Mount Pilatus and Swiss travel Pass

Hello,

"Do you know when the beginning of the season is exactly?"

I guess it depends on the weather, snowmelt, etc. otherwise they'd published a fixed date. It is between early/mid May.

"Die Zahnradbahn ist von ca. Anfang/Mitte Mai bis 17. November 2019 in Betrieb."

The boats are large, you don't have to book or get there early.

AFAIK you can't book seats on the boats on Vierwaldstättersee (Lake Luzern). I have never needed to or seen any evidence of reserved seats. Basically you wander around the boat while it is travelling, standing on deck or sitting down as the fancy takes you. First come first served.

For dates, they are listed on the timetable you linked. Different boats have different dates. See the footnotes for letters A to G.

To find the bus, just follow everybody else.

"Should I be there an hour early to make sure I get on that boat? Or even earlier?" - no way. 5-10 minutes before departure is plenty. You just walk on. You are overthinking this.

THANKS so very much !!!

A few thoughts on your questions.....

No, I don't believe you have to book a space on the boat from Lucerne to Alphnachstad. If that's covered by the Swiss pass, you'll likely have to sit on the main level of the boat and not on the top deck, as that's the "first class" area as I recall. I wouldn't worry too much about getting an early start as you should always be able to find a seat. It's a large boat and I doubt that it will fill up.

Regarding walking on the trip to Pilatus.....

• when you get off the boat at Alpnachstad, it's fairly level to get to the Funicular. There are a few steps to get up to the platform.
• when you arrive at the top of Pilatus via Funicular, you'll arrive in one of the two hotels there. There are elevators between different floors. The large plaza between the two hotels is all flat, but there are some stairways that lead up to higher viewing points. Those may or may not be a problem for you.
• It sounds like you're planning to take the cable car down to Kriens. That trip actually involves a larger cable car and then a transfer to smaller "Telecabines" for the final trip down to Kriens.
• When you arrive at the bottom cable car station, you'll have a short downhill walk (about 10 - 15 minutes) down to the main street, where you'll connect with the bus. Look for the marked bus stop and wait for whichever bus you'll be taking.

HI Ken !!
Your reply was so thoughtful, perfectly sequenced and full of the details i was looking for. Thank you. You have replied to a few of my questions over the years and I really appreciate you. thanks again, Ken