Hi Fodor travelers. My hubby and I are ending a Rhine River cruise on May 21st, 2026 in Basel and I want to spend another 8-9 days in Switzerland. We're 64 & 70, pretty active and fit. Like hikes but nothing difficult. Love smaller, quaint villages vs bigger cities.
My tentative plan is:

• (5/21-5/23) 2N Grindelwald (or Interlaken?)
• (5/23-5/27) 3N Murren,
• (5/27-5/29) 2N Lucerne
• Fly home from Zurich - may need to spend 1N here depending on flight return time.

So here are my questions:
Trying to decide btw Interlaken or Grindelwald. I want to go to Grindelwald First for sure. Going to Jungfraufoch will be so dependent on weather so don't want to base plans just on this. I've also heard it's overrated, expensive & crowded. Is it worth the hassle & money? Also, hike the Männlichen "Panorama" Trail to Kleine Scheidegg, however this may not be open yet?
If we can't do the Mannlichen-Fleine Scheidegg hike and possibly not Jungfraufoch, maybe Interlaken would be a better choice with a day trip up to Grindelwald First since it's only 1 hr from there. Thoughts?

In Murren we plan to:
1. go up to Schilthorn & Birg Thrill Walk. I know currently there is construction going on for a new cable car which is wrecking the views and Thrill Walk is closed, but that is supposed to be finished by spring 2026. Hopefully that is true?
2. do the Walk to Gimmelwald. I read it's on a service road so even if there is still snow it will be plowed so open/passable.
3. day trip to Lauterbrunnen & do the walk from Stechelberg to Lauterbrunnen (+ Wengen if time)
4. hike part of Northface Alternative Trail? I'm not sure on this since I read it can be challenging.
I heard Murren is prettier and more charming than Grindelwald. Is that true? I'm also wondering if we shouldn't plan a 4th night in Murren in case of bad weather, then hopefully we'll have at least one sunny clear day?

Lucerne - Stroll Old Town, Chapel Bridge, Lion Monument, lakeside promenade, short lake cruise or dinner cruise in evening. Either Mt. Pilatus (steepest cogwheel railway) or Mt. Rigi (scenic & classic) - thoughts on which is best? Will this be too much for only 2N here.

Hotel (mid-priced or budge friendly, not luxury) and Restaurant suggestions would be welcomed too. We live in a quiet neighborhood so don't want to be right next to a train station but also don't want to have to take a bus into town.

Would appreciate any input and other suggestions you have.
Thanks.

I'd recommend staying in Grindlewald rather than Interlaken - smaller, easy to walk around but still plenty of choice for accommodation and restaurants. Look for a hotel with views of the Eiger.

Another suggestion is to add another night to your stay in Lucerne which would give you time to visit both Mt Rigi and Mt Pilatus - different ways of transport and beautiful views from both.

Our preference was for five nights in Lauterbrunnen rather than splitting our time between neighbouring towns. It was easy to get to both Grindelwald and Murren and saved yet another move between hotels.

Wherever you go, you'll be spoilt for magnificent scenery, so enjoy.

I think you are correct to ask about time of year and hope that experts chime in. I’m sorry I can’t speak to those issues – I’m no expert. But I do have some thoughts that I hope will prove useful to you as you proceed with your plans:

Jungfraujoch – I, too, heard that it was overrated, expensive, and crowded, so I chose not to visit, instead opting for other peaks. Of course, because I didn’t go, I really can’t say if I would have thought it worthwhile.

Interlaken – I’m not a fan. If you decide not to stay in Grindelwald because of the weather, you might consider Thun instead. It’s another ½ hour further, but is IMO quite charming and has some sites of interest if the weather doesn’t cooperate.

I must admit that I’m also not a fan of Mürren, though many Fodorites are. I found it too kitschy, too touristy, and oppressively shadowed at times. My preference for that area is Wengen … if you can get a room with a view. I also liked Lauterbrunnen, where I made sure to have a view of the stunning Staubbach Falls. (I stayed at Hotel Staubbach. Some rooms have a glorious view; less expensive rooms are without a view but include access to small more-or-less private balconies that do have views and so are worth considering, IMO.)

Lucerne – whether 2 nights is sufficient for your needs depends, I think, on exact arrival and departure times and your preferred pace of travel. Two nights can mean as little as one day or as much as one full day and the better part of two other days. You could probably see one of the mountains and do some strolling afterwards in one day, but you might want to space it out a bit. IMO, spending the better part of a day on the lake can be very pleasant, and there’s more to see in Lucerne than you list, so IME, enough to fill a 2nd day. It really depends on what you want to see and experience.

I know you said you’re more interested in villages than cities, but if weather interferes with your time in the mountains, I’d note that Switzerland has some cities that are, IMO, quite lovely. Bern stands out for me, but also Basel and Zurich (which I think greatly underrated) and Montreux and Lausanne, Solothun, Winterthur, Fribourg … so many!

Again, sorry I can’t help about the timing, but hoping these comments help.

Snow on Maennlichen trail:
Have a look at the wewbcam
https://www.maennlichen.ch/en/live.html

Webbcam Eigergletsher:
on this webcam, you can see the southern part of the Kleine Scheidegg - Maennlichenr trail
https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/live/w...eigergletscher

Thanks for all your input. I've ruled out staying in Interlaken. I'll have to decide now if I want to split my time in Grindelwald and Murren or just stay in Lauterbrunnen Valley instead. I like the idea of not having to move hotels as much but I also like to be engrossed in the quaint, pretty villages too. Not that Lauterbrunnen isn't that.

One question one of your comments raised is will Murren be in the shadows a lot? I do hope to see and feel the warmth of the sun IF it does happen to come out so don't want to be in a town shadowed by the mountains. I was thinking that would be the case with Lauterbrunnen Valley and that was one reason I was not considering that as a base. Any further info on that for me please?

Thanks for the webcams. Looks like there's still quite a bit of snow at the peaks so will rule out any hikes up there. I'll still plan on the Lauterbrunnen Valley walk as that is supposed to be nice.
As for Jungfraujoch, we'll play that by ear and if we have some spare time (especially if not doing those hikes) maybe we'll decide to go up there on AM.
Thanks again.

I can't speak to what things are like year round, but I can say that the Hotel Staubbach in Lauterbrunnen faces north at the opening of an increasingly wide valley; it's far enough from the valley walls to prevent shadows at most (all?) times of day, IIUC. I don't remember shadows passing my line of sight until dusk set in. I've mentioned this issue before, and some people have said that there experience of Murren has been more pleasant. And I really shouldn't have spoken of shadows -- it was more an issue of facing an oppressively dark massif. Sorry for the poor choice of words! Here are some photos taken in mid-June:

View of Staubbach Falls, facing the north from Lauterbrunnen

View of/ from Mürren, midafternoon

Lauterbrunnen can definitely be encased in shadows, but more so in autumn and winter. Murren is perched up on the edge of a cliff and therefore gets plenty of sunshine. In May the sun won't set until after 8 pm, so you have long days to look forward to.

We've stayed in all four villages (Wengen, Murren, Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen) and they all have their good points, but Murren and Wengen are my personal favorites. We also made the mistake of staying in Interlaken on our first visit to the area and definitely wouldn't do that again.

Muerren is in the shade most of the day from end October until early February. But there is no problem now (if the sun shines).
Even rather shady Lauterbrunnen is in the bright sun from now until end July.
But frankly: Lauterbrunnen is just the starting point for trips into the mountains. No normal human being stays there all the day.

Thanks for the clarification kja and the beautiful photos. I think I'll stick with my original plan and split my time btw Grindelwald and Murren.

I'm also going to see if I can get on the Rhine Cruise later in May or early June for several reasons:
avoids Pentecost Swiss holiday (less crowds), avoids flying back to US on memorial holiday (cheaper flights, less traffic on road going home), Swiss weather may be better. More hotels in Murren will be open. Grindelwald-Mannchilen gondola opens 5/24/25 so hopefully same in 2026, less mud and snow in higher elevations, more trails will be open, avoids spring gondola maintenance work/shut downs, and fingers crossed that new cable car construction near Schilthorn will be finished w better views and Big Thrill will be open again.

Thank you again Fodorites for all your input. It's been very helpful.

Delaying your trip will, I think, give you a much better experience!