Start with a google search.
http://goeurope.about.com/od/switzerlandtravelguide/tp/swiss_guides.htm

You can buy these books more cheaply at www.abebooks.com or Amazon.

If you can't for delivery, buy one book at the local bookstore and start studying. My personal choice is the Green Michelin Guide. Excruciating detail and a map that gives you perspective on where you're going. However, the Green Guide might not be for newbies if it's your only book.

Lucerne is a nice city with a beautiful view.

Decide if you're taking day trips or staying in other locations. Check out rail passes. Check back with this forum in a day or two with more questions.

For a first trip to Europe, I found Rick Steve's books to be an invaluable source of information.
Because he focuses on the most popular tourist destinations and sites, there isn't an overwhelming amount of information. In fact, you could digest it quite easily in 3 weeks.

I also like his very practical tips and opening times, and "how best to get there" suggestions.
No beautiful photos, but once you determine what you want to see, of course you can do further research, complete with pictures, on the Internet.

Rick Steves books are available on line ie kobo, iBooks, etc.

Switzerland is the most beautiful country for visiting and spending spare time to relief from daily working tension. It is great tour for spending some time of life on enjoyable moments.
Before to go on tour, you need to get all the essential information of routs, time, budget etc.

Hi there
Luzern is the German (guenine) name for Lucerne (English and French spelling).
You can get a lot of information on www.luzern.com
The little city with the great old town and the mideaval city wall around it lies on lake Lucerne, one of the most interesting lake systems I ever saw.
There are many excursions you can do in the area, for exemple look at
- www.verkehrshaus.ch
- www.gletschergarten.ch
- www.rigi.ch (my personal favorite)
- www.stanserhorn.ch (with the historic funicular and the brand new cabriolet cable car)
- www.pilatus.ch
- www.titlis.ch
- www.klewenalp.ch
etc etc etc
You will be at one of the nicest places in Switzerland
Have fun
pore

Hi OFL,

It's much easier than you think, as you only have 5 days to visit a small country.

Will you have anytime for an overnight? If so, you and DH should head for Interlaken and views of the Alps.

You might be able to get to http://www.jungfrau.ch/en

You could easily do one day in Zurich and another seeing Lucerne by yourself.

Enjoy your visit

Just the sort of help I was hoping for.. thanks everyone.

Please direct me to the best information sources for travel in Switzerland, on line or otherwise,>

IMO - www.swisstravelsystem.com; www.sbb.ch (Swiss Federal Railways site); http://www.budgeteuropetravel.com/id3.html and www.ricksteves.com. Be sure to hop the steamer boats on Lake Lucerne - best rip IMO is to Fluelen at end of fjord-like part of Lake Lucerne and then take the train quickly back to Lucerne. A 4-consecutive-day Swiss Pass for you could be a great deal - cover your own two days and then farther afield trips like to the fabulous Jungfrau Region above Interlaken and back to airport. The Jungfrau Region is the essence of the Switzerland dreamy picture etched in many folks' eyes' minds - glacier-girdled peaks rising above idyllic cow-studded meadows with alpine lakes and a myriad of toy-like mountain trains and thrilling aerial gondolas - hiking paths for all degrees of difficulties, etc. - The highlight both literally and figuratively IMO of Switzereland and just a few hours from Lucerne - take the scenic rail route over the Brunig Pass (part of the fabled Golden Pass rail route) from Lucerne to Interlaken and then head for the hills and ensconce yourself in perennial favorites mountain villages like Wengen or Grindelwald where your hotel balcony will offer intoxicating views of the awesome Jungfrau Massif rising thousands of feet from the valley floor.

go to your library and get a fodors or frommers book, or buy one..

they will give you the info you need..

lucern is a fab little town and you will take up your days just wandering around or sitting by the lovely lake

thanks roadbus...its IN 3 weeks, not for that long...darnnit!

You all have been incredibly helpful. Heading out to get books and maps now. Thank you again!

One of my favorite places in Switzerland is called Engelberg. It is up the mountain from the village of Stans on the south side of Lake Lucerne. If you will have use of a car, I suggest you Google Search Engelberg and map it from Lucerne. Engelberg is a tiny village with ski lifts up to Trube See and a longer lift to Titlis where you will find snow even on a hot day. The lift up to Trubsee on a clear day is spectacular and if by chance it is cloudy on the ground, you will break above them to an awesome sight. You can also walk to some specticular waterfalls from Engelberg, just ask for directions. I have been to this village three times and my son and his family went last year and loved it. We stay over night at Sporthotel Eienwaldi which has a campgrounds and pool as well as rooms. It is extremely clean and it also has a small grocery in the hotel. The price is not as extreme as most Swiss accomodations. Hope you have a GREAT time! (P.S. leave a bit of time to visit Stans, it also very nice with a great view of Lake Lucerne) Lyn in Michigan

f Lake Lucerne) Lyn in Michigan - ever been to Lucerne, Michigan - just a few miles from my Roscommon abode!

Take 3 weeks to digest a book. Most travel guides can be covered in a day or two. Except the Michelin gree - which might take a week of you really studied it. Good lord - do you memorize the books versus reading them.

(I had always assumed about 60 pages an hour is a reasonable reading rate for something that's light - not dense - like a physics text or something. And travel books typically have very large type, many chapter divisions and subhead for easy reading.)

I guess I'm a slow reader?

Sorry otherfoot, I didn't intend to infer it would take 3 weeks for you to read a book....

...didn't think you did, sundried'...

Just wanted to follow up- the conference has been moved so now I have a little more time to research. Many thanks to all who came to my rescue with advice; I will report back after the trip this fall.

Enjoy the planning and your trip.

Thanks!

Rick Steves "Europe through the Back Door" has a lot of information for the first time traveler to Europe.

I don't know if this will be seen, but will "have a go at it" to update.
Our previous trip, for which I promised a report upon return, was cancelled at the very last minute.
A new meeting has been called; this time in Basel in early February. The Rick Steves book that I purchased as a guide for the other trip ( to Luzern) doesn't include Basel, so I am once again looking for help to plan a trip.
I will have 3 partial days to explore Basel on my own, and there will be 3 extra days for us to take side-trips. We arrive and exit by air from Basel.
No skiing or sporting activities on the docket, but interested in museums, cultural activity, architecture and possibly the Basel Zoo if it is worth the time.
Also considering what day-trips would make the best use of our time; it seems that railway travel to other countries from Basel is not too difficult ( from a travel standpoint, anyway) but I wonder about trying it from a practicality standpoint...in other words- better to explore only Switzerland, or branch out to France and/or Germany since we will be nearby?..and then what cities would be best suited to a day trip?
Any suggestions for packing would also be appreciated; winter travel is outside my experience and I need to keep luggage to a minimum. I live in "The South", so I don't have "heavy" clothes for winter and would prefer not to buy them just for this trip.

Suggest that you start a new thread for optimal input (with updated title)!

It is easy to explore parts of Germany or France from a Basel base - Colmar - wonderful Colmar is a cute town that is about an hour into France from Basel - Freibourg Germany is another charmer that is about an hour or so.

Thanks mokka4- just thought I'd try this first to avoid redundency....

I agree about Colmar, but you may also like Mulhouse which has a very fine paper museum while Strasbourg centre is semi-medieval and a great cathedral.

Thanks for these ideas! NOw, are these towns reachable by rail from Basel?
By the way, I did start a new thread as suggested, but will continue to monitor here as well.