My husband and I are bringing our two daughters, ages 16 and 11 to Europe in March. We are flying into Milan the first night, then spending the next two nights in Como, Italy and then 4 nights in Lucerne, Switzerland before driving back to Milan for two more nights. We got a great airfare, so that’s why we’re going this time of year. We have family history in Lucerne, so that is the reason for that stop. I would appreciate day trip ideas from Lucerne. We are not skiers, but would love to take in the scenery. (My husband is afraid of heights, so that complicates things for sure.) We are planning to spend at least one day visiting Lucerne, and one day for Zurich. Ideas for the two other days would be appreciated. We are trying to mix it up between scenery, cities, shopping, etc. to keep the kids entertained. Would like to see how some good chocolate and cheese are made. Thanks in advance for your help!

well you're near but missing the high Alps at nearby Interlaken area - consider driving up to Grindelwald and stay the night - do some easy hikes or take cable cars or trains to like the Jungfraujoch, Europe's highest train station:

https://www.google.com/search?q=jung...hrome&ie=UTF-8

this could well be the highlight of your trip - you can drive there and back in a day too but then have no time to take cables or trains to the glacier-clad peaks.

Engleberg near Interlaken has Mt Titlis which is the high Alps too but much less impressive overall but if can't do Jungfrau Region do engleberg and take the famous revolving cable car up near the summit of Mt Titlis.

Be sure also to take lake boats on Lake Lucerne - to places like Witznau where you can take a mountain train up Mt Rigi which is not so high but has a raved about view over the spiny spine of central Switzerland.

As you know, that can be a difficult time with perhaps the most uncertain weather of the year. For that reason, you will need to closely examine things like ferry schedules on Lake Como (I believe they switch out of the brief winter schedule later in the month).

If the weather and schedules work, Como is always a delight but probably from the inside of the ferry. If you haven’t been to Como, you may find the portion of our trip report, 3 nights on the lake in 2017, helpful. Trip Report: Part 1 Northern Italian Lakes & Cities (12 days October)

This past fall, we did a quick, but very full tour of three countries including the Swiss area you intend to travel to. We stayed in Wengen but had one of our most memorable days ever. You would need to go to Lautebrunnen. It involved a couple trains, multiple cable cars and a funicular (unless that conflicts with fears of heights).. We lucked out with perfect weather. But even if the weather is so-so, you and your family might enjoy going up to the Alpine village of Murren. Anyway, we preferred Bern to Zurich, but that ought to at least be an option if the mountain weather doesn’t cooperate. Here is our report of that segment:
3 Countries, 8 Places, 8 Nights, Awesome!

I have been to Europe in March about 10 times in the last 20 years. It can be a great time to be there, or it can be very cold, rainy and unpleasant and you can't know in advance. That's why I always base in a major city, so as to have options in bad weather. The Swiss mountains and Lake Como will be miserable if it's cold and rainy.



If you didn't have specific reasons for Lucerne I'd say skip it this trip and stick to Italy. If you really want to keep Lucerne I'd suggest you take a train there upon arrival (bad idea to drive after a long flight, and you don't really need a car for any of this anyway, European, especially Swiss, trains are wonderful, easy, convenient and part of the experience). I'd spend a couple days in Lucerne doing whatever it is you need to do there, then head back to Italy. Regardless of how much time you want Lucerne vs Italy I'd put all the Italy time at the end so as not to have an extra hotel switch. From a base in Milan there are numerous day trips, including Lake Como (easy, 1 hour) and Lake Lugano, Switzerland (also 1 hour) as well as many towns (Bergamo, Palma, etc.). You could then take the more weather dependent day trips on the nicer days and stay in Milan or do day trips to towns on less good days.


Here's my trip report from two years ago - I titled it "Chasing the sun in Italy in March" - for a reason. Section 4 is about Milan and the day trips I did.There's a link to my photos.

Italy thru new eyes / Chasing the sun in March

If you want to go from Milan Malpensa airport to the lakes, there is no need to make the detour via Milan.
MXP - Lake Maggiore: 30 min by direct bus or 1 hr by local bus and train
MXP - Lake Lugano: 1 1/2 hrs by train
MXP - Como city: 1 1/2 hrs by train

Boats in March:
Lake Maggiore: Stresa - Isola Bella - Isola dei Pescatori - Isola Madre - Pallanza - Intra - Laveno
Lake Lugano: Lugano - Swissminiatur - Morcote
Lake Como: passenger/car ferries Varenna - Bellagio - Menaggio

Direct trains to Lucerne:
from Lugano (2 hrs journey): 7 trains daily, 15 others with 1 train change
from Como: (2 3/4 hrs journey): 1 train daily; 9 others with 1 train change

If you want to travel through snow and ice, travel by train over the Swiss alpine passes, may be like this:
Como SG or boats pier dp 7.33 - Varenna dp 9.23 - Tirano dp 11.00 - Alp Grum ar 12.10. Have lunch at the railway station restaurant, just in front of Palu Glacier, dp 13.08 via Bernina Pass - Pontresina - Albula Pass - Schyn Gorge - Reichenau - Ruinalta Gorge - Oberalp Pass - Andermatt - Schoellenen Gorge - Gotthard railway to Lucerne ar 20.41 (7 train changes in tiny stations, in most of them at the same platform and with guaranteed correspondance).

I like Necker's idea. However, keep in mind that it's a thirteen-hour trip, with seven changes of train. It's probably very scenic, unless the visibility is low, which is always possible in March. If you do it, keep your luggage to a minimum, as in one small suitcase per person, plus a purse or daypack.

There's no guarantee of enjoyable weather on Lake Como at that time of year. However, you have scheduled only two nights there, so it wouldn't be a great loss.

Having family connections in Lucerne is, for me, a good reason to make your base there. While in Switzerland, we greatly enjoyed a day trip to Basel, where not many tourists visit. Basel is on the Rhine river, and shares a border with both Germany and France. You can visit both countries by tram, but on a day trip you wouldn't have time for that.

You can visit various mountain destinations even if you don't want to ski, but your husband may not enjoy the ascent. We enjoyed a day trip from Lucerne to Brienz, a little town with lots of craft shops (mostly wood-carving), on the shores of Lake Brienz. There is a little steam railway that takes you up the slopes of the mountain, not as high as many of the more famous ones, but still with great views. However, it doesn't run in March.

Yes, as neckervd shows and others suggest trains are great for this trip and cars can be a hassle in Italy with many cities banning them from historic town centers = for lots on trains check www.seat61.com; BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com.

Thank you everyone for your feedback, especially Isabel. We have tweeked our trip to spend more time in Italy. We'll save a primarily Switzerland trip for a more reliable weather time of year.
Our new itinerary is:
First night Milan
Second and Third nights in Como, with day trip to Lugano
Three nights in Venice
One night in Verona
Two final nights in Milan

Any must do's and/or favorite restaurants in these cities would be appreciated. Thank you!

It might have been easier to go directly from MXP to Como.

I agree with neckervd. Save yourselves another hotel checkin/out by heading to Como immediately upon landing. Malpensa Express train to Saronno (18 minutes), easy connection, then Saronno to Como (40 minutes).