Help - Switzerland Itinerary Review - 12 days with young kids.

Hi @wanderweg - I saw your reply to my previous post but there was some error with the page and no longer available. I have reposted my itinerary with additional details. If you happen to see this, would appreciate your inputs based on the additional details here.

I’ll reiterate a bit of my original post. Don’t do a car for this itinerary. In America that makes sense. I’m Switzerland it really doesn’t. It’s more hassle than anything. Pack as efficiently as possible & use the trains as part of the adventure. The grocery stores will have baby/kid items like diapers, snacks, etc so you don’t need to overpack and a lot of the trains have family cars with little playgrounds on them to occupy the kids. It will be more enjoyable all around to just do trains. Last summer my nephews (age 3 & 1) visited us in Murren for 2 weeks and we did everything by train with no problem. In fact, they loved it.

I do personally find Wengen a better option than Grindelwald if you have flexibility in changing. I think it might be more convenient for you, but if you love your Grindelwald lodging and it’s close to the train station, it’s fine as well.

Also, if you’re ok with the elevation of Gornergrat with your kids, then I’d recommend adding Schilthorn to your itinerary while staying in Grindelwald or Wengen.

For your time in Grindelwald (or Wengen), you can easily do everything via train/cable car. I think you may be a bit confused about the geography of Wengen & Murren, so combine in this way…

Day 7: Grindelwald > First > Mannlichen (playground) > cable car down to Wengen on the other side you came up on to explore Wengen > Lauterbrunnen > Zweilutschinen > Grindelwald

Day 8: Grindelwald > Zweilutschinen > Lauterbrunnen > Grutschalp > Murren > optional Schilthorn and/or Birg > Gimmelwald > Stechelberg > Lauterbrunnen > Zweilutschinen > Grindelwald

Day 9: Grindelwald > Zweilutschinen > Interlaken Ost > Lake Brienz Boat tour with Stops > Harder Kulm > Interlaken Ost > Zweilutschinen > Grindelwald

Day 10: Grindelwald > Pfinstegg & Glacier Canyon or Eiger Express/Kleine Scheidegg/Wengen

Day 11: Buffer day for weather + possibly something like Gelmerbahn if you really want to
- or more time at the Mannlichen playground which the kids are going to love :) and adults love the view!

It looks like you have thought things through really well. In my opinion you could certainly rent a car - it’s not that I am a fond of driving around Switzerland, we have lived here for over six years without a car (only a motorcycle, and that is just for fun), but I also think it is no problem to rent a car, if that is what you want to do. The trains are really very easy, many young families use them, and as Wanderweg said there are different things on the trains that are geared to families with young children.

Something very handy about taking public transport is that you do not need to return to wherever you parked your car and are free to return by another route. Your day in Brienz can be switched up by taking the bus (or boat) back to Interlaken from Iseltwald rather than having to return to Brienz, for example.

I also think that Grindelwald is just fine. Wherever you decide to stay there is no need to divide your time between Grindelwald/Wengen and Brienz as I think it will be more of a hassle for your family to change hotels then it would be to make the trip by car or train to Brienz and on to Grimselwelt.

Sigriswil bridge is easily accessible by bus from Interlaken (with one change), or you can drive there. Are you a Crash Landing on You fan? It is a fund bridge to visit for sure!

Yes, loads of picnic spots everywhere in Switzerland. Most often there are benches, but also sometimes tables. It is very common to sit outside and eat here, either while hiking or just on a break from work. The Swiss walking past you will say “En Guete” (enjoy your meal). ;-)

Last year someone complained that they felt unwelcome because they saw a “no picnics” sign by some outdoor seating. It turns out that this was actually a restaurant - so of course if it looks like restaurant seating, don’t try to picnic there; plenty of other places are available for that.

Hi again,
I just wanted to add a few things about driving here as it might help you to decide. I am not sure where you are from so maybe you already know some of this, but here are my observations.

The roads are very narrow compared to what I was used to in Canada, there is no free parking, you have to pay pretty much anywhere - grocery store included. Parking spaces are tiny and often require a bit of manoeuvring to get in and out, or to open your door once you are parked. Sometimes you have to drive around quite a bit to find a free spot.

There are no shoulders and lots of cyclists, so you have to wait for a break in the traffic to pass them - sometimes there are designated cycling lanes, but not always. Roads can be quite curvy, when we are riding behind what appears to be a rental car (most of them are insured in a specific, cheaper canton, so you can tell by the licence plate, coupled with the way that they drive) it is quite obvious that the driver is nervous and as a result they go quite a bit slower than the speed limit.

On the other hand, If you are feeling comfortable driving and go even just a few kilometres over the speed limit you will get a ticket.

Maybe you are used to this kind of driving, in which case no problem, but if you are from somewhere like the prairies, not used to driving in the mountains, or are envisioning Walmart sized parking lots - this is quite different from that.

@wanderweg and @Maureen🇨🇭: Thank you so much. These are all so insightful and definitely helping me refine by itinerary.

The price of car seats could almost double your car rental cost. Use the wonderful and efficient train system. Have a great trip!