I'm new here and have been doing a lot of reading. Thought I might ask a direct question...

I'm backpacking through Europe, travelling by train. This question is for the Switzerland leg of the trip. I plan to go to Luzern and Berner Oberland. I saw people talk about Brienz, Murren, Wengen, Lauterbrunnen. How do I get to all these places? By rail and bus?

Appreciate any suggestions.

Hi Biak,

Yes, all of the places you mention are easy to get to by train. I haven't been to Brienz, so I can't be sure if it's linked by train or bus --

You can get all the train schedules and fares at the Swiss rail site,

www.rail.ch

Have fun!

s

This might be another silly question - where would you suggest I stay? I think I should base myself in one place and just move around by train - but where is the bestplace to stay?

Hi again,

It depends --

What time of year are you going? If you are going right in the season (either the dead of summer or the dead of winter), I would stay away from Interlaken and Grindelwald, which really fill up with tourists. If you are going between seasons, the mountain villages can virtually close down (especially in Nov). But basically, I favor the car-free villages of Wengen and Mürren to give you that full Swiss ambiance.

What kind of activities do you want? If you want lots of dining options, bars, and shopping, you should stay away from the smaller mountain villages and concentrate on a larger town or city like Interlaken or Thun.

What kind of landscape do you prefer? If you want to be at a lake, you should choose Interlaken, Brienz, Spiez, or Thun; if you want to be actually ON the mountain, you should choose Wengen or Mürren.

I think you ought to take some time and see some images of each of these places to see if one or another of them really appeals to you. You can get images online at either google images or at www.webshots.com.

Have fun!

s

HI B,

Train schedules and fares are at http://www.sbb.ch/en/index.htm

Check out the Swiss Pass.

Yes a Swiss Pass IMO is one of the greatest bargains in Europe esp if you are under 26 and can get the Youthpass.

If your backpacking includes hosteling, be cautious about places like Lauterbrunnen which fill up VERY quickly with young Swiss hikers. Plan in advance and think about reservations.

Thanks. Helps a lot.

I'm coming from Annecy (France) and moving on to the Dolomites in Italy. Want to stay in both Luzern and BO. Does this make sense? Which place do i stay first - Luzern or BO?

thanks s. want to confirm that I want to enjoy the beautiful scenery of switzerland so no shopping for me and as will be travelling alone, dining wouldn't be that interesting. just savor the views.

For any 'Europe Newbie' planning to travel by train and perhaps railpasses i always refer two superb sites that give tons of objective content in addition to the usual pass prices and an add to cart option: www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com - this site has on it their detailed European Planning & Rail Guide for free downloading and the chapter on Switzerland Swiss trains will help a lot i think. For Switzerland www.theswisstravelsystem.com links you to tons of info on scenic trains, lake boats, Alpine Wonderlands, train schedules, etc. and a lot of mouth-watering photos of fairy-tale looking Switzerland.