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basel 7 nights

Posted by (NC) on

iam staying in Basel for 7 nights prior to river cruise. this is part of the tour. one of the options is to go to Luzern and Mt Pilatus. Is it a more scenic choice of going to Vitznau by boat , taking the cogwheel to summit of Rigi , cable car to Weggis and boat back to luzern a better decision as opposed to Mt Pilatus?. I just read about this option on the forum. how would I go about planning/purchasing tickets if this is the better tour.

2nd question: from Basel is it realistic to go to Lauterbtunnen and or Interlaken in one day. interests are seeing beautiful alps , a small town and doing an easy walk (we are 70 and 73 without physical restictions). would appreciate any suggestions regarding this and how to proceed with planning. thank you this is for september 2025.

Posted by
7807 posts

Some other ideas:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/switzerland/stein-am-rein-and-schaffhausen-switzerland

I have only done Rigi, and we were sleeping over there after training to Luzerne. You did not give the Month and Year of travel, but I remind you that if you have only one specific day for a mountain ascent, you gain nothing by looking at the summit-camera online to see if it is "clear". You have to "go" anyway!

It was kind of cloudy our day, so I don't have a lot to say about the view. Both the train and the gondola are fine. I think we ate at the summit. We didn't consider walking down, because we planned to (mostly level) walk from the gondola base to the train base (near our luxury hotel.) However, that is the shoulder of a highway, not a sidewalk. But lake views most of the way. Not saying you should do this walk, it was "home" for us, and we never saw the public bus anyway!

Posted by
21028 posts

You do not have to buy any tickets until your travel day. That is the way it works in Switzerland.

You can get Saver Day Passes for a fairly low price if you buy them several months in advance. This allows you to travel on any train, lift, boat, or bus in Switzerland in the "GA Area" for the entire day. The Rigi excursion you describe is wholly in the GA Area. The ride up to Mt Pilatus is not covered. The draw back is to get the low price, you must buy early and it is only good for the day you buy it for. So if want to maintain flexibility, just buy tickets.

Yes, Basel to Lauterbrunnen is an easy day trip for just a quick look around. Again, look at the Saver Day Pass for this. That will get you as far as Muerren or Wengen.

https://www.sbb.ch/en/tickets-offers/tickets/day-passes/saver-day-pass.html

Are these trips part of the tour, or just optional excursions you have to pay for?

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