6ish days in and out of Zurich

My last two trips when arriving in Zurich I have taken the train straight from the airport to areas where the mountains are. This year I went to Appenzell another time I went to Luzern. You should do the same. Luzern is only an hour away from Zurich and central. Or go straight to Lauterbrunnen in the valley of the Berner Oberland or one of the mountain resort villages like Murren or Wengen and stay there until Thursday before heading back to Zurich on Friday the day before you leave.

Many posters here have been to the Berner Oberland in mid-May and some say there could still be snow on hiking trails. I agree you should just head to Luzern from the airport. It is a simple train ride of 1:10, plus Luzern is a very nice city on a beautiful lake. I would head to the mountains on Tuesday morning and from Luzern you can reach the mountains via Interlaken/Lauterbrunnen and stay as noted in either Wengen or Murren. It only takes about 2:20. Since your flight home is in the afternoon on Saturday you can train from Lauterbrunnen to the Zurich airport in about 2:50.

There are no shortages of scenic spots in Switzerland for a proposal. Enjoy!

With a 2:00 pm departure from Zurich, you can easily spend your last night in Luzern and reach the airport in plenty of time for your flight.

I suggest you head straight to Lauterbrunnen from the airport—-the quickest trains take 2h 40 min with 2 changes, at Bern and Interlaken Ost. Spend 3-4 nights in Lauterbrunnen and 2-3 in Luzern. A fun daytrip from Luzern, with lots of potential places to propose, would be the Rigi loop by boat, cogwheel train, cablecar, and boat, all fully covered with a Swiss Pass. You will want a nice day for this, so 3 nights in Luzern would give you 2 chances for good weather.

Springtime photos from Rigi, with views over the lake:

https://www.rigi.ch/en/experience/your-mount-rigi-experience/summer-spring#dmlb=1&ipd=15447638

You will have to “do the math” if you want to be sure to get the best value in a Swiss Pass or half-fare card. Just remember that with a half-are card you still need to buy tickets for each ride., so it is less convenient. With a Swiss Pass, you simply board the train, boat, or bus, as well as some mountain lifts (but not all). You get a map with the pass, showing which mountain lifts are fully covered and which are 50% or 25%.

Or you can look at this one online:

https://cdn-doc.myswissalps.com/docs/default-source/rail-network-maps/swisstravelpass.pdf?sfvrsn=7788603a_52

Also look at day-by-day prices, not just the total amount. A 6-day pass costs 359 CHF, or 60 CHF per travel day. If your first or last day’s travel costs less than or close to that, don’t include that day. Luzern to Zurich airport is much cheaper ( around 25 CHF), so you could start your 6 days of use on Sunday with your train ride to Lauterbrunnen instead of spending Sunday night in Zurich.

Just got back from our third trip to Switzerland in September…..I agree with Jazz+ and Lola…..land in Zurich, get on the train at the airport and head straight to Lauterbrunnen…..we love staying there as its central location is ideal…….but Wengen or Murren, further up in the alps, is lovely as well……you just cannot beat walking out of your hotel and seeing that incredible view you will have when you train over to the Lauterbrunnen area……Lucerne is so nice as well….Hotel Balances is my suggestion if you stay here but i would take my sweetheart straight to the out-of-sight views and find that scenic spot!

Agree with others who suggest going straight from Zurich to your destination. Back in July 2017 we spent 4 nights in Wengen and it was great. If I had six nights I'd spend the first four in either Wengen (preferred) or Murren and the final two in Luzern (both Luzern and Zurich are nice but we preferred the former).

Yes, in mid-May there probably still be snow on the mid-elevation hiking trails and certainly on the higher elevation trails. But the lower level trails, such as Grutschalp to Murren, will almost certainly be clear. But crowds in mid-May are down and the flowers are bursting. Overall, it's my favorite time to visit.

Thank you all for the thoughtful responses! I think I have much better clarity now!

I have elite benefits at several hotel chains, but it seems like they aren’t really common outside of the cities? Is it best to Airbnb? If I train to a town, is there Uber or taxis inside ?

no uber or taxis in car free towns. Is a short walk a problem? Mobility issues?

Which hotel chains? There are two excellent Marriott properties in Luzern, The Renaissance and “The Hotel” Autograph Collection.

https://www.the-hotel.ch/en/

Both are very close (easy walking distance) to the train station, the boat dock, the famous Chapel Bridge, and the Old Town.

The re is also an IHG ( Holiday Inn Express) and I thought there was a Best Western, but I do not know the locations.

Oh no mobility issues, but i'm scared of my gf if she thinks it's a long walk! haha, it sounds like the towns are manageable walking though, i don't think it'll be bad.

i have good status with Hyatt, Hilton, and Marriott. The marriott option sounds good for Lucerne!

I stayed at the Marriott Renaissance in Lucerne this past Sept. and really enjoyed it—great staff, comfortable bed, and super convenient to the train station and the old town. When exiting the train station, take the escalator up to the Pilatusstrasse exit and walk a few short blocks to the hotel, which will be on the left hand side of the street. It’s about a 3-4 minute walk. My sister walked it with no complaints, so I suspect your girlfriend will have no problem with the short walk. 😊

I will second the Marriott Renaissance.

Jumping in here after the new year... Brief thoughts to add to the above great comments.

Agree - head to Lucerne (Luzern locally) don't stay in Zurich when you arrive. You have plenty of time. Great ideas for day trips around Lucerne and plenty of proposal-worthy locations! I would suggest staying in the old town area, near the river (use the chapel bridge as a landmark to locate the central old town), as there is so much to see within a small area (not long walking) and it is close to the train station and main boat dock for lake trips and bus service for the local mountain trips.

In terms of mountain destinations after Lucerne, May is known as "mud month" and is the shoulder season when many restaurants and small hotels close for a rest. Flowers won't be in window boxes or in gardens and trails will be muddy.

You can do the day trips to the local mountains around Lucerne for your great mountain views, but then maybe head to the Montreux-Vevey area as your second base. Also on a lake but different from Lucerne as it is the French-speaking area of Switzerland and known as the Swiss Riviera. Castle Chillon is fantastic if you and your GF like castles and Chaplin's World worth a visit. You can do a day trip to Gruyere also.

Finally, I would advise against using AirBnB.com. I would suggest starting with Booking.com and making sure you are booking through a licensed vacation home company if you decide on an apartment or house. Some AirBnB rentals by owner are not legal in Switzerland and you could get stuck. Locally owned hotels are also listed on Booking.com and are a nice charming alternative to international chains. After you find a good option, consider booking direct, especially with hotels, as the booking.com website takes a good chunk of their profit.

Thank you all for the awesome replies! I briefly skimmed through the Rick Steve's book, and with your comments, I am thinking of heading straight from Zurich to Lucerne starting off for two days. Then three days with Wengen as a base to explore Jungfrau Region. Then heading back to Zurich for a day and a half to end the trip. Is there a reason to do the mountains before Lucern instead?

I am actually going the week of May 14, and it has me a little worried that things may still be closed due to low season. It seems I won't be able to do the männlichen - kleine scheidegg hike, but I am hoping the lifts will still be operationally ok to explore the region.

Sounds good! Is the Mannlichen hike closed in May? It’s a good one!

Some info I read was saying open June to October generally :/

I really like hiking, but my girlfriend in general does not! haha. I was looking forward to this hike since it sounded amazing and easy. are there any similar beautiful but easy hikes?

Unfortunately, you will miss the May 26th start of the cable cars to Mannlichen. The timetable can be found here:

https://www.maennlichen.ch/en/summer/information/timetable.html

But not to worry, there are great walks and scenery everywhere!! As Eddie mentioned above, Grutschalp to Murren is a great option. I also really enjoyed walking down in Lauterbrunnen—down the main street and keep going. The views from Murren and Wengen are fabulous. So, just walking around and exploring there are also good options. Murren down to Gimmelwald is another possibility.

Forum member Shoe put together a great guide to hiking in the BO area. You can find that here:

https://lauterbrunnenhiking.wordpress.com/

My sister and bro in law are not big walkers like your girlfriend and they ended up walking way more than any of us predicted. It’s easy to get distracted by the beauty of the area and not realize just how much you are walking. So, I suspect your girlfriend might walk more than you think. 😊