Atul58

We are planning to visit Switzerland France and London from June 20, 2009 to 10/11 July 2009. We are 6 adults (2 couples + 2 young daughters (adults)).

Our tentative plan is as follows.

Arrive at Zurich
transfer to Interlaken (or nearby place) (Train / Road ?)
take an apartment for 6 ( Booking in advance to be done) for 7 nights
Visit all tourist attractions from Interlaken (Jungfrau, Mt.Titlis etc)
Go to Zermat (1 night ?)

I also wish to have a train journey (Golden Pass or Bernina or Glacier Express ?? which is best)

Go to Geneva ( or nearby place ?) ( Hotel / B&B ?)
Visit CERN (near Geneva) (One day tour)
Go to Nice (2 nights ?) Monte Carlo etc. (Hotel / B&B ?)
To Paris by TGV
4 Nights in Paris in Apartment
To London by EuroStar
4 Nights in London with one day trip to Cambridge or Oxford (Apartment in London)
Tour London City
Back to India

Which Swiss Rail Pass to buy ?
What about TGV and EuroStar ( Best Deals ?)
How to tour Nice, Monte Carlo, Paris, London, Cambridge ?
Where to take apartment ? In central city or outskirt with nearby tube station ?

Please give advise / tips and suggestions. How can I make best of my trip ?

Thanking in advance

swandav2000

Hi Atul58,

There is a train station in the basement of the Zürich airport, so getting started by train is ultra-easy. Just pile your bags onto a luggage cart (or three!) and wheel them all the way down to the basement, using either the escalators or the elevators.

The best villages in the area do not allow cars, and you can't get to the mountaintops by car either. So really using the train is your best option all around. You can get all the train schedules and fares at this site:

www.rail.ch

Before you buy any Pass, you should make sure that it would be economical for you. You need to get the fares for all your likely trips, then compare the sum to the various passes. Don't know if you've found it, but an overview of all the Passes is at

www.swisstravelsystem.com

I'll add that I usually get a Half Fare Card for my own trips. It costs 99 chf and gives you half off of every train, ferry, and cable car for one month.

I think your destination should not be Interlaken, particularly in late June, when the tour busses really start to get going. They'll take over all the streets while all the passengers will take over all the sidewalks. In comparison, the car-free villages will remain peaceful and quiet. Take a look at Wengen and Mürren as a base, with information at

www.myjungfrau.ch

It's a bit too far to get to Titlis, I believe. But with all the mountains around you in the Jungfrau region, you won't really feel that you're missing anything.

The Glacier Express is an eight-hour trip that links St. Moritz and Zermatt, and does not fit into your itinerary.

The Bernina Express is about two hours and runs between St. Moritz and Tirano and also does not fit into your itinerary.

The Golden Pass Panoramic runs between Interlaken and Montreux on Lake Geneva, and it does fit nicely into your plan. You can get more information at

www.goldenpass.ch

Finally, you can get great discounted fares on the TGV if you buy your fares 90 days in advance; however, they sell out quickly so you need to be quick. You can get the fares at these sites:

www.tgv-europe.com
www.voyages-sncf.fr

Have fun!

s

Atul58

Thanks for a swift reply,

I am staying for about 7 nights, even then is it not possible to include Bernina or Golden Pass ? Please elaborate and oblige

Once again thank you for your help and I am looking forward for more help from you.

Mimar

For your apartment rentals look at www.slowtrav.com. And hurry. This is very short notice for renting in June or July. In the Slow Travel rental reviews people rate their experience with rental agencies. Pick an agency that sounds good for that area and call them on the phone. They'll know the last minute availability.

In general, I believe in staying in as central a location as possible. Time spent commuting is time out of your vacation. And if you're central, just walking around is interesting. Plus it's easy to drop back to your apartment for a break.

But it's hard to find apartments for 6 in central London and Paris.

swandav2000

Hi again,

I did say you could easily do the Golden Pass; it is the Glacier Express with the Bernina that do not fit into your plans -- because they are simply too far away. If you added them to your itinerary, you would spend all your time in trains when you would be happier (imo) with your feet on the mountain (instead of whizzing by them).

Remember that every time you move, you lose about half of a day, what with the chores of packing up and checking out and then checking in and unpacking. So with seven days, having two destinations is okay, three destinations means you only have about a day and a half in each spot.

So if you arrive at Zürich, you go immediately to one of the car-free villages and stay for 3/4 days. You can spend your time seeing the peaks of the Schilthorn and the Jungfraujoch, exploring the city of Thun and its castle, maybe take a lake cruise on Lake Thun and/or Lake Brienz, and certainly take a nice walk on an Alpine trail every day.

Then take the Golden Pass train from Interlaken to Montreux on Lake Geneva, and stay there for 3/4 days. Plenty to do in the area -- vineyards to explore, castle Chillon to get lost in, cruises on the lake, lakeside villages of Lutry and Cully to see, town of Vevey also to see.

Then to Geneva, and to Nice.

So that's what was behind my post --

s

Atul58

Thanks to all and I shall come back for advise

Thanks once again