travelchic

Hi,
My husband and I will be in Lucerne for a few days in the beginning of October, I was wondering if there are any small mountain towns nearby (under an hour, we have a car) that would be worthi visiting. I've read about Murren, Grindelwald and Wengen, they all sound very neat, but I think the a day from Lucerne trip might be a little too much driving. Are there any such towns closer to Lucerne?

Also a related question.....can anyone suggest a good hike beginning near Lucerne?

Thanks in advance for any help!

PalenqueBob

Engelberg, about an hour by train or car is a great one - one of the most famous Swiss Alpine resorts,it lies at the foot of majestic Mt Titlis - town lies at foot of high snow-girdled Alps.

swandav2000

Hi travelchic,

Two nearby towns that are luscious are Weggis (www.weggis.ch) and Vitznau (www.vitznau.ch), though they're lakeside villages rather than mountain villages.

The nearest mountain town might be Engelberg, near mount Titlis (www.titlis.ch). Also take a look at the peaks of Rigi (www.rigi.ch) and Pilatus (www.pilatus.ch).

By the way, a car might be a liability for what you describe. You can get everywhere by ferry (www.lakelucerne.ch) or by train (www.rail.ch).

Good luck!

s

Travelnut

Possibly those towns are so popular b/c they are located at a much higher altitude, more mountain environment... The small towns around Luzern (ex. Weggis) are situated on a slope but not the same kind of views. Weggis, my example, is very small and quiet, and is on the lake with the mountain rising up behind and a nearby gondola to go to the top. For me it would be too quiet to stay overnight but it was nice to walk around in. We even found the little cemetery by the church (we seem to like cemeteries...). We arrived there by way of the lake cruise, which is also very nice.

kleeblatt

Weggis, which is bigger than Wengen and Murren, has the advantage of being at the foot of the Rigi. You could take the cable car up to Rigi Kaltbad, a mountain village near the top of the Rigi. From there you can do some nice hikes. Weggis is great if you have a car.

This is a website that gives info on hikes on the Rigi:
http://activityworkshop.net/hiking/s...land/rigi.html
or
http://wwwen.rigi.ch/website/english/index.html#

Stoos is close to Lucerne. You can drive to Schwyz and then to Schlattli to take a cog rail train up the mountain. Stoos is car free and has a wonderful restaurant on the top. Once you get to the village of Stoos, you can take a chairlift up to the restaurant.
http://www.stoos.ch/sommerenglish.html

Engelberg is a very nice village where you can visit Titlis and its glacier.
http://www.engelberg.ch/en/index.php

Another wonderful hike is the trail up to the Mythen. The Mythen is located in Schwyz and looks a bit like the Matterhorn, just without the snow.
http://www.pbase.com/edlibaer/mythen
or
http://activityworkshop.net/hiking/s...d/mythens.html

I live between Lucerne and Zürich and go on lots of hikes in the area. My husband and I with our children (10 and 8) climbed the Mythen in June. We used hiking boots but you can do it with good tennis shoes.

This is a great area, especially when the weather cooperates.

travelchic

Thank you for the quick and useful information. Engelberg sounds like it might be a good option. I thought we may want to venture up in to the mountains one day.
And yes, we are planning on doing a a boat trip around Lake Lucerne and a trip up Pilatus, possibly the GoldenPass, which from what I understand, includes both the boat ride and cogwheel train up Pilatus.

Leaving our car parked would be a good option for some of these excursions.

marigross

We were very happy with our choice of Weggis as a base for the area. But, yes - be prepared for quiet

rex

If you're content with having your dinner (fabulous and elegant) be your entertainment for the evening...

...then Hotel Albana in Weggis is a delight, as an alternative base location on Lake Luzern (Vierwaldstaettersee).

Best wishes,

Rex

kopp

Good morning travelchic,

Of the areas mentioned here, you will absolutely fall in love with any of them! Each has its own special qualities, either Weggis by the lake or Engelberg up in the mountains. We were there just this summer, and still talk daily how gorgeous the entire area is. For schuler to actually live there -- well, it's just not fair, lol! What a treat it must be for her to open the curtains each morning and breath in the beauty! ahhhhh....

Anyway, we stayed in Engelberg, which is an hour by train from Lucerne, probably shorter by car as the cars were racing past us in the train. While there, yes, the Pilatus is a great trip. Plan on eating up there lunch up there. The views are great! And take the Glacier Flyer as well as the sleds down the hill. Pretty cool!

I am still putting the finishing touches on my trip report, but the Engelberg / Lake Lucerne part is done if you're interested. If you click on my name you should find it, then just scroll down to the part you want.

Also, if you're on the lake and want to stop somewhere different, try Burgenstock and take the 30-minute hike to the Hammetschwand Summit. Unbelievable!

Happy travels!

gunk

I would also recommend Engelberg. There is a small cheese factorywhich you can tour in the grounds of a beautifully groomed Monastery. Don't miss the bakery on the right hand side of the main road leading from the Hotel Europe to the Monastery. Other highlights of this town have already been mentioned above.

travelchic

Thanks everyone, this has been a great help. Can anyone comment on this itinerary for three of our days? Does this give a general sampling of the area? Too much in one day? Not enough?

1) explore Lucerne

2) boat ride around Lake Lucerne, up Pilatus (lunch, short hikes, relax and enjoy views!)

3)morning to Weggis, up to Rigi Kaltbad for a longer hike, to Engelberg in the afternoon (or maybe Engelberg another day?)

Thanks!

kleeblatt

Engelberg takes most of the day.

Your hike to the Rigi will take 5 hours
(fantastic that you're doing it)

The ferry and Pilatus will take the whole day.

I would do Lucerne during the early evening hours or the whole day if the weather doesn't cooperate.

Enjoy!

travelchic

Yes, thank you, Schuler. I copied several of the Rigi hikes you pointed me to. I've heard some of the hikes/walks can have pretty scary ridges (without railings, etc..), do you know if this is the case for any of these hikes?

bob_brown

I was in the Englberg cheese factory two weeks ago. It is very clean as you would expect, and it is a very nice place to have lunch.

kopp

The Monastery cheese factory even has a cute little store, with free cheese samples! We purchased the bell-shaped brie-type cheese, Engelbergglocken or something like that. Delish!

kleeblatt

I've done the "scary ridge" hike called the Felsenweg. It's absolutely beautiful and not at all scary. The path is quite wide and there is a railing at the most dangerous parts. The website below includes a picture of the Felsenweg, which will give you an idea of what it looks like.

http://www.raonline.ch/pages/ch/hike...i01b.html#hike

kleeblatt

For anyone coming to the Lucerne area, this thread might be of interest to you.

jmw44

Well, you caught me, schuler. I'm sure you can imagine that my imagination takes me back to my small visit last June at about this time. So I read through this thread before I realized that you had brought it back from almost a year ago. No matter. You know, I still think I would like to stay in Gersau sometime. I wonder why it doesn't capture anyone else's attention.

Best wishes for a lovely June.
Still teaching?
J. (with hello to s' because I know you can't resist this thread either.)

enzian

Thank you for finding this Schuler! We'll be there in 2 weeks, staying on Rigi. Looking forward to a hike or two, hopefully not in the rain. You've had a wet spsring, I think.

enzian

spring. Geeeez, I can't type.