March Switzerland travel

To be the first of an inevitable wave of responses -- are you sure you need to drive for this trip?

I will preface by saying that I have driven in Europe, so I am aware that there are trips much better taken by car, and I try to refrain from providing a knee-jerk "but trains!!" response. And I am also not aware if you have disability or other personal reasons why you would need to drive.

However -- that said, Switzerland has excellent and reliable public transport, which certainly serves Zermatt, St. Moritz, the Bernese Oberland area where the Jungfraujoch is, and a large majority of other tourist destinations you are likely to be interested in. Furthermore, a select number of destinations -- notably Zermatt -- are in-fact car-free, so you will have to transfer to some form of transit or taxi for the last leg to these places anyway.

Relying on this public transport network would obviate the need to worry about road conditions, and if you are one person, likely to be at least cost-competitive if not cheaper.

Again, I understand if you specifically enjoy driving, and I have driven in both eastern (Romania) and western (Spain, France) Europe. But I would strongly recommend if you have not that you consider the alternative of public transport, which I frankly expect would be cheaper (assuming you are renting a car) and in many ways easier.

To directly answer your question, if the roads in Switzerland don't look drivable (a daily decision with highly variable weather in March), then they are not drivable. Mostly though you should be fine.

Otherwise I agree with the previous poster - Why bother? The trains are faster (they have better tunnels) and usually more direct. If you want a more local auto feel you could also investigate the Swiss Postal Buses that carry mail and passengers.

https://www.postauto.ch/en

The skiing should be great, although snow conditions for skiing have been problematic for at least the last several years, and late season is getting wetter. Last year the Dolomites were highly variable in March but still lots off fun.

Hi - thank you for your response.

The short answer is no, I do not absolutely have to drive. In fact, I often look for the best public transportation options when going to other countries. Definitely a great way to go.

However, over the past few years, I've started renting a car when the public transportation options were simply too limited or too inefficient. Some examples were going from Glasgow to the Isle of Skye, Dublin to the Ring of Kerry, and Zurich to Neuschwanstein. I'm the kind of traveler who likes to visit a place with very specific goals, see what I came to see, and then move onward.

Looking at google maps, the drive from St Moritz to Jungfrau is about 5 hours, and the ride by public transportation is about 7-15 hours depending on the time of day, with multiple changes between various lines. I am relatively fit and do not mind transferring (that is to be expected when traveling), but do not want to spend all day waiting for a train or a bus.

I am still in the planning stages, am not very familiar with Switzerland, and admittedly do not know a lot about conditions on the ground approaching Jungfrau. So I'm open to all suggestions.

from St Moritz, you can take the scenic Glacier Express train route to Zermatt (which doesnt allow cars anyway). From there it's quicker to get to the Jungfrau area (in which some of the towns also don't allow cars). Dont forget to add in the cost of parking, And since it is ski season in all those places, it might be hard to find short-term places to stay, so start looking.

I have enough white-knuckle winter driving where I live, even without the mountains to contend with. Sometimes the scenery when driving is the back end of a truck.

Hi, you're correct that driving would be faster. Swiss residents do own cars and drive during the winter, so it is definitely an option. Winter tires are mandatory, so any rental car will be equipped with them when needed.

In my area, all roads, including smaller side streets and sidewalks, are regularly cleared of snow. However, it’s important to keep in mind the potential for snow, ice, fog, and even road closures. That is something you would have to check before starting out.

The train times you have are inaccurate. I recommend checking sbb.ch instead of Google Maps.

The journey from St. Moritz to Grindelwald (in the Jungfrau region) takes approximately 6-7 hours by train.

Edited to add: when you start seeing crazy amounts of time for a train route, check if you are looking at too late a departure time. If you were to leave St. Moritz at 22:02, it will take over 12 hours, this is because the trains do not run all night long. Sbb will route you as far as possible, then look for the first train in the morning, so you might have 3 - 5 hours in one station along the way, waiting for the morning train. ;-)

if you are driving at that time of year most or all of the roads through passes will be closed and you will route through tunnels.

Everything above Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald is car free on the way to the Jungfrau and you have a similar problem getting to to Zermatt.

The trains take you where cars can't go.

Thank you for all your responses. Sounds like the trains might be the way to go.

Ahh, L.A., California, perhaps the car culture capital of the world!

Go out to dinner, and some of the most expensive cars in the world will pull up in the parking lot.

The last time I was in LA a few years ago I decided I was going to try to get around WITHOUT renting a car (and I do not do Uber). That meant public buses, walking, tour buses, and shared van shuttles. I survived, but it was a bit of work.

Ahh, Switzerland, the country of some of the most efficient and fast trains in the world--and with some very strictly enforced driving rules, and many car-free towns. When we travel to Switzerland, we only take the trains! A hop, skip and jump, and we arrive in another city.

Now in Germany, we will definitely rent a car--speeding on the Autobahn is a unique pleasure.

By the way, we drive in snow all the time, as husband is an avid skier--we were just up in Vermont yesterday with almost a foot of new snow, and we will be in Zermatt in December.