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Lucern Summit Choice

Hi All,

My family and I are traveling through Switzerland next week and we still have an “empty” day in our schedule that we are looking to fill. We will be waking up and going to sleep in Lucern’s old city, so we were thinking of doing something spectacular around Lucern. We already have a day trip to Pilatus booked, so we were trying to make a choice between Rigi, Titlis and Stanserhorn. However, we are also open to a day trip to any beautiful or historic towns near Lucern.

Any recommendations?

Oh, and we do have a well-behaved and travel-friendly 4 year old with us.

Posted by
8870 posts

I always throw out an option to cruise on the lake, with the ferry or an excursion boat.

Posted by
20998 posts

I'd do with the Rigi Kulm trip using the boat to Vitznau. If you get the Swiss Travel Passes, it is fully covered.

Posted by
5479 posts

From our experience, Pilatus is a half day trip, Stanserhorn is an even shorter trip, and Mt Rigi is a half day trip. Rigi involves a delightful boat ride and cogwheel train, and you can take the lifts down on the other side. Stanserhorn has the open air Cabrio cable car, and is great for a sunset experience.
Titlus is beautiful, about 10,000 feet, you should have snow at the summit.
If you have the Swiss Travel Pass, all travel to Rigi and Stanserhorn are completely covered, but Pilatus is only discounted.
If you have clear weather, go to all the summits you can, as they all have different elevations and personalities. Mountain weather is very moody, so don't waste a clear day.
Where else are you going in this beautiful country? Safe travels.

Posted by
17256 posts

The Rigi trip by boat, train, and cablecar is highly recommended for families with small children. You start with a relaxing boat ride to Vitznau, where you board the cogwheel train up the mountain. You can stop at Rigi Kaltbad, which has a nice playground (you can also stop here on the way down if you prefer):

https://www.rigi.ch/en/attractions/rigiland-adventure-playground-6b9657342c

Or continue up to Rigi Scheidegg, with another playground:

https://www.rigi.ch/en/attractions/rigi-scheidegg-playground-185a6d41c7

Continue to the top at Rigi Kulm, with a restaurant and a (fenced for safety) viewing platform.

https://www.rigi.ch/en/attractions/rigi-kulm-c24253c917

If you like, you can walk 15-20 minutes down to a cheese dairy to see the cows and the facility:

https://www.rigi.ch/en/attractions/chaeserenholz-cheese-dairy-2a0ceebebd

Then take the train back down to Rigi Kaltbad, visiting the playground if you didn’t earlier. From Rigi Kaltbad, a cablecar takes you down to the lakeside village of Weggis, where you catch a boat back to Luzern.

Find other options on Rigi from their main website page:

https://www.rigi.ch/en

Posted by
8 posts

Thank you for all the friendly replies! Given me a lot to think about!

Just curious: is the Swiss Travel Pass discounted for Swiss citizens? Because we did our math and it really just doesn’t seem worth it. You’d have to REALLY Jam pack your schedule to come out ahead. And then, at least for a foreigner, it’s pretty confusing and nearly impossible to know which activities are covered/discounted by the pass. I’m honestly surprised people use it at all.

Don’t mean to sound like I’m complaining. Just a friendly observation from an outsider’s perspective. :)

Posted by
126 posts

is the Swiss Travel Pass discounted for Swiss citizens?

Residents of Switzerland are not allowed to buy this pass, it is only for tourists.

Posted by
2435 posts

If you want to do like the locals get the Half Fare Card. And then just buy discounted tickets.

Posted by
17256 posts

John, your “haha” response seems to indicate you think the Swiss Travel Pass is designed to overcharge tourists. That is not the case at all. Swiss residents have a similar card, but it is for a full year, not a few days. And as noted, many Swiss residents choose a Half Fare Card instead, for their normal travel needs—-but they are not moving around between cities and riding lifts as much as the average tourist.

You say you are confused about what the STP covers, but it is not that difficult to understand. It fully covers (100%) of your travel by boat and train between inhabited villages. It also covers cablecars and mountain trains when those are the only access to villages (like Wengen, Mürren, and Zermatt). It offers the convenience of just getting on the train without stopping to buy tickets. And it gives you 50% off almost all of the recreational lifts and cablecars. The one exception I can think of is the pricy Jungfrau trip, which is discounted only 25% above Wengen (or Grindelwald). But since it fully covers travel as far as Wengen (or Grindelwald), the total discount on the Jungfrau trip is more than 25%.

The STP also fully cover the whole Rigi loop, including boat, cogwheel train, and cablecar. When I suggested that to you I assumed you would have a pass.

Whether or not the STP is a cost -saver to any visitor totally depends on where they go, the amount of travel they anticipate, and the number of lifts they plan to ride. If their visit to Switzerland includes 4-5 days or more in the Berner Oberland, the regional BO Pass may be a better buy. If they want to visit cities like Bern, Basel and Luzern, they may not want any pass. Or if they are not traveling far from their base in the mountains and mainly hiking without using lifts, they may not need a pass for that.

Posted by
8 posts

I see a lot of people online say that the weather can make it impossible to access some of these mountain trips - would you guys recommend that it’s best to buy these tickets once we get there and take a look a the weather first? Or is it best to purchase in advance to make sure to get tickets? I don’t know if they sell out or not.

Posted by
126 posts

It's true that you have to do quite a bit in a day to make the pass worthwhile, so as Lola said it really depends on your travel plans.

The one that the Swiss have is only is 355.00/month for a minimum of six months, a second person living in same household gets theirs for 260.00, it is even cheaper if you pay for the year all at once.

Posted by
5479 posts

John, I'm assuming you're looking at prices in the SBB app, when penciling out the cost. Well, double those, as the SBB app assumes a traveler has at least the half fare card. Also, I believe children are free with an accompanying family pass.
I always get the STP for the convenience- no buying tickets. And once I have it, I use it more than I anticipated, as one can spontaneously jump on a train, or boat etc. Any chance I can get to be out on a lake, I take it.
For many folks, the half fare card meets their needs, especially if they don't want to pencil out to the penny-oops, CHF. But you still must buy tickets with the half fare card.
The Swiss have built a world-class transportation network, than runs on time ( down to the second, usually ) is comfortable, clean and user- friendly.
Whatever pass you choose, enjoy this beautiful country.