My wife and I are flying into Zurich on 7/29 and back to the states on 8/5. We will be renting a car, and want to see as much as we can of Switzerland, with a little jaunt into Austria. Do we need hotel reservations this time of year, or can we be flexible in our travels and still find accomodations? Any suggestions are appreciated.

Hi wfd,

July and August are high season, so if you want the best hotels or the best value, you should reserve ahead.

Also, you don't need a car for the Swiss portion. There is a train station in the basement of the Zurich airport, so trains are convenient right from the start. Many mountain villages and all mountaintops do not allow cars.

You can find train schedules at www.rail.ch.

Have fun!

s

It is highseason and you might need some time to find a decent hotel.
If you dnonot or cannot make reservations, go to the local Touristoffice for help in those places. But never later then 4.00 pm. In case you need to drive to the next village.

You might check about any major events during your timeframe. For instance you wouldn't want to drive into Montreux when the Jazz Festival is going on without a hotel reservation.

Sounds like you have only a very short time so having a car will be beneficial as you won't have to worry about train schedules.

As for seeing as much as you can of Switzerland AND including a short jaunt into Austria, you are pushing it.

Why not concentrate on just Switzerland?

The Berner Oberland is worth 5 days alone! The beauty of the Swiss alps is breathtaking! There are so many little towns up in the mountains that you can get to via funicular. I would give Interlaken a big skip and head stright up into the alps.

We did a 2 week trip through both of these countries and we could have easily spent 2 more weeks. If you really insist on visiting both countries in such a short amount of time, you could head straight to Austria, visiting the pretty city of Salzburg and then head to picturesque Hallstatt. Then head back to Switzerland to spend a few days in the Alps.

As for reservations, you could probably find places to stay along the way but they may not be your first or second choice. If you like to fly by the seat of your pants it can definitely be done but you may end up staying in a lesser known town.

Your time is so limited that you definitely do;t want to spend hours of it running around looking for hotels. (It's true that Tourist Info offices can aim you at places - but that time of year is busy - and who knows in what or where you will end up. Or what you will have to pay - or how much time it will take?

Don;t understand the desire to keeep this open when you have so little time. Pick something decent now and you won;t have to deal with it there - instead of seeing sights, hiking or otherwise enjoying yourself.

nytraveler, I would guess the reason they don't want to book accommodations is so they can fly by the seat of their pants and not be tied to going somewhere specific. This is also my favorite mode of travel as I don't like to stick to a preset itinerary.