5 days in Switzerland - recommendations?
 

We will have 5 nights in Switzerland in mid May and want to stay in the Lucern, Interlaken area. Had thought 1 night Lucern, 2 interlaken and 2 lautobrunnen or Grindelwald. Would it be better to stay the whole time in Interlaken and use trains and buses to see the other places? We have a lease car but it can stay parked while we use other transport which I gather is great in Switzerland.
Thanks for any help.
Rosie:)

Since you have a leased car, I'd advise staying in Weggis (instead of Luzern) for two nights, Locarno/Ascona(or Lugano) for one night and Lauterbrunnen for three nights.

Hi Schuler!
I am not familiar with Weggis and I think Locarno is on the Italian side..is that right?
We are coming in from Austria and will be at the Swiss Lakes a month earlier.
Perhaps I need to check out the locations on Via Michelin.Thankyou
Rosie:)

Well, then how about this itinerary?
Day 1: Landeck - Martina, Sent, Scuol, Pontresina
Day 2: Davos, Sargans, Goldau, Weggis
Day 3: See Luzern. Go to Lauterbrunnen
Day 4: Lauterbrunnen
Day 5: Lauterbrunnen

We have no Swiss lakes region. There are huge lakes all over Switzerland. I think you mean the Tessin/Italian lakes.

Sorry to hijack this thread Rosie, but I'm hoping Schuler can help me with the most scenic route (yet still practical for 3 days)from Salzburg to Lucerne without ever going through Germany. It seems that going through Liechtenstein/Buochs would be rather boring, any better idea?

Hi RosieinOz---

Schuler lives in that part of Switzerland, so she knows what is at its best in mid-May, and for someone coming from Austria by car.

Hi DAX,

Enzian's right about my living here but sometimes I think she knows more about Switzerland than I do.

Three days isn't a lot. A lot of passes are still closed mid-May although they may open earlier this year because of the small amount of snowfall we've had.

The Liechtenstein area isn't boring. You still have beautiful mountains on both sides of the Autobahn and you'll see Sargans castle. A smaller castle but interesting to look at from outside and inside. My father's coat of arms is among the many painted on the walls.

If you want to see Luzern and the BO area, I'd recommend taking the direct route. Appenzell is always a nice stop that isn't far away from Lichtenstein.

You don't go through Germany although you'll be near it.

Hope this helps.

Thanks Schuler
Do you think basing ourselves in Interlaken is better and then spend days travelling out using buses and trains or is Lauterbrunen the nicest. If so, do you know a good reasonably priced place to stay?
I really appreciate the help...many of my australian friend have travelled but not to Switaerland!!
Thanks
Rosie :)

Thanks Schuler. I shall start a new thread (my apologies to Rosie) so I can ask you futher details about the route, please seek my posting: "Innsbruck to Luzern".

I stayed in Lauterbrunnen on my first trip to Switzerland last September. I really loved the town and its location. It was very convenient to get to all the little places around the Berner Oberland area, as well as to Interlaken to do some shopping. I loved it so much I'm going back the end of May. This trip I will also go to Locarno for 5 nights to see that region.
Martha

Hi Rosie--I can answer that one. Lauterbrunnen is much nicer than Interlaken---smaller, more charming, and more scenic. It sits in a lovely valley where you look up at cliffs, peaks, and waterfalls. Also, the accomodations are more reasonable. Two places that are often recommended here are Hotel Staubbach
http://www.staubbach.com/index2.htm

and Hotel Oberland
http://www.hoteloberland.ch/

If you search around here, you can probablay find plenty of information to help you decide between the two.

Lauterbrunnen and Interlaken are only 20 minutes apart by train. Lauterbrunnen is closer to the mountains, but still has very good connections (via Interlaken) to other areas.

Hi RosieinOz,
I'd just like to agree that staying in Lauterbrunnen is much nicer than staying in Interlaken. The scenery around Lauterbrunnen is beautiful! I've read good reviews of enzians suggestions also. You can always check www.tripadvisor.com to read reviews of places you're thinking of staying at.

Paul

Thankyou everyone...I am investigating those accomodation leads!
And DAX thankyou for the "Hijacking" I learnt a lot more with the help of your questions ..it was good to pool our lack of resouces! 8}
Happy travelling
Rosie

In May 2006, we stayed at the Oberland Hotel in Lauterbrunnen. It's right on the main road and convenient to everything. They also have hotel parking for guests and a very good restaurant. I believe our room was CHF 130 or, at that time, a little over $100. Not bad for Switzerland.

I'd also like to add that we spent 3 nights at the Oberland and did a day trip to Schilthorn (with a stop off in Murren on the way down). We also took one day and drove around Lake Thun, stopping in Spiez and Thun.

If you'd like to check out our pictures, go to webshots.com and search for "dkubiak Switzerland".