We are a group of 12 staying in Basel near train station after river cruise in mid July. We have 1 day where we plan to take train to Lucerne early and then everyone wants to go to Mt Pilatus. Some want to stay and hike and others will come down sooner. We will meet at Lucerne train station around dinnertime for train back to Basel. I've read SO many options with different types of tickets but wondered if I should pre buy train tickets for the 12 and then pre buy something for Mt P? Getting overwhelmed with all the reading. Help is appreciated!!
Posted by
Paris
7300 posts
I cannot advise about the existence of group tickets, but I do feel the need to point out that hiking on Pilatus is steep. You cannot really hike around the summit; the only option is to go down either towards Luzern (possibility to rejoin the gondola at Fräkmuntegg) or towards Alpnachstad (cog railway side, you can join it at the Ämsingen mid-station). Both options are quite involved.
Posted by
Fort Myers, FL
1880 posts
Unless you want to take the boat ride and cogwheel train for your ascent, I wouldn't prebuy tickets because the weather might be foggy or rainy on Pilatus. You can take the gondolas up and no prebuy is necessary.
As a secondary plan you may just want to enjoy Lucerne. It is a very nice city with lots to see for the day.
Posted by
234 posts
We are a group of 10 with different post-cruise plans from Basel but a definite wish to visit Mt. Pilatus. You will get a nice discount for 10+ on the Pilatus excursion and, based on my email to and reply from Mt. Pilatus, you do not have to descend altogether!
Here you go!
https://www.pilatus.ch/fileadmin/files/informieren/Fahrplan_Preise/Pilatus_Preisliste_2023_A4.pdf
You can also be a group leader on the SBB portal to obtain an additional 30% discount for your r/t train trip Basel/Lucerne/Basel. It is easy to sign up on the website.
https://www.sbb.ch/en/help-and-contact/produkte-services/leisure-group-offers/group-travel.html
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32350 posts
In mid-July the weather should be fairly good, so it might be worth it to take a chance and buy advance tickets. There may be information on this website, but I didn't check - https://www.swissrailways.com/en/products/excursionpilatus . In the same situation, I would probably stop at the rail station in Basel as soon as your river cruise docks, and get the tickets then. That way you'll be able to talk to an agent about the options.
When you arrive at the station in Lucerne, my suggestion would be to start with the boat trip to Alpnachstad, and then the cogwheel railway to Pilatus. The boat dock is only a short walk from the station. It's possible that the weather might be better in the morning and if that's the case, the boat trip is quite pleasant. When you arrive at Alpnachstad, it's a short walk to the cogwheel station. It also may be less crowded earlier in the morning. I haven't checked but I believe you may be able to reserve spots on the cogwheel now? Hopefully someone else can confirm that.
At the conclusion of your visit, your group can return to Lucerne via the cable cars and bus from Kriens, either as a group or individually. There are two cable cars to get down the mountain - the first one is larger and has capacity for a group. At the midpoint station, you'll transfer to smaller "telecabines" that hold about four people (as I recall). At the bottom station, it's a short walk downhill to the bus stop.
If some of your group want to get back to Lucerne earlier to see a few sights such as the Chapel Bridge, they could certainly do that and then meet the rest of the group at a pre-determined time for the trip back to Basel.