shruti2802

Hi..
I am travelling to Switzerland with family for 8 days.
My tour itenary is : (Montreux 2N, Gstaad 2N, Interlaken 2N & Lucerne 2N)

Besides Hotel Booking, Swiss rail pass and flight booking, Any other pre bookings that needs to be done?

Any suggestions whether we should do all the peaks like Jungfroh, Pilatus and Glacier 300 or one or two?

Thnx

nytraveler

You don;t say when you are going which will make a difference in what type of weather you would face at the peaks.

But the biggest issue is no matter what time of year the tops of these peaks are often in the clouds. We had to stay in Interlaken 3 days before we got a day with the top of the Jungfraujoch clear - and had to rush to get up there that morning since by late afternoon is encased in clouds again.

So your plan of being only 2 nights (1 day) in each of 4 places is going to make it difficult to be in the right place to actually make sense to ascend any of the mountains.

I think you are going to have to be much more selective in where you stay (either add days to the trip or do fewer places - or do some places as day trips from the bottom of the mountain on the days when the top is stuck in clouds, I would leave Montreux, switch Gstaad nights to Interlaken to have a chance at the Jungfrau and then head to Lucerne. Pilatus may possibly be easier since it is a much smaller mountain than the Jungfrau.

There is plenty to do in/from Interlaken on the days you can't ascend the Jungfrau - take steamers on lake Thun and or Briez and/or visit a bunch of nearby towns: Gruyere is charming with a wonderful castle, Thun is a very cute village with 2 castles, there are several waterfalls to see around Lake Brienz and Brienz has a lot of woodcarvers (great for picking up handmade Christmas gifts) and is near the wonderful Ballenberg museum of swiss life.

Dianedancer

Frankly this is how I would set up your stay:

If you fly into Zurich, go directly to Berne. Stay there for 3 nights. It's a great medieval small city. While staying there you can do a day trip to visit towns on Lake Geneva (Montreux, Vevey, etc.). Takes about 1.5 hours to Vevey. Take the boat that goes along the Lake and you can get off at Montreux or Chateau de Chillon.

Then pack up and go to Interlaken which is a short train ride away (about 1 hour) and thus won't take up a lot of travel time. Stay for 3/4 nights. While there you have a choice of many peaks to go to. So much to do in that area including Lake Brienz which is gorgeous.

Then your last day can also be in Interlaken and take early or late train to the airport, or stay at an airport hotel, depending when your flight takes off.

OR - Go from Interlaken to Lucerne (approx. 1 hour 50 minutes by train) for the day, stay there overnight and then go to Zurich airport from there next day. You can see Lucerne in one day. Short train ride. But beware of the hoards of tourists with selfie sticks.

PalenQ

Yes to a 8-consecutive-day Swiss Pass that will cover nearly all trains, postal buses, lake boats (be sure to take these in Lucerne if not Interlaken and Montreux too!) and gives free entry to 470+ Swiss museums - and even on the Golden Pass scenic train linking Montreux-Gstaad-Interlaken and Lucerne. Just hop on any of these things.

For lots of great info on Swiss transports and passes check www.swisstravelsystem.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

2 days in the Jungfrau Region is a little short IMO - I'd scrap Gstaad perhaps and add them to the Interlaken area - one less relocation and more in-depth in the fantastic Jungfrau Region - many folks prefer to base in a mountain village like Wengen or Grindelwald rather than Interlaken which is not right in the high Alps.

PalenQ

If your family includes any kids under 16 then they get a free Swiss Family Pass along with the Swiss Pass and never pay a penny for anything that moves in Switzerland - transport-wise - even things adults only get a discount on. The free aspect is valid anytime the adults take a transport device but kids can not do it by themselves - must be accompanied by a parent (grandparents, friends, etc do not count I think).