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Last Minute Bookings 1st Week of October?

Posted by on

We are planning a 1st-time visit to Switzerland October 4-10. This trip is being planned on short notice.

Our itinerary is this:

Lucern - 2 days
Bern/Murten - 2 days
Berner Oberland - 2 days
Zurich - 1 night on the way out

As I understand it, this time of year the crowds should be greatly diminished and it will be easier to book accommodations. Indeed, it would be no problem to book them right now, but in order to maintain flexibility with regard to weather, I am considering not booking anything until just 1 to 3 days out, so that I can adjust the itinerary to maximize the chance for better weather in the BO. For instance, we could go to Lucern at the start, then based on the weather, decide whether to go to Bern first and the BO second, or to switch the order based on the general weather forecast.

Does this seem like a reasonable risk to take, or are we just asking for trouble? We don't like to use luxury hotels and are generally flexible on the level and type of accommodations (3-star or less, say).

Posted by
2303 posts

If it is just two of you traveling, you aren’t picky about your lodgings, and have a flexible budget, you will find a place to stay, somewhere. You can always look at booking.com for 1-3 days from now and see what options are available and if they would be acceptable to you.

Posted by
4675 posts

Are you open to rearranging the itinerary a bit?
Unless you have an early flight out of Zurich, stay the last night(s) in Lucerne- it's an easy 1+ hour train to the Zurich airport. I'd also suggest one less day in Bern, and an additional day in the BO. Maybe land in Zurich, take the train right away to Bern? Then to the BO, and then to Lucerne.
Oh- there's a special on the four- day Swiss Travel Pass right now. I posted the link in the Switzerland section here on the forum.
The weather forecast for Switzerland usually says rain everyday- at least it has for my trips - but in actuality, it's usually been rain in the evenings. However, clouds could also hinder the view from the summits, but it's still beautiful being in the BO on cloudy days.
Safe travels!

Posted by
2 posts

Thanks, Pat, for your suggestion. That's a great idea to end in Luzern and forgo staying in Zurich at all. I'll see if we can make that work with our flights.

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