vinaysheel

Hi all,
we are planning a three day family vacation in Switzerland in the coming June 2014. A family of 5 people with three kids, ranging from 16 to 8 years. Being on Europe tour twice but left Switzerland, as wanted to visit it with no other country.
Scenic beauty, admiring local culture and enjoying the mountains is what we all are looking for. Interested in staying at two or at the most three location and managing all our trips from those points. We are not museums types.
We also wish to hire a service apartment and not the usual hotels which could give us more freedom and space.

The rail routes and the river cruise are more on our preference list.

Any suggestions?

kja

Three weeks, as suggested by your thread title, or three days, as suggested by your first sentence?

PalenQ

Hopefully three weeks - to me the literal and figurative high point of Switzerland is the Jungfrau Region around Interlaken - soaring glacier-girdled peaks within view of your cozy family-run hotel or guesthouse balcony - toylike mountain climbing trains, thrilling aerial gondola rides and hiking paths for all abilities.

Stay there several days if possible as there is so much to see and do - not just mountains but boat rides on the two idyllic lakes the bookend Interlaken - trains up the Jungfraujoch, Europe's highest train station and there is there a sea of ice - a glacier you can walk to - ice grottos - awesome views of the Aletsch Glacier and all around.

If you have never been to Switzerland before the Jungfrau Region should be IMO your focal point.

<The rail routes and the river cruise are more on our preference list> - For lots of great info on Swiss trains, including the iconic scenic trains like the Bernina Express (to me the most awesomely scenic train ride in Europe!), Golden Pass, Glacier Express, etc check out these IMO fantastic sources: www.swisstravelsystem.com; http://www.budgeteuropetravel.com/id3.html; www.ricksteves.com and www.seat61.com.

If there that long and travel about a lot then the Swiss Pass could be a great deal - kinds 15 and under get a free Family Pass so that they never pay anything to ride anything - even the gondolas to mountain tops that the Swiss Pass gives only 50% on the kids would always go free. Swiss Passes are valid not only on trains but lake boats, city buses and trams, postal buses and also give free entry to 400+ Swiss Museums.

To whet your appetite for the fantastic Jungfrau Region take a look at these images of it:

https://www.google.com/search?q=jung...=1600&bih=1032

dulciusexasperis

I agree with the Jungfrau region as one of your 3 locations.

For a different side of Switzerland I would suggest the Ticino in the south. My favourite place to stay in that region is Ascona on Lake Maggiore. The 4 palm trees at the end of the harbour give a lot of people a surprise and must be the most photograped 4 palm trees in Europe.
https://www.google.ca/search?q=ascon...w=1280&bih=687

Another choice would be to stay around Montreux. In that region you will find the 'Swiss Riviera'. I bet you didn't know there is a Swiss Riviera. Lots to see and do around Lake Geneva by train or boat.
https://www.google.ca/#q=swiss+riviera

vinaysheel

Thanks, It is indeed three weeks and not three days.

The information provided is fantastic, i shall take a few days to completely understand that.
The cites which i should be concentrating for my stay? could some one suggest that also.

About the accommodation? i was planning to rent out a service apartment in these area. Is that a good thought.

neckervd

"admiring local culture"
what do you mean with that exactly?
A lot of Swiss culture and History is explained in museums (open air and closed one's). But I understand that's just the thing you don't like.

"The rail routes and the RIVER CRUISE are more on our preference list."
The longest boat journeys can be done on the rivers
Rhine (Konstanz - Schaffhausen, Rheinfelden - Basel),
Aare (Biel/Bienne - Solothurn).
The navigation on Swiss Lakes is mre important. The most important boat lines (lakes and rivers) are:
Lake Geneva: Geneva - Chillon castle (5 1/2 hrs by steamboat)
Lake Maggiore: Locarno - Arona (4 hrs by boat)
Lake Lugano: Ponte Tresa - Porlezza (3 1/2 hrs by boat)
Lake Constance – Rhine river: Schaffhausen - Meersburg - Lindau - Romanshorn (11 hrs by boat)
Lake Neuchatel- Broye river, Thielle river and Aare river: Yverdon - Murten (5 hrs by boat), Murten - Solothurn (8 hrs by boat)
Lake Lucerne: Alpnachstad (Pilatus railway) - Fluelen (3 1/2 hrs by boat)
Lake Thun/Lake Brienz: Thun - Interlaken - Brienz (3 1/2 hrs, with a short leg by train at Interlaken).

SCENIC SWISS RAILWAYS

Almost every railway ligne through Switzerland is scenic. Here are the best ones:
Glacier Express Zermatt-Brig-Chur-St. Moritz, Bernina-Express St. Moritz-Tirano,
Golden Pass Montreux-Gstaad-Spiez-Interlaken-Lucerne, Voralpen Express Lucerne-Rapperswil-St. Gallen
Old Loetschberg line Berne-Spiez-Kandersteg-Brig, Simplon line Brig-Domodossola-Arona, Centovalli line Domodossola-Locarno,
Gotthard railway Lucerne-Airolo-Lugano-Chiasso,
Mont-Blanc-Express Martigny-Chamonix-St-Gervais (-Geneva).
You find all timetables under www.sbb.ch/en


As you travel with kids, you may be interested in the following infos:

SWiTZERLAND WITH CHILDREN

As public transport is rather expensive in Switzerland, study carefully the sites about Swiss Pass, Swiss Flexipass and Swiss half fare card: http://www.swisstravelsystem.ch/Tick...l?&L=2#s_h_f_c

Check the Swiss Travel System Family Card
The Swiss Travel System Family Card is issued at no cost to parents who wish to take along their children under the age of 16 at no cost. Please note that at least one parent has to travel with the child/ren.

Some ideas:

historic steamboats on Lake Geneva:
http://www.cgn.ch/horaires/pdf/AffA2-ete-10.pdf
http://www.cgn.ch/eng/flotte

Swiss Vapeur Park Le Bouveret:
http://www.swissvapeur.ch/en/index.php

Signal de Bougy:
http://www.parc-aventure.ch/Signal-de-Bougy/
http://www.signaldebougy.ch/

Menhirs at Yverdon
http://www.yverdonlesbainsregion.ch/...menhirs_clendy

Blonay-Chamby historic railway:
http://www.blonay-chamby.ch/index-en.php

Chillon castle:
http://www.chillon.ch/en/

Gruyeres castle, cheese diary and chocolate factory:
http://www.chateau-gruyeres.ch/e/mul...spectacle.html
http://www.la-gruyere.ch/en/navpage-...FR-120085.html
http://www.lamaisondugruyere.ch/inde...=142&Itemid=56
http://www.lamaisondugruyere.ch/inde...=142&Itemid=56

Chatelard-Emosson (Mont Blanc area):
http://www.chatelard.net/english/pages/descr_e.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emosson
http://www.emosson.ch/PublicEN/default-en.htm

Zermatt-Gornergrat:
http://www.gornergrat.ch/home/index.php
http://www.klein-matterhorn.ch/photos/
http://www.zermatt.ch/en/index.cfm

Entirely walled city of Murten:
http://www.murtentourismus.ch/en/nav...nFR-99305.html
http://www.murtentourismus.ch/en/nav...-MurtenFR.html
Medieval city of Bern:
http://www.berninfo.com/en/page.cfm/Information
http://www.kleinbahn-gurten.ch/

Swiss Village Park Ballenberg:
http://ballenberg.ch/en/Welcome

Lugano and Swissminiatur:
http://www.lugano-tourism.ch/en/291/default.aspx
http://www.swissminiatur.ch/

Seewen in the Jura close to Basel:
http://www.bundesmuseen.ch/musikauto...x.html?lang=en

Rapperswil:
http://www.zuerichsee.ch/en/page.cfm...FamilyDRZ/1230
http://www.knieskinderzoo.ch/
http://www.zuerichsee.ch/en/page.cfm/SightsRZ
http://www.zuerich.com/en/page.cfm/r...gion_zuerich_x

Rhine Falls Adventure Park
http://www.rheinfall.ch/Attraktionen...ark?lang=en-US

Furka steam train
http://www.furka-bergstrecke.ch/eng/train/timetable.php

You may have a look at
http://www.myswitzerland.com/en/interests/family.html
http://www.takethefamily.com/where/s...ays-and-breaks
http://www.eparenting.co.uk/family_h...tzerland.shtml
http://www.reka.ch/en/rekaferien/Pages/default.aspx
http://littletravellers.com/destinat...y-switzerland/