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8-Days Switzerland Itinerary - Help/Suggestions

Posted by on

Hi everyone -

Apologies first as it's a very long post.

We will be visiting Switzerland from 1st week of September 2018, arriving and departing from Zurich. Our two years old daughter will be with us. We will be interested in spending some quality time close of mother nature, scenic locations such as green valleys, alpine villages, lakes, mountains, etc. take some scenic train rides, and have some glacier experience.

We have worked out an itinerary and I was wondering if you can provide suggestions. It will help us prioritize things to do for us.

We plan to have two bases during this visit; Wengen OR Lauterbrunnen and Montreux OR Vevey (Suggestions..?)

Here is the plan:

Day 1: Arrive in Zurich early morning. Take the train to first base immediately.

Base1 - Wengen/Lauterbrunnen (Day 1-4)

Day 1: Explore Wengen in the afternoon.

Day 2: Explore/Hike Wengen/Lauterbrunnen. Visit waterfall in Lauterbrunnen. May be a hike from Wengen to Lauterbrunnen and to the waterfalls.

Day 3: Day trip to Jungfraujoch or Schilthorn

Day 4: Full day trip to Lake Brienz area

Visit Harder Kulm for a bird-eye view of both lakes. Breakfast.

Option # 1:
Interlaken to Brienz - Take Cruize
Get down at Isetwald. Hike along the shores of Lake Brienz. Hike to Giessbach falls. Stop at the Grandhotel Giessbach for coffee.
Take boat from Giessbach to Brienz.
Go up to the Brienzer Rothorn. Allow at least an hour on the top to fully enjoy the views. Get down to Brienz.
Train to Interlaken Ost. And then Wengen

Option # 2:
Interlaken to Brienz - Take Train
Go up to the Brienzer Rothorn. Allow at least an hour on the top to fully enjoy the views. Get down to Brienz.
Take boat from Brienz to Interlaken Ost.
Get down at Giessbach. Hike along the shores of Lake Brienz. Hike to Giessbach falls. Stop at the Grandhotel Giessbach for coffee.
Take boat from Isetwald to Interlaken Ost. And then Wengen.

Base2 - Montreux/Vevey (Day 5-8)

Day 5: Take Golden Pass route from Interlaken Ost to Montreux (via Zweisimmen). Take a walking trip to Chateau de Chillon in the afternoon/evening.

Day 6: Full-day trip to Zermatt (Weather Permitting)

Option # 1:
Arrive in Zermatt.
Take Gornergratbahn to Gornergrat. Go to the top directly. Have lunch at Gornergrat. Walk down some portion between three train stops.
Sunnegga and Schwarzee (Optional)
Visit Zermatt village.
Return to Montreux.

Day 7: Day trip to Broc and Gryures ( through Chocolate Train…?)
Visit Maison Cailler Chocolate factory in Broc
La Maison du Gruyere cheese factory
Chateau de Gruyeres
Visit Gruyeres town
Anything else?
Return to Montreux. Can we do Gstaad on this day as well..?

Day 8: Day trip to Lavaux Vineyards and either Vevey or Lutry

Option # 1:
Montreux to Chexbres in train + bus
Walk from Chexbres to St. Saphorin or Rivaz then train to Vevey
Things to do in Veve…?
Boat/Train Back to Montreux

Option # 2:
Montreux to Chexbres by train
Walk to Lutry through the vineyards
Things to do in Lutry..?
Boat back to Montreux.

Day 9: Montreux to Zurich by train early morning. Check in at hotel.

Option #1:
Half day trip to Ebenalp and Seealpsee from Zurich. It's 5 hours travel time both ways but we really really want to see this lake and the famous restaurant/hotel.

Option #2
Half day trip to Rhine falls

Option #3
Roam around in Zurich

Day 10: Return flight early morning.

Posted by
61 posts

I've done the day trip from Zurich to Ebenalp/Seealpsee -- I definitely think that trip is worth it despite the long day on the train! I was in the same situation -- I was in Zurich and REALLY wanted to see the Aescher Guesthouse (bucket list item!) and ended up being glad that I did not listen to a few friends who told me that it was too long of a trip for one day. It was absolutely gorgeous and one of my most cherished memories from my trip :)

If you want to do both Schilthorn and the Lauterbrunnen Valley walk, staying in Lauterbrunnen might make more sense. Personally, I'm a huge fan of Murren as a base for that area of the country -- a little quieter than Lauterbrunnen and personally I liked the scenery at the higher elevation of Murren much better. The train/lift combo to get down to Lauterbrunnen didn't bother me (about 20-25 mins, though that extra time might be burdensome if traveling with a very small child).

Posted by
360 posts

We had a similar itinerary for the time that you're in the Montreux area, though we stayed in the Lavaux area (the vineyards are beautiful). For the Berner Oberland, I agree with the previous poster in that we also enjoyed the higher elevations and the scenery more than the Lauterbrunnan area -- depending on what you're looking for. The lakes are pretty, but it was the mountains/peaks that really stood out to me as something different and why you're in Switzerland. If you're choosing between the two peaks, Jungfraujoch is more spectacular but also more costly. We also stayed in Murren really enjoyed the views up there -- you're so close to some of the mountains at that altitude.

Posted by
451 posts

We have travelled with a 10 month old and then a year later when she was 22 months.

On your first pretty morning get up the mountain to Shilthorn or the Jungfrau. The clouds can move in quickly. Use the other days to adjust your schedule. I would stay in Wengen. It is up on the mountain. It is nice to look out at the other mountains.

Posted by
18 posts

Some thoughts on your itinerary:
Gstaad is on the Golden Pass route. You could get off there, look around, and take a later train in to Montreux.
Gruyeres is very nice and worth the trip. If you want to go there and also tour the cheese and chocolate factories, the Chocolate Train does all of that from Montreux. Otherwise you could detour off the Golden Pass at Montbovon.
Be sure you go to Zermatt and Gornergrat on a day when the weather is clear so you can see the Matterhorn and glaciers. Otherwise it's not worth the trip.
Montreux and Vevey are both nice. Vevey is smaller and quieter, Montreux more convenient for train connections. From Chexbres you can easily walk downhill through the vineyards to any of the towns at the bottom and take a train or boat back to Vevey or Montreux. The vineyard walks are beautiful.
Also consider going to Lausanne. A very interesting city with lots to see.
The boat trips on Lake Geneva are also very nice.

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