Lucerne-Berner Oberland-Zermatt-Montreux Itinerary

This is a good itinerary; I would just remove one of the Zürich nights at the end and add it to the Bernese Oberland.

What I do question is the Swiss Travel Pass. A 15-day pass costs CHF 429.00, but only gives 50% discounts on mountain excursions, with 3 notable exceptions:
- Stanserhorn and Rigi, typical Luzern excursions, are included
- Jungfraujoch only has a 25% discount

Whereas a Half Fare Card only costs 120.00 and gives you 50% off everything.
The intercity train rides would cost:

• Zürich Airport to Luzern : 15.00
• Luzern to Wengen : 23.70
• Wengen to Zermatt : 48.70
• Zermatt to Montreux : 37.00
• Montreux to Zürich airport : 42.00

Total 166.40
So 286.40 with the half fare card, vs 429.00 with the Swiss Travel Pass.

On top of that, the mountain rides would usually cost the same with the Half Fare Card as with the Swiss Travel Pass, with the exception of Jungfraujoch (more expensive with pass) and Rigi or Stanserhorn (free with pass).

So, all in all, the Pass is likely to cost you at least CHF 100 more than a half fare card.

The picture does change slightly if you are planning, for instance, to visit Gruyères from Montreux or Engelberg from Luzern.
Also, with the Pass you do not need to buy tickets, except for mountain rides, which some people find convenient.
But still, in your case, it looks like the balance tips towards a half fare card!

The Pass makes the most sense when you are really travelling across the entire country, for instance a route that includes St Moritz, Zermatt, and Wengen is likely to benefit from it.

My opinion, Zurich is worth 1/2 of day 13. Put the extra time elsewhere. I would add the extra day to Wengen without question. I have not been to Zermat of Montreux, but I'd bet adding a day to either of those would also be enjoyable. Zurich is ok, nothing wrong with it but just ok. Nice hotels on the river within walking distance to the train station. Trivia; Did you know that Tina Turner lives just outside of Zurich?

I also like the itinerary and agree with Balso except on the pass. While the travel pass can be more expensive, I think it's a better overall value.

With the travel pass you don't have to buy any additional tickets (except for the mountain top excursions), whereas you would still need to buy tickets with the Half-Fare card. It's much more convenient than the HFC in that regard.

The travel pass can even become less expensive than the HFC if you use the transportation system intensively. And the pass gives you free entry into museums throughout the country if that is important to you.

Just adding my recommendation for the Swiss Travel Pass. I used it this past Sept. and have already bought mine for my upcoming June trip. It really makes traveling so much easier. I can’t figure out why more countries don’t have something similar.

This link shows you all that’s covered with the Pass. You can take a look and add more things on the list to your plans. I highly recommend the boat and train ride up to Mt. Rigi in Lucerne which is covered 100%.

https://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass/validity

This is all great information and very helpful! We debated about 1 or 2 days in Zurich or whether we should add the extra day to another destination. Based on the feedback and recommendations, adding the extra day in Wengen and spending the 1/2 day in Zurich is the way to go.

We definitely have the boat and train ride up to Mt. Rigi on the itinerary along with Mt. Pilatus. We have a wish list of hikes/activities for each destination. Sounds like the Swiss Travel Pass might work out better based on our travel destinations and interests. However, we aren't ruling out the half card :)

Thanks again all for the helpful information!

The convenience of the STP makes it well worth the cost, IMHO. It's great not having to buy tickets each time you use a transit route. In addition, we find ourselves exploring new areas of interest, because the destinations are covered by the Pass.

I'd also recommend less time in Zurich, less time in Zermatt, and more time in the Berner Oberland. Mountain weather is fickle, and you want to give yourself more chances of good weather in this spectacular area.

Safe travels!

Looks like a good itinerary to me. I've been fortunate to have visited all the places except Zermatt. One suggestion is to add a night in Montreux so you have more time to explore that end of Lake Geneva. You could take a night from Zurich or even Zermatt. Great scenery and hiking in the Wengen area. Lucerne and Montreux have beautiful lakefront settings. Good people watching in the pedestrian zone in Zurich.

All good information regarding the STP and the convenience of not having to wait in lines. We did adjust our itinerary and added another night in the Wengen area. We have flexible reservations which allows us the opportunity to delete a night in Zermatt. We understand the weather in Zermatt can be "iffy".

Thanks!

There's no need to wait in line to buy train tickets in Switzerland (there's an app for that!), but indeed the Swiss Travel Pass provides additional flexibility, at an extra cost.

As for Zermatt weather being iffy: it's no more iffy than elsewhere in Switzerland, but it is true that the main draw there is really the Matterhorn, and being a 4,000m+ summit, it often gets clouded in.
And contrary to the Berner Oberland (which is still pretty even if the Jungfrau / Eiger are hidden from view), Zermatt without the Matterhorn becomes an Alpine valley like many others.

We are planning a similiar itinerary at the end of May. I was planning on taking the Golden Pass from Interlaken (after Wengen) to Montreux then onto Zermatt. From Zermatt taking the Glacier Express to Chur and then back to Zurich. Would this be a doable route?