Switzerland Itinerary - cheese making?

Old Jun 20th, 2016, 05:12 PM
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Switzerland Itinerary - cheese making?

I would like to get some opinions on my trip to Switzerland. We would like to consider a cheese making experience/cheese tasting and maybe even a chocolate factory. However, the only place I could find that does both was in Broc and Grueyere. It is kind of out of our way in our itinerary and are willing to do it but if there are other options/suggestions that can fit in our itinerary it would be very helpful. I look forward to hearing from you all and I thank you in advance. See below for our itinerary. (We will be traveling with Swiss Pass):

• Day 1--> Arrive in Zurich in the morning.
○ Head to Lauterbrunnen Valley and drop off our bags at hotel (freshen up)
○ Go waterfall viewing in the valley
○ Staubbach Falls and Trümmelbach Falls
○ Spend the night in Lauterbrunnen Valley (hotel is already booked)

• Day 2 --> Grindelwald day trip
○ Ziplining & Alpine sliding
○ Debating about Alpine sliding in this area or in Mt. Pilatus area
○ Spend night in Lauterbrunnen Valley at the same hotel

• Day 3 --> Head to Broc and Grueyere
○ Check out of our hotel in Lauterbrunnen Valley and head to Chocolate factory in Broc
○ Cheese factory in Grueyere
○ I heard there is no rail between Broc and Grueyere so you have to go back to the junction point
○ Need to figure out luggage situation for this day
○ From Grueyere, head to Chur and spend the night in Chur
○ Spend the night in Chur (already booked hotel)

• Day 4 --> Bernina Scenic Express ride (already reserved and paid for)


So basically, need suggestions for Day 3.
Done with our trip in Switzerland.
viranpooja is offline  
Old Jun 20th, 2016, 09:08 PM
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Hi virinpooja,

Well, day 3 will be a very long day on the trains. The trip from Lauterbrunnen to Broc-Fabrique (note the name of the train stop nearby the chocolate factory) will take almost 3h, and the trip from Gruyeres (again, note the correct spelling) to Chur will take 4h. So that will be a very, very time consuming excursion.

But if you want to do it, then you want to do it! If you go ahead with the plan, note the correct spelling of both towns/stops so that your searches for transportation will get you the correct results. And of course there is transportation between Broc-Fabrique and Grueyres. Use the Swiss rail site at

www.sbb.ch

to find all the options for your day.

The chocolate factory is the Cailler factory, and here is the website to see the opening hours and the prices to enter:

https://www.cailler.ch/en/maison-cai...aterie-suisse/

I've also heard that there can be a wait as long as 2h in the summertime for a tour, so that could also add to the time cost of this trip.

You can send your luggage ahead on the train using the Express Luggage service of the SBB. Here is more information:

http://www.sbb.ch/en/station-service...s-luggage.html

However, you have to pick up your baggage after 18.00, and the luggage office at Chur closes at 18.30 weekdays (17.30 weekends), so you have a very small window of time to be able to get your bags. I really don't think you'll be able to get to Chur by 18.30 because of the long distances you'll be travelling. You could bring along a small overnight bag, and pick up your cases the next morning before you depart on the Bernina Express. The Luggage office opens at 06.50, so you may be able to get your cases then.

Another option would be to leave Lauterbrunnen in the evening of Day 2 and travel to Gruyeres or Bulle and spend the night there; that would give you more time in the morning to see everything and get to Chur in time to see something of Chur.

Anyway, have fun as you plan!

s
swandav2000 is offline  
Old Jun 20th, 2016, 09:18 PM
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Ooops, even while telling you to be careful of the spelling of each town's name, I see that I misspelled one town one time.

Please note the correct spelling is

Gruyeres

Sorry for the confusion!

s
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Old Jun 21st, 2016, 07:59 AM
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You told us in a previous post that on day 4 you wanted to leave Chur at 8.32 by Bernina Express to Tirano and start there at 2pm a 8 hrs taxi ride to Bormio - Stelvio Pass - Gluorn - Reschen Pass - Landeck - Innsbruck - Salzburg.

I don't think that it's a good idea to make day 3 as stressing as day 4.

But if your group of 10 pax likes stress, it's possible:

Lauterbrunnen dp 7.03 by train to Interlaken (change) - Berne (change) - Fribourg (change) - Bulle ar 9.42. Put your luggage into the lockers. Bulle dp by train 9.52 to Gruyeres ar 10.00. Go to the cheese diary first because cheese making shows end at 11am. Go then to the medieval city and the castle, try to have lunch at Gruyeres in the short time at your disposal, go back to the railway station and take a direct train to Broc (every hr).
Leave Broc at 17.36, fetch your luggage at Bulle, go on at 18.20 and arrive at Chur at 21.52 (train change at Fribourg and Zurich).
Things would be much easier if you could leave Lauterbrunnen the evening before, as proposed above.

The optimal solution could like as this, however:

Day 2:
Lauterbrunnen dp 17.03 via Golden Pass line (instead of the boring line via Berne) to Montbovon ar 20.20. Sleep at the hotel at Montbovon.

Day 3:
leave your luggage in the hotel, take the 8.40 train to Gruyeres, do the whole Gruyeres-Broc thing, leave Broc at 18.36, fetch your luggage at Montbovon, go on via scenic Golden Pass line to Montreux ar 20.13 or 21.07.

Day 4:
Leave Montreux at 6.36 via Milan to Tirano ar 12.52 Tirano dp by Bernina Express 14.26 - Chur 18.20/19.09 - Sargans 19.27/19.37 - Innsbruck ar 22.16
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Old Jun 21st, 2016, 08:52 AM
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<Cheese factory in Grueyere>

When in Grueyere I suggest you also visit the castle there. It's magnificent! http://www.la-gruyere.ch/en/gruyeres-castle.html
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Old Jun 21st, 2016, 02:15 PM
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swandav2000 - thank you so much for the helpful information. You are right, it seems like it's too much. And I was thinking that when I posted this post, which is why I actually posted. Wasn't sure if there are other alternatives to trying authentic cheese/chocolate, food tours, etc. in other places that may be in our way instead of "out" of our way. We really do not care to see the factory...but would rather just like to eat some real good cheese..and if we can see it made that would just be a bonus

neckervd - thanks for the alternatives. My previous posts were tentative plans and now our set plan is that from Tirano we will be taking a private taxi that we have already hired to take us to Innsbruck Austria. So we will be in Austria that evening in time for dinner


What about cheese/chocolate tours/places in Interlaken area? Perhaps that would be more in our way instead of out of our way?
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Old Jun 21st, 2016, 05:54 PM
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Have seen cheese making twice - one in Gruyere and once in the Netherlands Must admit that gruyere was less stinky than gouda - but both experiences were equally tedious (second NOT my idea).

Gruyere is a charming small town with an interesting castle and several nice restaurants overlooking the valley on the far side of the village. Plenty to do without watching someone oar a lot of milk around in a big vat.

After that and several other similar experiences (beer) the only one I would repeat is wine/champagne - which was actually interesting and not stinky. And I like drinking wine.

As for chocolate - I eat enough - don;t need an excuse to eat any more.
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Old Jun 21st, 2016, 09:01 PM
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Hi again,

I just did a google search of "cheese making Interlaken," and I got a few interesting hits. Here is one that came up --

http://www.interlaken.ch/en/explore-...n-habkern.html

It sounds like waaaay more fun than the one at Gruyeres!

Have fun!

s
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Old Jun 22nd, 2016, 03:43 PM
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Svandav2000 - thanks so mcuh for finding that. I will look into contacting them. I also contacted another company in Interlaken and hope to hear from them too!!!
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Old Jun 24th, 2016, 10:13 PM
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I know that you prefer the taxi ride to the train Tirano dp 13.40 - Innsbruck ar 20.02.
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Old Jun 25th, 2016, 04:18 PM
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Check out Luegibruegelli (sp?) restaurant in the Interlaken 'suburb' of Unterseen. It comes with HIGH recommendations for their superb Swiss cheese dishes in a resto with a view. It may satisfy your cheese tooth!
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Old Jun 25th, 2016, 04:19 PM
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...bruggli
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Old Jun 25th, 2016, 06:32 PM
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Thanks Mokka4 for the recommendation!! Appreciate it

Neckervd - it probably has a few stops/transfers in between right?
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Old Jun 26th, 2016, 06:11 AM
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Luegibrueggli is a bus stop between Interlaken and Beatenberg.

Yes, Tirano - Innsbruck all along the extremely scenic Inn Valley cannot be done without train changes at 3 tiny stations: Pontresina, Scuol-Tarasp, Landeck
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Old Jun 26th, 2016, 04:34 PM
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I could not find any restaurant named "Luegibruegelli" or is that the town name?
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Old Jun 26th, 2016, 10:53 PM
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I found it with 1 click:

http://www.luegibrueggli.ch/
http://www.hri.ch/en/hotel-restauran...anton-bern-ch/
http://www.hri.ch/en/hotel-restauran...anton-bern-ch/
http://www.gruezi-beatenberg.ch/hote...-luegibruggli/
http://www.luegibrueggli.ch/aktuell-...ffnungszeiten/
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Old Jun 27th, 2016, 05:57 AM
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Just got back from two weeks in Switzerland. We had the 15 day Swiss Travel Pass, and did Broc and Gruyere as a daytrip from our Lake Geneva base of Auberge de la Gare in Grandvaux. I will second the opinions about watching cheese making not being all that interesting--a good video on the process is better than actually sitting through it. On our daytrip, we toured Maison Cailler in the morning (found that to be a good experience), the hopped the train to Gruyeres (yes, we doubled back through Bulle, but we didn't even change trains). Since we had the Swiss Pass, admission to the cheese making demonstration at Gruyeres was covered, but we ended up not sitting through much of it--it was tedious, and rather warm up in the observation area. Glad we poked our heads in since it didn't cost us anything (and I did enjoy seeing the cave and the automated machine they use to rotate the wheels of cheese), but it was the least interesting part of the day, behind Maison Cailler and the old village of Gruyeres.
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Old Jul 3rd, 2016, 02:02 PM
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Thanks neckrv for the links. I appreciate it


twk - thanks for that. Hope you had a great time in Switzerland!!! We have decided to take that part out after reading all this and are now thinking the following as the itinerary:

• Day 1--> Arrive in Zurich in the morning.
○ Head to Lauterbrunnen Valley and drop off our bags at hotel (freshen up)
○ Go waterfall viewing in the valley
○ Staubbach Falls and Trümmelbach Falls
○ Spend the night in Lauterbrunnen Valley (hotel is already booked)

• Day 2 --> Interlaken
○ Eat at the above mentioned restaurant
○ Lake Brienz - perhaps jet boat ride
○ Spend night in Lauterbrunnen Valley at the same hotel


• Day 3 --> Grindelwald day trip
○ Ziplining & Alpine sliding
○ If we still have time then may add in Gimmelwald or Wengen??
○ Head to Chur and spend the night in Chur
○ Spend the night in Chur

• Day 4 --> Bernina Scenic Express ride (already reserved and paid for)
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