyones suggestions – after telling them my son loves hiking and photography. The most important thing is that he gets to see Switzerland which he has dreamed about for so long. And being from the city- he should probably spend more time seeing unique and different areas with his only 5 days. But since he told me he wanted to see Zurich – i threw that in there ( Plus he leaves from zurich airport). He really should have gone for longer but his cousin couldn’t take more days off. I appreciate everyone’s opinions including yours. I base my decisions on how people view things and what they like in comparison to my sons personality. If i feel my son has similar views I consider it. I’m sure my son would absolutely love the Rheinfalls but i also think he would have to leave Lucerne very early to go to the hotel drop his luggage in Zurich- get back on the train- explore Rheinfalls and the area-rush back to zurich (probably exhausted) and then start his 3-4 hour walking tour of Zurich and then there the boat he wanted to do. I want him to have his last day to take his time and go through all the side streets and appreciate the sights….since the entire trip is a rushed mountain to mountain thing. One day I hope to go there with my sons and I will definitely take 3-4 weeks, if possible, because I too- absolutely love the mountains etc. He grew up hiking with me in the mountains upstate NY- I would even be crazy enough to do skydiving. I did it here 3 years ago. It must be awesome to skydive over the mountains somewhere. Best view im sure!!!
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