beachgg

My husband and I are arriving in Zurich on May 28th for 12 nights departing Basel on June 9th for a river cruise. We will have a Swiss Pass for all travel (no car). We would like feedback on itinerary, lodging and activities. We like to see and do a lot but also have some relaxing time. We don't want to pack too much into 13 days.

Zurich (2 nights) to get over jet lag and see key sights. Zum Storchen for lodging. Any recommended day trips, which might be pushing it for 2 days.

Lucern (3 nights) at Hotel Des Balances or Schweizerhof. Full day trip boat on Lake Lucern (Weggis, Rutli Meadow, Willem Tell); Lucern sights; trip to Mt. Pilatus; other suggestions.

Wengen (3 nights) at Beausite Park Hotel or Hotel Schonegg. Top of Jungfraujoch with stop in Grindelwald; Schilthorn with stop in Murren; discovering waterfalls in Lauterbrunnen--can you do this by walking; Interlaken with lake trip on Thun to see castles (Thun, Hilterfingen, Oberhofen). Is this too much for 3 nights? Should we expand to 4 nights?

Montreaux or Lausanne (3 nights)-need help wth location & lodging. Activities include a possible day trip to Geneva. Is it worth it? Gruyers via the Chocolate trian; Fribourg; Boat trip on Lake Geneva to see Chateau of Chillon; explore Lausanne & Montreaux; possible day trip to Neuchtel and/or Murten.

Basel (1 night) at Grand Hotel Les Trois Rois or a less expensive hotel. See the city sights and depart for river cruise.

We decided that we didn't need to go to the Matterhorn since we will be in BO seeing Jungfraujoch & Schilthorn. Does that seem reasonable?

mokka4

Seems quite reasonable. Of course, your mountain visiting days will not be locked in, as weather dictates which day may be clear and 'worth' the ascent.
I find Zurich often gets shortschrift on this board, but IMHO, I would use one FULL day to wander its lanes and get to quiet squares, sit in an outdoor cafe and people watch.

The other day, I would suggest a short boat trip to Rapperswil (always a nice perspective from the water), train 30 minutes home.
Rapperswil is at the southern end of Lake Zurich. Its skyline is beautiful, with castle (small Polish museum within, grounds with lovely view of mountains opposite), parish church dominating, deer park, extensive rose gardens along the waterfront, which should be in bloom then, Capuchin monastery and their small vineyard.

Main square below castle is quite picturesque.
IF you were still energetic, maybe a short train trip to the huge monastery of Einsiedeln....

PalenQ

as for lots of info on Swiss trains check these super IMO sites: www.swisstravelsystem.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

and be sure to take the Golden Pass scenic train between Interlaken and Montreux -panormaic coaches with unique swivel chairs to catch changing scenery from one side to the other (best however IME on south side of train in general.

Lausanne is a big modern city - most folks rave about Montreux and Vevey just a few miles from Lausanne.

mokka4

And yes, I would extend Wengen by a day. Trummelbach Falls can be walked to.
Again, weather will dictate which day to ascend the mountains. Most, if not all, have live cameras at the station below, to gauge conditions at the top.
Nothing worse than spending $200 to see nothing but thick white fog beyond your nose!

msteacher

You've received good advice above. If you have any interest in hiking, you'd probably enjoy another day in Wengen. Even if you don't want anything too rugged, there are many lovely long walks that are reasonably flat. Lauterbrunnen is in the valley, so all the walking there is flat so it's easy to see the falls.

If you do add an extra day In Wengen, I'd steal it from Luzern. Seems like you could fit your "to-do list" there into 2 nights. And yes, I'd opt for Montreux over Lausanne, especially given the activities you plan.

Overall, sounds like a great trip. Have fun!

PalenQ

Yes I agree another day in the Jungfrau Region - so much to see and do of a varied nature - Zermatt has much less of a varieyt of things to do - no lakes for boat rides like the two bookending Interlaken - no Ballenberg Open-Air Museum (overlooking Lake Brienz - very popular and free entry with a Swiss Pass if it is valid for that day!

aliced

Seems like a good itinerary. Lucerne Hotel des Balances very nice. We loved Museum of Transport on the lake. We took boat in front of train station and got off at museum, walked back on the most lovely afternoon. Wouldn't bother with Geneva unless you want to buy a $25K watch. Montreux, Vevey & Lausanne are gems. We stayed in Montreux right on the lake at a Best Western that was perfectly located with wonderful views, take escalator down fr train station. Eat at Le Rouvenaz few blocks down also lakefront. We stayed in Interlaken instead of Wengen or Murren, and were ok with that, it was not difficult or timely to get to mountaintops in the morning. We thought access to Bern important in case we were clouded in, luckily we were not. OK to skip Zermatt, of all our stops (Lucerne, Interlaken, Zermatt, Montreux) it was our least favorite. We too went totally by train and it was hassle-free. It will be fabulous. Food prices are high, be prepared for 100E for fondue for two.

aliced

p.s. Never took the chocolate train, our days in Montreux were spent in day trips to Lausanne & Vevey instead (easily combined via train or bus w free pass). Seemed too much like the Napa Wine Train (ties up too much time and money for an ok tourist attraction) -- you will find great chocolate all over Switzerland.

swandav2000

Hi beachgg,

For your time in Montreux, here are my suggestions --

Don't take the lake boat to Chillon to see it; the trip is just too short imo. Rather, walk the flowered lakeside path (about 45 minutes) from Montreux to Chillon to enjoy the scenery.

If you want to take a lake boat, I'd go from Montreux (or Chillon) to Vevey or to one of the wine villages of the Lavaux (Lutry, Cully, Rivaz, etc).

I would spend at least half a day exploring Vevey -- I love the winding streets in its old town right next to the lake, as well as the lakeside promenade with its fork in the lake and the statue of Chaplin.

You can easily combine the Vevey day with a day walking the vineyards of the Lavaux, either a short walk (Chexbres to Rivas) or a longer one (Lutry to Cully or to Rivaz).

You can take any train to Gruyeres to see the village and the cheese demonstration; you are not limited to the Golden Pass trains. In fact, you can see Gruyeres very easily when you are enroute from the Berner Oberland. That way, you'll save some time to see more things that are close to Montreux/Vevey. Though there is no luggage storage at either Gruyeres station or Montbovon station (where you change to go to Gruyeres), you can send your suitcases by the SBB's Fast Baggage service.

Have fun as you plan!

s

beachgg

Thanks for your comments! Where should we stay in Montreaux? Also restaurant recommendations for all stops would be great.

china_cat

We stayed at the Hotel Grand Suisse Majestic in Montreux, conveniently located across the street from the train station, and with great views of the lake. Not cheap, but not too bad (and probably easily in your budget, given your other accommodation choices).

Our trip was very similar to yours, so maybe you would like looking at my blog: http://switzerlandbytrain.blogspot.com/

The day we went up to the Schilthorn, we came down into Stechelburg. It is possible to walk from here, along the valley to Trummelback falls, and then walk back to Lauterbrunnen if you wish. We ended up taking the Post bus instead because it was raining. but it looked like it would have been a pretty walk along the river.

Wengen is great. We stayed at the Hotel Baeren, which has a very nice restaurant. Even if you are staying elsewhere, I would recommend it for dinner. Also, there is a restaurant called Da Sina, which had great pizza, and also a lot of Swiss specialties. It was very good.

My favorite dinner in Lucerne was at the Restaurant Stern in the Golderner Stern hotel.

I'm one of the few who thinks the Chocolate train was fun. Yes you can definitely do Gruyere and Broc more cheaply on your own, and with more flexibility. Yes, you can even book the lovely Belle Epoque train without doing the "Chocolate Train". But I liked the experience anyways.

Finally, we actually went to Zermatt on the day we traveled between Montreux and Wengen. Weather happened to be good that day, and it did mean a lot of time on a lot of trains (about 6 hours total train time, I think). But it was very much worth it. It's one of those bucket list things, I really wanted to see the Matterhorn. And it turned out to be one of the most gorgeous days of the whole trip. Sure,not strictly necessary, because Jungfraujoch is even better, but I was still glad I did both. its something to think about anyways.

swandav2000

Hi again,

What is your budget, and what are your priorities (view, value, service, etc)?

I've stayed at the Eden Palace au Lac (4 star), directly on the lake, two times and enjoyed it both times. I also recommend the Hostellerie Bon Rivage (3 star) in Vevey, also directly on the lake. I've stayed at the 4-star Hotel Victoria in Glion about 3 times, but it's a little inconvenient because it sits in Glion, above Montreux, and you have to take the funicular or the train down to Montreux. These days, I stay in an apartment.

Have fun!

s

shandy

Bookmarking. Some great suggestions here.

Dianedancer

You may want to read my thread
"Jungfraujoch - Why should we go or why should we not?" Just click on my name above.

When we first went to Switzerland we to the train directly to Bern from the Zurich airport. I love Bern! Spent 3 days there making side trips to Fribroug, Martel (medieval town), and yes, Vevey and Chateau du Chillon. Boat on Lake Geneva from Vevey to the Chateau. Easily done.

Then to Interlaken for 3 days. for all the mountain scenery. BTW - Love Schnigge Platte in Berner Oberland much more than Schilthorn.

Then took a train to Lugano and stayed for 3 days. Train back to Zurich for 1 day and then home.
Great trip.

Dianedancer

Please excuse typos in my post above!

Pepper_von_snoot

Sina of Da Sina and Herr Rene of the Hotel Schönegg have retired to Bern. They were a fabulous couple and will be missed.

It seems Chef Hubert Mayer is still in the kitchen. He is from the Schwarzwald and a very talented cook. He is probably the best chef in the BO.


Tschüß

Thin

swandav2000

I believe the medieval town Dianedancer is referring to is Murten, not Martel.

s

PalenQ

He is probably the best chef in the BO.>

based on what - our personal experience - do you work for Michelin - how do you qualify that statement - could say one of the best but THE best?

beachgg

Hotel Schönegg is closed until June 5th. I was plnning on being in Wengen from June 2-5th. Should I rearrange itinerary to stay there when it reopens? Where else do you suggest to stay in Wengen that is central and walking distance to restaurants?

PalenQ

If hotels are closed might not some or many restaurants be closed as well - hotels are closed when they cannot be profitable and owners take their own vacations or closed for repairs at a normall slack time. Does Wengen itself close down? That's the questions I would ask and I am not saying I know any of that but I would ask before staying there and possible have many things closed.