Need helping planning a return trip to Switzerland. Will be a solo trip.

Snow in the Berner Oberland may still be an issue on some of the hiking trails in May.

Good for you, Carrie! I share your attraction to the Jungfrau Region and we return year-after-year as a result. We try new places and enjoy them, but the Lauterbrunnen Valley calls us back.

You might look at pushing your trip into June as May is really not quite in-season yet. They are barely out of skiing at Easter and snows linger. The trails can be muddy. If you want to try another Berner Oberland location, I suggest Kandersteg. We also like Bettmeralp in Valais.

Lausanne is, to me, more beautiful than Montreux but it is still a city. There is some nice hiking up at Les Pleiades and Rochers de Naye and you can walk through the vineyards above the lake, which is beautiful. We were whelmed by Lugano (except the food is GREAT!) after being in the Berner Oberland. Zermatt is great if the weather is clear. In my experience, more chancy than the Lauterbrunnen Valley.

One thought is to consider making your base for a week (or more!) in Wengen or Lauterbrunnen and using that as a springboard to some of the other parts of the region such a Meiringen, Zweisimmen, even Kandersteg. These can be a bit of a long day trip (1-2 hours each way) but there’s a lot of great hiking out there.

A few years ago we visited Gruyeres for 2-3 hours on our way to Montreux - where we stayed 2 nights at the end of the annual jazz fest. Both were enjoyable and we also visited Chillon after our arrival. We did not have time to visit neighboring Vevey or Lausanne or other places on the lake - so I like your idea for the Montreux phase of your trip. During the same trip we also stayed in Wengen for 4 nights and also spent several nights in Germany and Austria. Since you definitely want to stay in Wengen I would go to Montreux first, then Wengen, then on to Germany/Austria before going back to Zurich. Vaduz Liechtenstein is worth a stop on your way after Wengen. If you decide that going all the way to Germany/Austria is too much you could drop down into France from Montreux to visit Annecy and/or Chamonix for a couple of days. We haven't been to either but have friends that speak highly of both. I had a car for our trip and the driving/parking was easy. Hope this helps and good luck with your planning!

Unless I missed it you haven't mentioned Zermatt. When we did the Rick Steves Swiss tour we loved Zermatt and wished that we could have spent more time there. Lots of hiking trails, there's a cogwheel trail that takes you up to a high hotel that looks like it would be fun to spend a night in. The Matterhorn is majestic on a clear day!

Carrie,
I want to address the "solo" part of your trip. The first trip traveling solo can feel like a little bit of a challenge, but I know you can do this! You are correct in thinking that a big plus is that your schedule is completely yours to plan.

A big part of a successful solo trip is to know yourself and what is important for you in traveling. Do you like to be completely alone for long periods of time or are you more comfortable having some social interactions planned into the trip? My sister would dream of being completely by herself for two weeks and not having to interact with anyone. I like some interaction every so often and enjoy a trip more if I plan to make sure that this happens.

One way that I "plan for interaction" is to sign up for a day tour or a class every few days that means that I know I will be meeting people and interacting. I also try to be open to spontaneous interactions with locals. Honestly, this is more likely to happen when you are traveling solo than when you are with another person or group. Finally, you can share travel experiences with friends and family back home via text or a blog and keep 'connected' in that manner. You can even just write a series of trip reports and post them here on that section in the forum. I guarantee you will have others interacting about your trip.

Another aspect I value when I travel solo is to feel secure in my lodging choices. I may pay a bit more for a location that is centrally located and near public transport which doesn't have me walking alone for blocks at night.

Safety: This simply means that you keep someone informed of what your plans are for the day and when you expect to return. You don't want to head out on the trail (anywhere in the world) solo without anyone knowing your plans. I just email or text my kids and tell them my plans. It makes all of us feel a little better. You could also leave that information with the hotel desk staff.

Finally, don't be afraid to plan the exact trip that you want. It is the only time you won't have to compromise on locations, timings, etc so really drill down to what you want to see and go see it.

Eric, I know. ☹ It would probably be more late May into June. I’m trying to space out my (hopefully) two trips so they aren’t too close together.

Laurel, thanks for all the new places for me to research. I have never heard of Kandersteg, Bettmeralp, Meiringen or Zweisimmen and will look for some You Tube videos. The reason I’m thinking to stay in Montreux, as opposed to another part of Lake Geneva, is because of a video I saw that included the Grand Suisse Hotel. Looked like a gorgeous hotel, but more importantly right outside the train station and on the lake. Last time i checked prices it was under 200 CHF a night. And it seemed like a good base to explore other areas. I think I will end up staying in Wengen for around a week or so. I’m in the process now of figuring out what I’d like to do in that area and how many days to allow. One concern I have is the weather. It’s a great area for outdoor activities, but i’m a little concerned what I’d do if the weather is bad. I’ll have a rain coat of course, but who wants to walk in the pouring rain all day. I did have that same weather concern with our recent trip and we lucked out and only had rain for a very short time on 2 or 3 days only. I’m realistic enough to know I probably won’t luck out twice in a row with such great weather.

KBK, I like your idea of going to Montreux first, then on to Wengen. I plan to save Germany and Austria for later in the year as I think it would be a bit too much for all one trip, at least with my limited travel experience.

Donald, I’ve thought of Zermatt and just watched some videos on the area, and I’m not sure what it is, but Zermatt just does not really appeal to me and I can’t quite figure out why. For me, the Berner Oberland is more of a draw. I liked both Murren and Wengen because you’re on the mountains and in nature, but yet you still have options for eating and bathrooms nearby. I don’t want to be too far out in nature. So, any walks I do would be more along the lines of Murren to Gimmelwald and Manlichen to Kleine Scheidegg.

Carol, thanks so much for your response, encouragement, and helpful solo tips. I think I’m more like your sister. 😊 I’m not a big people person and am a bit shy, but I did really enjoy our interactions with others on our trip. It was amusing to me to try and communicate with people. I agree with your lodging suggestions. Convenience will be the number one factor for me. Can I find the place and is it easy to get to from the train station.

I'm off for more planning and to research the places mentioned by Laurel. As of now, I think I’m leaning towards Montreux straight from Zurich airport for X number of days, then to Wengen for X number of days and then on to Lucerne for a few days maybe as a good location for getting back to the airport. A few other places in mind are Stein am Rhein, Schaffhausen, and St. Gallen. But again, these are not in the mountains, so I don’t know. Maybe I could see one or two from Lucerne or Zurich before I fly out. But maybe not.

Thanks again everyone. I’m glad I had the day off from work today to research. 😊

The mountains around Zermatt are FULL of places to eat. It is a huge draw. Walks are no more "hardcore" / isolated than around Wengen. And yes the town is full of fancy watch shops, but it is very pretty nonetheless.

Regarding the trip at large, a small loop from Montreux (or Vevey, or Lausanne), to Zermatt, to Kandersteg, then to the Gstaad area - where Zweisimmen is - or vice versa, would be very varied and very light on travel time.
With 2 weeks you can add a few days in the main part of the Berner Oberland too, it is very close to Kandersteg.

Or, completely different, travel a wider loop to the south and east from Zürich and see Locarno & Bellinzona, Lugano, the Engadine (St Moritz region), Appenzell.

Carrie, I am enjoying your enthusiasm so much. If I remember correctly you love cows. My suggestion will not work for a May/June trip. However, if you ever travel to Switzerland in October the town of Lenk has an Alperfest. This year on Saturday, October 16. We have attended this festival twice. My understanding of what takes place is that various farm families decorate their cows heads with flowers and parade them twice around town. The families are usually dressed in more traditional costumes. The cows are generally behaved but once in awhile one will head off on her own. I've also seen goats and chickens in this parade. We stayed at the Alpenruh hotel which is conveniently located very close to the train station. We were last there in 2017. The hotel is run by a young (to me) who are very friendly and I would feel very safe staying there on a solo trip. If you ever go there for this event ask for a room with a balcony facing the street. If you need to return to your room for some reason during the parade you can go out on the balcony as the parade passes by the hotel. There are buses one can take up into the mountains and many areas to hike. Both years we have been there a Miss Lenk contest is held. I see on their website it is not being held this year. You buy a button and are able to vote for Miss Lenk. Now if you think Miss Lenk candidates are girls, as we did, you would be wrong. You are voting for a cow. We always vote, but knowing next to nothing about judging a cow, our candidates have not won. It is a great time and there is a restaurant with good food next to the fest grounds. Actually the fest grounds are in the parking lot of the restaurant. Google Lenk Alperfest for further info. We also attended a Cheese Fest in Bern one October. I tried milking a fake cow in a contest to see who could milk the fastest. I didn't win my category because I got distracted talking to the young man running the contest. But I did pretty well anyway. Have fun as you plan your next trip. We enjoy traveling Switzerland in October. Maybe someday you will too.

Carrie……so happy to see you on this thread! I cannot blame you….Switzerland is THE BEST. Hubby and I traveled to Lausanne and stayed there on our very first Switzerland trip years ago and loved it…..while there we took a trip to the Caillier chocolate factory and to Gruyere….both were delightful and I think there is an actual CHOCOLATE TRAIN you can take and see both….and leave the driving to someone else. Though you have not mentioned this I wanted to mention Salzburg to you as a solo traveler……have been there twice and it is DELIGHTFUL……have a buddy that tried a solo weekend trip there while her hubby was working in Vienna….she said she had no problems and felt very safe….and I can see why…..in my opinion it is a cozy, safe, charming town……with wonderful side trips like Hallstatt….and its markets are lovely. It is very easy to get around and has a central market square where all of the action is along with lovely little shops…..would go back there in a heartbeat! BTW….we were thrilled with our Swiss Travel Pass but both agreed that we don’t think the first class was worth paying extra for…a lot of the time we could not find the FRIST CLASS on our train….maybe the first and last car when the train drove up and we had to run too far to get on it…..and the second class never seemed so bad that we wished we were not there and in first class. We ended up once the the second class car on the trip from Lucerne to Zurich……I was so mad because we had paid for FC and I wanted to be there……just too hard to get our suitcases in the storage spot with so many people on this one train……don’t know if you would agree but looking back we felt the second was perfectly adequate.

Carrie, we love Montreux and were supposed to go there again this year but had a snag at the last minute so had to skip it. I will likely do that solo next year after doing England with my family. You can fly into Geneva and get a free ticket at the airport which will take you into Geneva itself in like 10 minutes. Then if you’re tired you could just stay there one night and head to Montreux by train the next day. Montreux is about 60-90 minutes by train from Geneva. We love the Grand Hotel Majestic which as you have learned is right across from the train station. It also has wonderful views out on the lake and balconies. If you join Marriott rewards program you can take advantage of that. There are also plenty of things to do in Montreux. You can walk to and tour the castle, train down to Lausanne and walk around, take a boat trip, hike through the vineyards, take the cute chocolate train to the factory and the cheese place. Enough to keep you busy for several days easily. I can recommend all these things. The weather is often lovely in Montreux too.

I would start in Montreux and then head to Wengen. You could spend the money for the Golden Pass train which is worth doing once. You could also day trip to Zermatt from Montreux, though it would be a long day and you would want to check the weather first. However it would give you the benefit of not having to actually move things to go there. Then head to Wengen and do the whole LV again. Like others I recommend June. We did late May once and several trails were closed still due to snow. So shoot for June.

After Wengen you could go many several directions. One place we have always wanted to do is the Engadin. But haven’t been able to fit in our plans yet. However have heard nothing but raves about it, including from Swiss people I know who love the area. It you wanted to loop and save Wengen for the end you could do Montreux >Zermatt >Engadin>Wengen.

I also agree that if you think you will be lonely take a tour or a class along the way. Great way to meet others.

So happy you are planning this! Maybe we will be in Montreux at the same time and can have dinner!
Cheers, Chris

Hi Carrie,
I enjoyed reading about your recent adventures. Travelling solo is fun and I agree that people tend to chat with you more. The good and bad is that you have to make all the decisions yourself. There are too many great places to see.
I would take a closer look at the Endagin region if you like mountains. Full disclosure I haven’t been yet. I am planning a trip from Varenna up to Wengen following the Bernina route. I was originally looking for a place to spend one night to break up that trip. After looking first at Pontresina then Samedan and what was around the area I am now up to 4 nights based in Zuoz. Things on my maybe list are Diavolezza, Scuol, Guarda, Sils Maria, Pontresina, and a few more. If you stay 2 nights a lot of the hotels give you a pass for local transport and gondolas/lifts. Then the Voralpen train to Lucerne for 2 nights and onto the BO. You could do the trip in reverse and fly out of Milan or do a loop back to Zürich.
It’s fun planning, just work out what you really like to see and check what is open and accessible.

I love traveling solo! In addition to Europe on my own, I’ve been to Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan and Korea! I agree with the suggestions tp get a hotel that it is easy to find and maybe a bit nicer than what you might do with people. I am a Hilton and Marriott rewards member so those are my first choice, but I have also liked the Ibis Styles hotels I’ve stayed on during this trip - I’m currently in Italy but started out in Lausanne. I’m flying out of Rome which means I don’t have to do any backtracking. If you’re interested in going to France or Italy in addition to Switzerland, you may want to see if you can fly out of a different airport.
I know that sometimes it can seem weird or dorky to travel solo but it’s actually awesome! My first solo trip was to the big island of Hawaii and I was very self conscious about it but I felt like almost everyone I encountered was cheering me on when I mentioned it was my first solo trip, starting with the people working at enterprise car rental at the Kona airport! Also in Europe, I feel like blend in more because I’m not speaking English to a companion - 3 different Italian people asked me for directions the other day in Torino and it was great!!!

Thanks so much everyone for the ideas and encouragement!!!

I was looking around and found some great deals on hotels and so decided to go ahead and book the trip. 😊 I listened to you and decided on June. Leaving June 4th with 5 nights in Montreux at the Grand Swiss, 5 nights in Wengen at the Schonegg (cchapin100 just stayed there) and 3 nights in Lucerne at the hotel des aples. Not sure of all the details yet but I have time to work those out. I decided on a short trip so I can do a longer one in the Fall. I’m leaning towards Munich area and Salzburg for that trip. And I know I will return to Switzerland again in Sept./Oct. to see my cows again. And maybe I’ll get lucky and see some in June.

Thanks again!!! I will refer back to this post as I plan the details of this trip and future trips.

Carrie, this sounds like a great trip! We love both the Montreux and Wengen hotels.