Before you go, check the weather forecast and pack accordingly. May hasn't been all to favorable the past few years (just what you wanted to hear, right?)

enroh - I only gate that site to verify the current prices of Swiss Passes in U.S. if it was beneficial for your American contacts to buy for you - or you could probably buy yourself on phone and have sent to American address - thereby and it could be a key point for you - saving the GSE or whatever they call Canada's Value Added Tax if sent to U.s. address but if sent to Canada it would be collected - could be another reason to buy south of the border even if Loony prices were comparable.

swandav and moi have gone thru the Interlaken thing many times - I just cannot understand why she/he/it coes not consider the back sections of town - say along the river - the Lucerne type wooden bridges - the old town square, to be at least a bit cute.

And she/he/it just cannot fathom how I can see that they are cute places.

Ah the eye of the beholder.

Yet I think that the typical traveler who makes the remark Interlaken ain't worth of cup of coffee is indeed one who only treks down the main tourist shop filled main drag and never gets off it to the town's nicer districts.

Indeed Interlaken is one of my most favorite towns in all of Europe (and swandav's least favorites - no one is right and no one is wrong as indeed it is in the eye of the beholder. But for casual tourists who have not trekked all around the town as Swnadav has done then the ugly charge may well be a naive one to charge.

Ah, yes, pq, I agree about the eye of the beholder. But I always like to give travellers the full picture -- the positives and the negatives. I often suggest that they spend some time looking at photos (such as at google images) so they can begin to get an idea of the place before they make the decision about where to stay.

s

swandav - so far you have never ever given any 'positives' about Interlaken - positives that I and other posters have pointed out and some have shown by photos.

You sole goal seems to say that Interlaken is the worst place in Switzerland and by any objective criteria that is not nearly true IMO

I am still not sure you have ferreted out the idyllic parts of Interlaken that I have or I cannot believe you would diss them so so much.

pq, I let you guys give the positives; I give the other viewpoint. Each is subjective, and each is valid. That Interlaken is (almost) the worst place in Switzerland is certainly true -- imo.

s

Which means it is not exactly bad at all, right swandav? Which place in Switzerland would be really bad? ;-)

That Interlaken is (almost) the worst place in Switzerland is certainly true>

true to you but no one else I think. If you have really trekked off the beaten Interlaken path you would never ever say that IMO and IME

dig a hole deep enough and you cannot get out it seems

pq, give it a rest, please. We agree to disagree. It's all imo etc.

Yes I really have trecked and wandered off the track in Interlaken. That we had different impressions of the same place doesn't surprise me.

s

Getting back to the Swiss Pass question---RailEurope is offering $50 off a Swiss Pass through Dec. 29 (the last day to buy at 2010 prices). The trick is that they say it is only for the "first 100" sold but who knows what that means---the first 100 of each type of pass, or the first 100 total?

Since enoh can't access the US site for RailEurope, and the Canadian one seems to charge more, I suggest you call (or e-mail) the Rick Steves office in Washington State---they sell the Passes for the same price, offer the $50 off, and will be able to tell you if any of the sale-price passes are left before you buy one. They will ship the passes to Canada for the same $15 (US) they charge for US addresses.

Most agents however do not impose the $15 mailing fee that Rick Steves does IMO, including RailEurope. and the thing about the last day to buy at 2010 prices is no longer true - yes for years prices of Swiss Passes were readjsuted every Jan 1 and you could buy before Jan 1 and lock in the old prices. Yet this is not very dated info as the past few years prices for Swiss Passes have fluctuated up and down at least several times a year - as exchange rates dictate. So if you 'lock in' 2010 prices by buying before Jan 1 you could be locking in a higher price than that pass could sell for sometime after 2010.

Ditto for all types of passes - the old buy before Jan 1 to lock in prices is no longer true and has not been for at least two years now.

True; RailEurope doesn't charge shipping of the total is over $350 or so.

RS ofsets the shipping fee with a 20% off shopping spree on the website, which is useful if one needs luggage.

I just pick up our passes at the RS store in Edmonds and don't pay anything extra.

And I would only suggest getting the 2010 pass price if the $50 discount is still available. But one is gambling on currency fluctuations whenver you buy. So "locking in" the 2010 price may or may not be a good idea. I haven't checked the latest predictions on how the dollar will fare against the Swiss franc and euro in 2011, but last time I didn, it wasn't good news.

Has anyone been to the Schynige Platte in May or June? We were there in September, but I'd love to see flowers.

I haven't checked the latest predictions on how the dollar will fare against the Swiss franc and euro in 2011, but last time I didn, it wasn't good news>

yikes - in today's NYtimes the Swiss Franc is now about $1.05 officially which means even higher in regular exchange rates.

Switzerland to me always was so so expensive and now with the franc soaring....

In sorting out a priority of what sights we want to see in the various regions ... the more it seems that the Swiss Consecutive Day Pass is the one for us! Given that 'the old buy before Jan 1 to lock in prices is no longer true and has not been for at least two years now' ... I'll continue to check prices and hold off buying the passes for now. In all likelihood (as long as the savings are still there), I'll buy the passes before we go!

and another reason NOT to buy now is that there are indeed Swiss Pass sales that the last few yeara have popped up - like an extra day on passes or free trips to mountain tops like Schilthorn. NO reason to buy until fairly shortly before your trip UNLESS one of the specials does pop up, then hop on it!

Good to know ... thanks for all of the info!

Schynige Platte in May or June?

We have been to the region in late May and found snow on trails above Wengen(and no view of the mountains) some days and a gorgeous wildflower field above Grindelwald below the gondola route. The locals told us the flowers were late that year, so we were lucky.

I haven't read this entire thread, so forgive me if this has already been mentioned.

The Schynige Platte Railway doesn't open until May 28, 2011.

Other operating times here:

http://www.jungfrau.ch/en/sommer/tou...erating-times/

Schynige Platte is nice but for a first time visitor with limited time to this area it would be far down on my list - the Murren-Gimmelwald (Schilthorn) Loop is tops IMO and then things like the Mannlichen to Kl-Scheidegg hike, the Jungfraujoch, a boat ride on Lake Thun, etc.