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Munich Germany & Switzerland April 2020

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Okay My Husband and I plus a girl friend of mine ( 40th bday trip for us all) are planning a trip to Germany and Switzerland for 2 weeks 14-15 days * might could go 2 more days 24-25 .

Our Friend wants to see The Dachau Memorial so that is a must ( my husband and I may not see it), also we want to take the Glacier Express thats a must and we really wanna stay in a very picturesque swiss town like Lauterbrunnen or Gimmelwald .

We need the dates to encompass Easter weekend starting on the 9th since we have that day off work. Maybe 9th-23rd of April 2020.

Options for air travel is out of closest Mobile AL to Atlanta (closest is Atlanta) 45 min or NYC (3 hrs) . Or drive 2 hours to New Orleans, Pensacola , Gulfport airports.

We have also discussed we want great places to stay and do not want to be packing and unpacking every other day lol if that is possible. We are just starting to plan so I need some advice on the following and welcome any advice on tickets air or tips or tricks :

  1. Should we start in Switzerland or Germany? Or look at flying into other European cities and then flying to one of those destinations as a jumping point ?

  2. Best options for first 2 night and where to stay that is going to be enjoyable as far as getting sleep and seeing the things we want to see. We would like a good rest place with views and beer and wine ha ha re-coop from the journey and be fresh to get started on the rest of the trip.

  3. How far in advance should we book our Glacier Express tickets 90 days? I was reading that it operates 1 time a day up until April 19th then 3 times a day? We want 1st or 2nd class tickets for the full 8 hour journey

  4. Travel advice for getting to Glaciers Express and should we go from St. Mortiz to Zermatt or vice versa? Any advice is welcome as to places to stay that would be nice and in an area we would enjoy.
    Thank you in advance for your input and time.

Posted by
5651 posts

Because of the weather in the Alps in April, I would start in Germany and end in Switzerland. I know that's not much of a time difference, but MAYBE you'll get clearer weather as spring progresses in the Alps.
I've also found that open jaw tickets are no more expensive, so maybe return from one city, [Zurich?] and initially fly into another [Munich or Frankfurt?] Start tracking flights and set up alerts on Google flights.
Safe travels!

Posted by
5651 posts

AND- search here for all the discussions of trips similar to yours and Bookmark the posts for easy access.

Posted by
7944 posts

Yeah, be sure to read about weather and climate availability of Swiss mountains. Easter may prove to be a bad "target" time, as too early to be sure of full access. When you have advance tickets, that means you're going on the excursion regardless of fog or mist that day. (I like to save money, I'm not arguing against advance tickets in every case. But if a chairlift or gondola has no advance purchase discount, I wouldn't buy it in advance. I'd wait in line after looking at the summit-camera on my phone.

Posted by
21227 posts

If you do go to the Berner Oberland, be aware that the Schithornbahn to the top is closed for 4 days, normally a Tuesday to Friday in late April. This year, it was April 23 to 26. The 2020 schedule is not out now, so you might have to wait to see the precise dates.

The Glacier Express schedule is out now, and it is one per day until April 18, 2020 when it will go to two per day, spaced 1 hour apart.

The Berner Oberland would fill the bill as far as starting at a place to relax after the long journey. The whole time you have picked will be "mud" season in the Alps. There will still be snow, higher up for sure, and it will be melting. I don't know if waiting for the end of the trip will help a whole lot.

As far as airline ticketing, there is time to wait. I don't see any price significant advantage to flying out of other airports if Mobil is your home airport. You will have at least one leg with 2 changes. Going to New Orleans means you could get both legs with a single change.

Posted by
910 posts

Fortunately many airlines use Zurich or Munich as arrival airports into Europe, which gives you a lot of flexibility. And flying between the two takes about an hour, which makes sense given your Munich/Dachau focus and your Swiss focus. If you want to minimize multiple moves maybe fly into Munich, stay 2 - 3 - 4 nights, giving time to see Dachau plus the area (beer, great museums, etc.). Fly to Zurich and train on to Lauterbrunnen for the Oberland adventure, then on to the Glacier express adventure. Service from Zermatt or St. Moritz back to Lucerne or Zurich is straightforward so going either way is your choice.

https://www.sbb.ch/en/home.html

When we went to Switzerland in April weather was highly variable. Beautiful sunny vineyard visits in Lausanne and hiking in the Oberland, and sleet and snow in Lucerne.

If weather closes in pop down to Lugano for the sunny Ticino.

Posted by
3 posts

Thank you! We found tickets to be much much cheaper for Zurich so we are headed there April 4 th then we found a vrbo rental in grindelwald for 4 nights ( we have a choice between Grindelwald (98$ a night very picturesque on a farm ) or staying in Lauterbrunnen $222 a night also extremely nice vrbo) then we will be heading to Zermatt for 2 nights and hoping to purchase tickets for the Glacier Express for 11th (90 days in advance right? ) Any advice? Also or rather to rent a car for this portion of the trip? We are very comfortable driving Zurich to Zermatt turning in after we get to Zermatt. Haven't planned after we get off glacier Express yet then on to Munich

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