Leaving in under two weeks for a 6 day/night stay in Rapperswil. Day trips to Zurich x2 (to include Uetliberg), maybe Einseideln and for sure, Stans/Stanserhorn (which stays open until Nov 14th this year). Recuperating from knee surgery, so no real hikes. Has anyone been up to Stans mountain? I understand there is a one-hour Rundweg for views of the mountain terminal from above....?taxing ?likely a bit of snow by November 3rd. Any must sees/best eats in the town of Stans itself?
Same for Einsiedeln....?

topping

No one with helpful hints on Stanserhorn or Einsiedeln?

I hope you didn't read my India report, which started out with two days in Switzerland, including a trip to Rapperswill. I'm obviously not a big fan of Switzerland...

As you probably know, Einsiedeln is best known for the “black Madonna” which is housed in a huge and quite ornate baroque church. It is in a lovely area of green rolling hills with great Alp views on clear days. The monastery has its own winery and sells pretty good and inexpensive wine, and their shop is open on Sunday, a rare thing in Switzerland. The monastery is also known for the hardy breed of horses they raise and there are stables. The town has a small old town area worth a quick stroll. Sorry I have no particular restaurant reccos. My recollection is that there is a luge training area nearby, which may be of interest, and may have snow by November. Take a look at Einsiedeln.ch (can't find an English version, but for basic info, go to http://usa.myswitzerland.com and do a search for Einsiedeln.

On Utlieberg, there is a very nice trail which follows the ridge line and will take you to Felsenegg, where you can have a meal and then take the cable car down to Adliswil and take a train on to Rapperswil. The walk is less than 2 hours, offers great views and is very easy; but without knowing the extent of you knee surgery it is hard for me to say whether you could or would want to do it. But this is an excellent day out to see the countryside on a clear winter's day without travelling far from your base.

Some other places near to Rapperswil to consider:

Walensee - a beautiful very large glacial lake in the middle of pointed peaks (If you have seen the Remarkables in New Zealand, they will look familiar). You can ferry down from one lake of the lake to the other, there is some very good walking in this area as well, as well as biking along the lake. I would go to the village of Weesen, which I would not call hugely charming, but the Parkhotel Schwert ( http://www.parkhotelschwert.ch) has a nice spot on the lake. For info on ferry service on the Walensee, go to http://www.walenseeschiff.ch/en/welcome.cfm, as I am not sure ferries will be running in November.

Amden – this is a ski town in the hills above Lake Walensee. You can get there by bus in less than an hour from Rapperswil, so that makes it pretty attractive and the bus ride up and down the mountain to Amden will be very fun, plus you will get some great views up in the mountains themselves. There is a nice little restaurant with a sun terrace serving fondue and other specialties at Café Leistkamm, this is a short walk from the bus stop in Amden. (Tel. +41 (0)55 611 12 65)

Flumserberg – a ski area also above Lake Walensee, you can also get there by a combination of train and bus, which would probably take you something more than an hour. You can also take a cable car up to the resort from the train station at Unterterzen, I have not done this and don’t know much about it, but the website may have info. Go to http://www.flumserberg.com for info on Flumserberg. (Click on the upper right for English.) You can also take a cable car up from the ski area at Flumbersberg and get great views. The are downhill hikes from there, but not sure you want to do that with the knee. The views from the cable car may be sufficient, plus God willing there will be snow up top by early November, so you may not want to walk.

Kusnacht – the hills above this town on the north coast of Lake Zurich may be gentle enough for your to do with your knee, esp. if you do them downhill perhaps. If you get a nice day this is a really lovely walk through fields and often people out horseback riding and with glimpses of the lake and the Alps. To access trails, I would take the Forchstrasse from Zurich to Forch. The Forchstrasse train begins at the Stadelhofen train station (where trains from Rapperswil stop), near the Opera House in the Zurich old town. The ride to Forch takes about half an hour. From Forch, follow the yellow walking trail signs down to Kusnacht, and from there you can train back to Rapperswil. A lovely spot for lunch in Kusnacht is the Sonne Hotel, see sonne.ch. Ferries run from it down the lake, but by November they will not be operating as far as I know.

Regensberg - a tiny medieval village quite near the airport that takes about 10 minutes to see, has a little castle-like fort, about two restaurants either of which would be fine for a casual lunch, and on a clear day a really beautiful view of the Alps in the far distance and the broad flat valley leading up to them. You first take a train to Regensdorf (about 15 minutes from Zurich), you then have to take a bus to get up to the town, or you can walk (a steep uphill).

There are interesting places like St Gallen which make easy day trips as well, not sure of your interests. If they are strictly outdoors, then I can probably make some more nearby reccos. I assume you have ruled out day trips to places like the Jungfrau valley, which can be a long day; although you could certainly take advantage of the mountain trains and cable cars there which would require little walking but offer superb views.

Have not been to Stanserhorn.

Will be back in a day or two to answer.

Thank you Cicerone for your reply!
This is just the type of information that I was hoping for.
I arrive in Zurich Flughafen on Saturday October 30 at about 8:30 am. My hotel in Rapperswil (Hotel Jakob) cannot guarantee that my room will be ready before 12 noon, so I will store my luggage at Zurich HB and walk down to the lake to enjoy the last regularly scheduled Saturday Market of the season. AFTER, hopefully, enjoying breakfast at Cafe Sprungli ;-).
If I am still not zonked out, I may stay in Zurich for a shop/stroll in the old town, then eat a picnic or cafe lunch before heading on to R'wil and napping a bit. Then evening exploration and dinner.
On Sunday, I plan to stay in R'wil and explore my hometown, as the Kinderzoo (I'm going, huge animal-lover!), closes November 1st. I'll visit the Castle Musuem (I AM part Polish after all!) and walk along the lake or any Weinwanderwege if they exist.
Monday and Tuesday, or any two weekdays, I plan daytrips to Zurich to finish seeing the things that I didn't get to in June (z.B. Landesmuseum/shopping on a cloudy day and Uetliberg if good weather). The third weekday is for the Stanserhorn and Stans.
This leaves just ONE WHOLE DAY free as I depart on Friday.
I am most interested in your suggestion for the bus trip RT to Amden OR the Rapperswil->Stadelhofen->Forch trip, walking the Wanderweg down to Kusnacht and training back 'home.'
My knee surgery was arthroscopic, on Oct 8th, with advice only to ice each night and 'walk as tolerated' during my trip. Downhill walking is much more difficult on the knee than uphill though...
Re: the Uetliberg->Felsenegg hike~~~
I have a fear of open or exposed heights, and you state that this trail "follows the ridge line"...is the path wide (one meter at least)~ or for a height-chicken, potentially anxiety-provoking?
Finally, is the Einsiedeln monastery easily accessible from the train stop? The winery part sounds REALLY good!

Schuler, looking forward to your reply!

The info on your travel dates is helpful. Based on that and your questions above, are some additional thoughts:

1. There is a tourist office in the main rail station in Zurich which may have trail maps for Zurich and surrounding areas. It is worth taking a look, they have loads of info generally. The tourist office also offers walking tours in English, daily at 3 am and on Saturdays and Sundays at 11 am & 3 pm, which you may want to join. I hear that they are good. (From November 1 through the winter the tours are only offer Wednesdays at 11 am, Saturdays at 11 am and 3 pm, and Sundays at 11 am). They cost about US$15 and last about 2 hours. You don’t need a reservation, just show up at the tourist service office in the Hautbahnhof a few minutes before the tour. For information, e-mail the tourist service at [email protected], or go to http://www.zuerich.com/sightseeing. You get a discount if you have a Zurich card. For further information on the Zurich Card, see http://www.zuerich.com/zurich_az/en/zuerichcard.php

2. The Saturday flea market in Zurich is quite fun, IMO. You can usually get coffee/hot chocolate and light snacks at the refreshment kiosk there, so you may not have to go to Sprungli. Also, there is a farmer’s market on Tuesdays and Fridays which goes all year, so if you are in Zurich the following Tuesday you could go to that as well. It runs from about 6 – 11 am.

3. The above about the Zurich tourist office notwithstanding, IMO if your objective is to go to the flea market first when you arrive, then IMO you should take the train from the airport to the <b>Stadelhofen</b> train station in Zurich, not the Hautbahnhof. The Stadelhofen train station is about 200 meters from the lake and also very close to the Burkliplatz, where the flea market takes place. To the best of my knowledge, you can store luggage at Stadelhofen as well. You could then go up to the main train station later if you wanted. There is a train to Stadelhofen from the airport twice an hour (on the hour and half hour)which does not require any change and takes 15 minutes to get to Stadelhofen, although it stops first at the Hautbahnhof (There are more frequent trains which require a change at the Hautbahnhof).

4. November 1 is a public holiday in Zurich Canton. I don’t think this will affect you much, although there may be some shop closures; in Zurich less so than smaller villages. I believe all museums are open (that is usually the case), but check websites of any you are particularly interested in to make sure. (Museums could be crowded due to the holiday.) Public transport will be running on a holiday schedule.

5. Days will be quite short in November, which is a good thing because IMO walking the streets of Zurich at night is wonderful, with their lovely shop windows, and more importantly, giving you the chance to look up and into people’s apartments, some have coffered ceilings, some have painted ceilings; its quite lovely. Christmas decorations will go up in stores staring November 1, so you can also appreciate those windows. Not sure when the rest of the city decorations go up, it could be that week as well. The Bahnhofstrasse is strung with lights the entire 2-mile length and is very pretty to see. Finally, as you will be in town on a Saturday, if you can make yourself stick around until 7 pm, you could go to the Lindenhof or a bridge near the Fraumunster because all the churches in Zurich ring their bells for 15 minutes on Saturday night – that sound, echoing across the winter night, is one of my favourite Zurich memories. They may do the same thing in Rapperswil.

6. If you are interested in animals, I would certainly add the Zurich Zoo to your sightseeing list for Zurich. Also, the Conelli Christmas circus generally puts up their tent and starts performances in early November. It is in German but really that does not matter, you will be able to appreciate it regardless of language. The website is http://www.circus-conelli.ch, and is in German, but your hotel should be able to arrange tickets or you may be able to figure out how to buy on line. If you are interested. try to book ASAP as this is very popular.

7. Otherwise, I used to live in Zurich and would say that there is a very long list of things to see and do there. I have posted with suggestions, two to look for would be “One Day in Zurich” at http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...n-zurich-2.cfm and “2 Days in Zurich” at http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...n-zurich-1.cfm. For restaurant suggestions see “Dining in Zurich” at http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...uggestions.cfm . You might also try http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...o-in-march.cfm but these suggestions may be for longer trips than you want and are oriented toward children. For souvenir shopping see “Quick Souvenir Spots for Zurich” at http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...for-zurich.cfm.

8. I have only driven to Einsiedeln, and don’t recall where the Bahnhof is, however the town is quite small and the church is quite large, so you should not have any trouble finding it. There may even be signs from the train station. I can’t imagine it is more than a few block walk. I don't know that you can visit the winery at the monastery, but it would not hurt to ask. I have only been in their little shop which sells wine.

9. For hiking/walking generally, you might want to get the Lake Zurich hiking map (Wanderkarte Zurichersee) which will show a lot of walks, including those around Kusnact. It is in German only, but is quite easy to use as long as you know the name of the towns/area that you want to start or end up in. It shows various routes and public transport links. See http://www.hallwag.ch/ for info. You can apparently order it on-line there, you might also try one of the shops in the main train station in Zurich (ask at the tourist office). You might also check with Orell Füssli in Zurich, which is a very good bookshop with locations throughout town. You could e-mail them to see if they have the map or could order it for you in time for your arrival. See http://www.books.ch/.

10. For Amden, go to the rail.ch website and put in your starting and ending destination, and a detailed schedule will come up about the journey. You have to connect at Zeigelbruck from the train to a bus. The rail.ch site can even show you maps of the local areas surrounding the stations if you click on the icon for each station. I have not done this trip from Rapperswil (again I have driven from Zurich), but based on years of travel on SBB, I think it will be very easy for you to make the connections. From the post office at Amden, where the bus stops, you will get some great views and there are walking trails from here as well. Once you get to Amden, I would go to the tourist office on Dorfstrasse, as they should have trail maps, see http://www.amden.ch/en/welcome.cfm for information and you can even download some info and maps on walks (German only).

11. On the Uetliberg-Felsenegg walk, I have to first say that I LOVE heights. It’s one of the reasons I hike, and I also live at the top of a 400 meter hill. Therefore, it’s hard for me to judge whether a walk might provoke anxiety for someone who does not like heights. That being said, the walk from Uetliberg to Felsenegg is not along a narrow ridgeline, it’s a fairly wide and flat path along an even wider ridge. (Cows graze in fields in parts and there are forest/trees).

There is a good description of the walk at http://activityworkshop.net/hiking/s...uetliberg.html. This description is for walking first uphill from the Albisgütli tram stop in Zurich to the top of the Utlieberg, and continuing on all the way to Shihlbrugg, which altogether will take 5 hours or so. If you instead take the train up to the Uetliberg and walk from there only as far as Felensegg, that should take under 2 hours. However, if you want a nice uphill walk, then going from Albisgütli to the top of the Uetliberg first may be something you want to add, or do instead of going to Felensegg. The walk up from Albisgütli is fairly steep, and is in forest cover most of the way, there are no real panoramas until you get near to the top. Not sure it that is better for you or not.

12. With regard to the Kusnacht walk in reverse, I have to say that I only ever did it downhill, and can’t give reliable directions for starting from the lake. (Toward the end of the downhill version of the walk, you are in the town itself and it is clear where you need to go, so I never remembered consulting signs or a map for the last 1/3 of the walk.) I am entirely confident that the trail is marked in both directions and that it would be easy to do this “in reverse” from the lake going up. There are a number of trails running up the hillside towards Forch, but my recollection is that all of them start from one basic trail near to the train station. Either get a map, ask at the Zurich Tourist Office in the Hautbahnhof, ask at your hotel, or see if the town’s webpage has info at http://www.kuesnacht.ch/ (German only).

Einsiedeln:

The walk from the train station to the church is about 15 min. Follow the signs. The church is on the other side of the small town. Interesting shopping in Einsiedeln. They also have a few bakery specialities so you might want to stop in and ask. To the right of the church are the horsestalls and the famous horses of the Einsiedeln church. Worth a quick look.

Stoos:
My insider tip. It's not so easy to reach by public transportation. You either take the bus from Schwyz to Schlättli, to ride up the cogwheel train, or take the bus from Brunnen and take the Morschach cable car up.

Upon your arrival, walk to the Fronalpstöck chairlift. Take the chairlift to the top for drop dead views of the Vierwaldstättersee and the alps. It's my favorite view in the Schwyz area. There's a nice self-service restaurant with an outside eating area. Should only be done on a warm, sunny day.

Stanserhorn: I haven't been there recently. If your heart's set on it, definitely go. Also nice views and good walking area. Stans is a nice town to walk through a bit too.

Rigi: Take the Rigibahn up to Staffel. Walk along the Panorama train (which takes you to the LEFT of the Rotstock and along a beautiful path carved out of the cliffs) to Rigi Kaltbad. Take either the Rigibahn back down to Vitznau or the cable car down to Weggis, take the boat to Luzern and then go back to Rapperswil.

Rapperswil: A highly interesting town historically with many beautiful old buildings. Get some info about the town from the tourist office and begin your walk. Rapperswil isn't so much about the roses, but about its location, its battles, the Hapsburgs and its architecture.

There's a Circus Knie Zoo along the lake in Rapperswil that is cute but not nearly as big as the Zürich Zoo.

Hope this helps.

Not sure what your travel dates are, but one of my favorite activities was the wineboats:

http://www.expovina.ch/neu/index.php...ommen-Expovina

Starts 4 November. They are docked at Burkliplatz, very near the flea / farmers market area.

Thanks again to all for the suggestions. Now I have too many options and not enough time!
Will have to forego the wine boat as leaving fo USA early the next morning and would like leisurely last evening to pack/stroll in R'wil.
Cicerone: I have been to Zurich this past June and taken the city tour (see my trip repo if interested). Visited all the TOP sights in our two day stay--thanks for the tip about getting off at Stadelhofen instead of HB, that'll cut down on the hoofing after a tiring plane trip (I can NEVER sleep on board). Now I want to see the Spielzeugmuseum, Haus zur Meissen,visit the market, find Teuscher chocolates and do ...Uetliberg.
The Uetliberg->Felsenegg->Aldiswil hike sounds like it will be awesome! I really won't be capable of the uphill trek to Abisguetli with my knee though.
Re: Forch to Kuesnacht- didn't mean to suggest that I would do it in reverse... I think this walk too should be fine. Praying for sunny weather!
I will check out your above-noted links, though I have already found that I previously printed a detailed listing of your Zurich info from 2006 (could this be the same one?) Because we did not get to Haus Hitl in June, I definitely want one meal there this trip! Your detailed other suggestions are already circled and mapped out! Including Teddy's Souvenir Shop!
I can speak and understand Hochdeutsch moderately well, just can't eavesdrop on that Schwyzerdutsch!
Don't think that I'll have the fortitude to stay in Zurich on day one for the 7 pm churchbells, but I also LOVE that part from previous travels to small town Switzerland (have stayed before in Brienz, Kandersteg, Lungern. Appenzell, and most recently, Pontresina). When I checked out Jakob Hotel reviews in Rapperswil, one poster complained about the very near church whose bells pealed every hour...I am actually looking forward to these bells--though being deaf in one ear will come as a blessing for sleep at night!
November 1st is which holiday?
Schuler- thanks for your input as well...I knew from past posts that you knew this area well. I think I will try to fit in a half-day visit to Einsiedeln too.
I leave in one week, excitement builds!
BTW, I learned the Switzerland goes off Daylight Savings Time on Sat-Sun Okt 30 -31, and the US on week later on Nov 6-7...
I get an extra hour to sleep in upon arrival to Switzerland AND an extra hour to fight jetlag when I return to Pennsylvania--2 extra hours of life!

Sorry, I had thought from your e-mail that you said walking UPHILL was easier on your knee; if that is not the case, then you won’t have problems following the downhill Forch to Küsnacht route, just look for the yellow signs. There are a few paths around (some national and some local), but as long as you are heading downhill, you are going in the right direction and can’t really get lost as you will wind up at the lake eventually. It’s all pretty rolling countryside.

I just found a website which has two trails recommended in the area which are part of the Rundweg around Lake Zurich, one of which (Section 9) is a walk from Meilen to Küsnacht that looks very pretty. See http://www.wanderland.ch/en/orte_detail.cfm?id=329737 and click on “List of Routes” in the right-hand column. (The site also has a map of all trails in the area, but you may find this confusing when you see all the various trail options. I am guessing the tourist office in Rapperswil may have local trail info too, most tourist offices do.) You may want to do the Rundweg Section 9 rather than the walk down from Forch, as you can take one short train journey from Rapperswil to start the walk, and not have to bother going all the way into Zurich and switching to the train for Forch. I would probably do this in reverse and go from Küsnacht TO Meilen so you would have the Alps in front of you for the entire walk.

For Teuscher locations (my very favourite chocolate! They have a shop here in Hong Kong, thank God), see http://www.teuscher.com/. They have a café and shop at Bellvueplatz, which is the large circular tram stop on the lake and about 100 yards from the Stadelhofen train station, so you can head there for a hot chocolate as soon as you arrive. Walk to the lake, turn right and walk toward the bridge, Bellvueplatz is the area just before the bridge on the right.(You could also have a bratwurst for breakfast at the nearby Vorderer Sternen and really be a Zuricher!) Teuchser’s prettiest shop, IMO, is at Storchengasse 9, on the right bank of the old town, not far from the Frau Munster.

The Meisen museum is quite interesting (my parents particularly enjoyed it), I love the huge porcelain stoves. I used to live just across the river from it, so this is all making me a little nostalgic for Zurich, esp in the winter.

November 1 is All Saints’ Day (a somewhat major Christian holiday; it is why Halloween is the day before, it’s the “eve of all hallows/saints”).

Thanks again Cicerone!
I'm going to cut and paste my final proposed itinerary tomorrow morning to winnow down the notes that I will take with me.
If the weather is good, I will probably do the Uetliberg-Felsenegg-Adliswil hike on Monday November 1st, hoping that the trail is not overly crowded due to the holiday. Haus Hitl afterwards.
I will save the Zurich museums and shopping for a forecast cloudy/drizzly day and likely combine a few hours in Einsiedeln on the same day with the Kuesnacht to Meilen walk.
Thanks again for all the great and detailed tips!
I'll post upon return.
PS:
I will likely travel with the 9 oclock day passes. Of course, I'll inquire in the RR, but do you know if you have to count each zone THAT IS TRAVELLED THROUGH or just those zones where you may embark or disembark in figuring the daily price? For example, I know that Rapperswil is in one zone (I have the numbered chart at home), but Uetliberg is in another, and HB still in another, with Zuich city counting double...
No bother if you are not familiar...
Ciao!
Rach

OH NO!
After logging on to the Luftseilbahn Adliswil-Felsenegg site, I learned that the this aerial tram "ist wegen Revision ausser Betrieb vom 1. November bis 5. November"!
So much for my plans thus far...
Now my only chance to do the Uetliberg-Felsenegg hike will be on Sunday 31. Oktober! Again, praying for sunny weather on that date.
As for my public transport, I meant to say that I will be using the 24 Hr DayPass/Single Ticket, which goes by zones (Rapperswil is 80, Uetliberg=Zone 55, Zrh HB=10). It seems to be my least expensive option for local travel.
And I have re-confirmed my desire to make a half-day trip to Einsiedeln to see die schwarze Madonna und Gnadenkapelle, and das Nostalgieladen und Lebkuchenmuseum (and Weinladen if I can find it!)

Though Amden and Stoos look greatly enticing, I think a visit to those areas will have to wait until my next trip . Finally, I really DO want to see the Stanserhorn,perhaps hike the Gipfelrundgang (if not too 'scary high/narrow' or snowy for me), then sit in the revolving restaurant (one whole turn takes just 43 minutes) for the views. I have already been to the Oberland and 'done' the famous mountains, also Rigi and Engelberg/Titlis.
thanks again for all the great info!
Rach

Bring clothes for a cold winter. We've got snow almost down to the house (1000 meters) and it doesn't look like it will warm up much. If you need a fix of good weather while you're here, you might want to head down to Tessin for a day.

November 1 is a holiday (all saints day)

Hope the weather is better than it was this weekend!

Thanks Schuler.
Have lots of layering clothes and just bought a light-medium weight fleece-lined, water repellant jacket. Guess I won't regret bringing it! (Its 74F in Pittsburgh today and tomorrow!) As long as it's not actively raining/snowing, I'll still enjoy my little hikes!
If there are sunny afternoons, might there still be cafes with outdoor tables, or is it simply too late to imagine that?

We've got snow on the ground right now. Hard to say but it doesn't look promising.

Please go to the tourist office and check out what's happening in the area. There might a few nice concerts or events going on.

Just checked the weather forecast for next weekend--Zurich predicted highs of 11-12C...good walking weather!

It's been a fantastic weekend. Warm enough to sit outside in a wind-protected area. Great walking too. The Föhn (Mediterranean wind) kicked in this weekend, keeping the area warm and dry.

It was a great weekend to visit Switzerland and proof that one can NEVER predict the weather here 100%.

I've been to Stanserhorn in the springtime several years ago, took the scenic mountain train where we passed cows and farmers cutting grass etc, very idyllic scenery going up and down, but at the top the view is more alpine, they served lunch outdoor and indoor. I remember the view was nice and different from each side off the mountain top Rundweg. We could see Sarnersee and Vierwaldstaettigersee and the town that splits them Stansstad where my sister lives.

Stans is just a small quaint town with no touristic significance except for some minor history. Any specific reason why you wanted to visit there? I only went there because my brother in law was born there. We went to a nice old church (of some significance, I can't remember what) and did some shopping in the small shops and run errands with my sister. I remember my wife bought a swiss style necklace at some boutique and some funky floss boxes for fun.

In that area, my favorite place to go actually is the Buergenstock resort where they hold different events from fancy car rallies to NATO security meetings. You can take an outdoor mountain elevator from the lakeside ferrystop but we used to drive up from Stanststad for tennis or a swim. It's a unique place to swim in the winter as you can swim and watch the snow covered outdoor from inside the huge glass roof and walls. There are 4 or 5 nice resort hotels up at the top.