Hi
This is great forum !
My wife and I are visiting Switzerland (may be 1 or 2 days in Austria also) for 8 days in July. We fly in and out of Zurich.
We are renting a car and want to see the main attractions.
Based on advice on the internet , we are considering the are around Lucerne for 3 days and another 3 days in Crans-Montana . And may be spend the last two days in Austria
What would you suggest ?
I am concerned about staying so high in the mountains with a car (crans Montana is 9000 ft)
Thanks
Posted by
Paris
7300 posts
Hi,
Crans-Montana is only at about 5000 ft., but honestly it is not that great. There are good views, but little to do: it is a former health resort, a ski resort in winter, and there are golf courses. Any day trip takes a while because you need to drive down the mountain first.
If you really want to add a bit of Austria, I would go to the Engadin instead (the area around Pontresina/St Moritz), and cross the border into Tirol for ~2 days (but I am not as knowledgeable about the Austrian side of things).
Posted by
OP
USA
9 posts
Thanks for the quick reply . Which towns will you suggest as the two bases (or more)
We have been just searching Airbnb and booking somewhere in the Lucerne area and the zermatt area
We just happened to find a good place in Crans-Montana.
Posted by
Bay Area, California
1632 posts
Don't waste time driving a rental car in Switzerland. Zermatt, for example, has banned all car traffic. In fact, you will have to park the car in another town, grab all your luggage, and take the train to Zermatt.
Also, July is peak season. Car traffic will be horrendous. Finding parking will not be easy and will for sure be time-consuming, let alone stressful.