Hello again all, and thank you for the help so far! FYI I posted this yesterday but for some reason can't properly edit the post, so here I am again!
I have almost completed my itinerary for Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Scotland in late May/early June.

Main question I have is; what's the easiest (i.e. lea/st hassle) way to get from Lauterbrunnen to Munich? Ideally via train for beautiful scenery. Is the 7.5 hour train journey with 3 changes the best way to do it (can't rent a car unfortunately)?
Secondly, do the church bells keep you awake in Lauterbrunnen, hopefully we'll be ok with ear plugs
And if you have any suggestions on things to do in the below places, please let me know. We like: easy walks, beautiful scenery, lovely food, great sites, not a fan of museums or churches. Castles ok for Edinburgh
And yes - I've read Rick Steve's tips, watched videos, read reviews etc and am slowly learning more each day!

Thanks!

You don't need to edit a prior post -- just add to that thread as appropriate. Starting a new post doesn't necessarily serve you well. So please see those other posts:
https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...erary-1647486/
New itinerary - Switzerland, Germany, Scotland, tips welcome

trains, not cars, are definitely the way to get from Lauterbunnen to Munich.

The church bells didn't keep me awake in Lauterbrunnen; YMMV.

Please get a good guidebook for each location -- not just RS "tips" -- perhaps the Michelin Greens? The cost of a few decent guidebooks will be nominal in comparison to the cost of your trip, you will have a wealth of information at your fingertips, and you will have answers to questions you don't even know to ask.

Good luck!

As I mentioned on your earlier thread, church bells in Swiss towns usually begin at 7 am and stop at 10 pm. They've never deprived me of a good night's sleep.

However, I just read this on the BBC:

"A Swiss church can once again ring its bells throughout the night after a federal court overturned a legal decision to limit them to hourly peals.

The restriction was ordered in 2015 after a local couple complained about clangs between 22:00 and 07:00.

The 250-year-old Protestant church in Wädenswil, near Zurich, agreed to stop ringing the bells every 15 minutes.

But more than 2,000 residents campaigned against the decision, taking the dispute to the federal court .

The court, in Lausanne, overturned the earlier ruling on Wednesday, saying that reducing the number of night-time chimes would not have a significant effect on quality of life.

It also said that the nightly clanging was a part of Wädenswil's culture and local tradition, rejecting the result of a study that found the noise of the bells was loud enough to be disruptive if residents left their windows slightly open."

As for getting from Lauterbrunnen to Munich:

https://www.sbb.ch/en/buying/pages/f...fahrplan.xhtml

For lots on trains check for Switzerland www.sbb.ch - Swiss Railway's site and for Germany www.bahn.de/en - book German trains far in advance to grab limited number of discounted tickets - Probably some kind of pass is best for Switzerland - either Swiss Travel Pass or Berner Oberland Pass. For lots on Swiss trains and passes also check BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com. www.seat61.com also and especially for advice on booking German discounted tickets.

Check www.bahn.de/en for discounted tickets Lauterbrunnen to Munich and www.sbb.ch too and see which is best. Often does not pay to use a Swiss Pass on inter-country trains where discounts are often huge.

Bring ear plugs for obnoxious bell tolling if a light sleeper - very interesting discussion from melnq8.

Day 6:
Check whether a non refundable breakfast is already included in your room rate.
If you prefer to have breakfast in the dining car, it might be a good idea to book the table the evening before.
Day 9:
alternatives:
a. take tha plane: Lauterbrunnen dp 14.02 - Bern airport ar 15.54, dp 16.40 - Munich airport ar 17.40
b: go to Salzburg first: Interlaken dp 8.00 - Salzburg ar 16.03, change at Thun (same platform) and Zurich
c. go to Neuschwanstein first (7 1/2 hrs ride from Lauterbrunnen)
d. cross Lake Constance by boat (nice break in the middle of the journey)
e. go y overnight train (sleeping cars ) from Zurich dp 21.40 to Linz ar 6.00 and backtrack to Salzburg ar 7.48

If looking for a nice city to stop half way to Munich or Fussen Lindau is great and right on the way.

Thanks so much all for your input! Will mull it over and come back to this thread with any qs

thanks for the thanks!

neckervd-does Lauterbrunnen have an airport?

" neckervd-does Lauterbrunnen have an airport? "
No, but Berne-Belp, 37 miles away (2daily direct flights to Munich).

Thanks again!

Lucerne has a nice Lido but May may be too chilly for swimming for most - July much better.

You can take boats to the Lido, a few miles east of town and right next door to the popular Swiss Transport Museum which I found really interesting, Also a nice walk there along the esplanade lined by chic hotels.

Thanks again for all of the tips so far.

How difficult is it to breathe atop Mt Pilatus? My mother has high blood pressure, so we are reconsidering the Jungfrau/Top of Europe excursion, but Pilatus is a must for us.

Also, what's the difference between using SBB and DB Bahn to book our train journey - is one better than the other?

Thank you again!

Look at each site - sbb,com does not always give discounts, especially for trains going into Germany but www,bahnde/en does.

Pilatus is relatively low altitude

" what's the difference between using SBB and DB Bahn to book our train journey"

which train journey:
Interlaken - Munich?
Interlaken - Neuschwanstein?
Interlaken - Salzburg?

If it's Interlaken - Munich, you can do it
with only 1 train change (at Mannheim) but a longer journey,
with 2 train changes (at Berne and Zurich),
by train and bus (change from train to bus at either Berne or Zurich),
by bus only: Flixbus plans a new line from Grindelwald - Interlaken to Germany for this summer.
Flixbus is usually cheaper than trains; Bern - Munich fares start at 17 EUR/pax

If you are more than 1 people and want to do it cheaply, you may buy a Bayern Ticket (25 EUR for 1 adult, 31 EUR for 2 adults, 37 EUR for 3 adults, kids free) and travel in 1 day from Lindau (Swiss border) via Fuessen/Neuschwanstein up to Munich, may be like this:
Day 8: Interlaken dp 16.00 - Lindau ar 20.05 or Interlaken Ost dp 18.00 - Bregenz ar 22.10
Day 9: Lindau dp 7.25 - Fuessen ar 9.56 - Neuschwanstein Castles ar 10.13
or Bregenz dp 8.55 - Lindau dp 9.25 - Fuessen ar 11.56 - Neuschwanstein Castles ar 12.13
Neuschwanstein Castles dp 14,48, 15,45, 16.18, 16.40, 17.18, 17.50 or 18.50 - Munich ar 2 1/2 hrs later. You could continue up to Salzburg with the same ticket (5 hrs journey from Neuschwanstein dp. 14.48, 15.45, 16.40, 17.50).

Bavarian Ticket resricts you to rgional trains which is fine on this route as most of those trains to Fussen and Munich are regional. And be sure to get regional trains Lindau to Fussen and not ICE or any other faster train. That pass also comes in first class at not much more and regional trains can get crowded in 2nd class at times and first class bit more comfy - though regional rains are not nearly as comfy as high-speed trains.

PALEN, don't worry, all the trains I mentioned above are regional trains.
But I don't think that the OP minds prices too much as he plans to have breakfast in the dining car between Lucerne and Interlaken (17 USD/pax).

then first class is for them for sure!

Hey again, and thanks for your input!

No, I'm not too worried about price. We're only away for a few weeks so I'm happy to get the full Swiss experience.

However, the trains you mentioned above don't quite match what I was planning. I wanted to go from Lauterbrunnen to Munich in the same day. By using either the Swiss or German transport sites to estimate the times, this will take around 8 hours with 2-4 changes depending on what time we travel.

Do you think it's better to go Lauterbrunne > Interlaken > Munich? I'm finding it difficult to understand which site I should use, and which ticket to buy, and also if we should buy tickets now ahead of time or wait until the day?

Thanks again for your guidance!

" Do you think it's better to go Lauterbrunne > Interlaken > Munich? I'm finding it difficult to understand which site I should use, and which ticket to buy, and also if we should buy tickets now ahead of time or wait until the day? "

I don't understand your question. From Lauterbrunnen, hidden in a cul-de-sac, you can go nowhere without passing through Interlaken.
For the Interlaken - Munich ride (without Neuschwanstein castle), I wrote above:
" If it's Interlaken - Munich, you can do it
with only 1 train change (at Mannheim or Liestal) but a longer journey: 7 1/2 hrs
with 2 train changes (at Berne and Zurich): 6 1/2 hrs
by train and bus (change from train to bus at Zurich) : 6 hrs,
by bus only: Flixbus plans a new line from Grindelwald - Interlaken to Germany for this summer."
All these journeys are doable within 1 day, of course, I just added the journey times in order to give you an idea!
If money isn't an issue, you may also fly, as suggested above:
Lauterbrunnen dp 14.02 - Interlaken - Thun - Belp - Bern airport ar 15.54, dp 16.40 - Munich airport ar 17.40

Train tickets can be booked with https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets.html if you are looking for discounted tickets or at any Swiss railway station counter (until the train departure) if you pay full fare. Web tickets are valid for one specific train only. Standard fare tickets bought at the ticket counter (or at the ticket machine) are valid for all trains along the same itinerary.
If you have a Swiss Travel Pass, the leg up to the Swiss border is free.
If you have a Regional Pass Bernese Oberland, the leg up to Berne is free.