one week in switzerland for first timer

You will need to monitor the weather and make the decision to go to Zermatt the day before in order to avoid finding the Matterhorn invisible due to cloudy weather.

Also, consider going straight to Zermatt from Zurich Airport the day you arrive and spending the night and then to Murren.

What city are you flying from and what other country are you going to?

With just a week, I would not take the time to go to Zermatt. The weather is notoriously bad there and the Matterhorn is often obscured by clouds. You need a few days to have a reasonably good chance of seeing it. I would add that night to Murren because it’s so beautiful and there’s so much to do and you need to consider the possibility of bad weather interfering with your plans there too. You can’t count on good weather for days 2, 3, and 4.

I agree on dropping Zermatt.. I wouldn’t do the trip to Zermatt for one day and night.

The Berner Oberland needs and deserves much more than 3 days. It’s absolutely spectacular with too many options for unforgettable experiences. When we stayed in Wengen for 4 nights, we wished we had more time there.

for your days in Mürren, you should monitor weather first thing in the morning and go up the Schilthorn as soon as you have a sunny morning. That is, don't wait until the last day, if the weather is good.

I too would skip Zermatt and spend that extra night win Luzern. Note that you can get to the Zurich airport by direct train from Luzern rail station in 1.25 hours.

But only if know you will never have a chance to go to Switzerland again, and it is guaranteed to be sunny go see the Matterhorn as a day trip if you really want to.

This is easier if traveling solo. I went their on a daytrip from Murren and don't regret it and don't need to go back.

you'll find plenty to do and see in the B.O. just work with that

Aritificial Intelligence, the other country I'm considering going to is Portugal (I know they don't border). It seems like doing Portugal first makes more sense. Thanks for letting me know about the possibility of a day trip from Murren to Zermatt. I can just stay in Murren for 5 nights and if the weather is good do the day trip and if not then not.

Outside of the Zermatt debate, is there any site i'm missing? Should i add a day for somewhere?

We took a day trip from Interlaken to Zermatt. It was a sunny day, and seeing the Matterhorn was one of the most beautiful sights of my lifetime. I'd squeeze it in if you can!

im going to try to! Hopefully there will be a clear day and I'll do the day trip from Murren.

And if anyone thinks i should add days or a location please let me know asap!

IMO if Zermatt did not have a mountain that happened to tilt at the top just a bit there is no draw in that city worth the time and extra logistics to get to. Especially considering the beauty of the entire Bernese Overland region. I have been to Switzerland a dozen times and Zermatt only once for a few days but have gone back to BO/Murren/Wegen/etc every time and have stayed up to a month and I have still not seen everything and hiked everywhere I would like to see/go. Heck I have gone back to Lucerne 4x and even Bern 3x and Chamonix (I know technically in France) 3x.

The issue is Zermatt is in the opposite direction so causes just under a full travel day to get to and come back. If you are set on going there then I agree it should be Zurich to Zermatt and then Zermatt to Murren and then finally to Lucerne. With all that said your trip is a dream come true regardless of choice and if I read your other post and you have to fly into Portugal (assume TAP air to Lisbon and then to Zurich) then yes I would spend a small time in Lisbon vs Matterhorn and really shake it up before connecting out of Lisbon to Zurich.

a lot of mixed feelings on matterhorn and who knows what i should do.

i think i should decide on matterhorn once i'm there and see what weather is like and if I feel like i spent enough days in B.O. I think no matter what I should aim to do zermatt as a murren day trip because if i assign a day for it, it might end up being cloudy and a waste.

Overall, the number of days seems fine?

that seems like a good idea

Do I need to buy any train tickets in advance or can i just buy once I'm in Switzerland? I read the 8 day travel pass might be worth it even though I'm only there 7 days. Anyone have any advice?

There is one strategy that could save some significant money, but you have to be absolutely certain of your travel plans.
You have two nominally very expensive travel days.
Zurich airport to Muerren is 92.80 CHF full fare
Muerren to Zermatt and same day return is 203.80 CHF full fare.
You can buy 60 days in advance a Saver Day Pass for 52 CHF. This allows a full day of travel throughout Switzerland for one price. This is nonrefundable and can only be used on the chosen day. The prices go up the closer you get to your chosen travel date, so the best price is 60 days ahead.

I figure that with an 8-day travel pass, it will cost you about 435 CHF for what you have planned, which is the cost of the pass plus discounted rides on the Schilthornbahn and Allmendhubelbahn.
With the 2 Saver Day Passes and everything else a la carte, your cost would be about 290 CHF.

Consider that Day 2 and Day 3 are almost nothing with the expensive Swiss Travel Pass. The cable car from Gimmelwald back to Muerren when you do the Via Ferrata is only 6 CHF, and the Allmendhubelbahn ride on the North Face Trail is only 7 CHF.
https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/tickets-for-switzerland/day-pass/saver-day-pass.html

thanks so much for the reply and really looking into it!! The zurich to murren day is guaranteed. I know what day that will be since that's the day after my flight arrives. The Zermatt day, if it exists at all, will depend on the weather since it will only be done on a nice non-cloudy day. What do you think, any suggestions?

One thing is to just decide to take an extended excursion that day. If Zermatt looks not to be worth it, you could take the Golden Pass Express to Montreux and return. Something to get some value out of the 52 CHF you've already spent.

thanks again Sam,
If I'm understanding correctly, travel will only be expensive on 2 days. The day i go from Zurich to murren and the day I do a day trip to Zermatt (if i end up doing that). (Well, i think schilthorn is expensive but if i recall the pass doesn't help much there). Because I don't know the weather, if I go to Zermatt i will have to just pay a lot without a pass to ensure it's a nice day or take a chance and buy a pass for a particular day and have a backup expensive travel day in case the weather doesn't work out. Is that accurate?

I know the day im doing zurich to murren, so i should get a travel pass for that day no matter what, correct?

im looking at the swiss travel pass site and if i buy it by may 23, i can get 5 days for the price of 4. I don't know if that changes anything The fact the days have to be consecutive is unfortunate. At the end of the trip, I'm also going Murren to Lucerne and then Lucerne to Zurich the next day but don't know how much those two cost and if they deserve a daily travel pass.

Thanks again, transportation is so expensive there and it's hard to figure out what the best decision is. I really appreciate your input!

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/lucerne-62eb4d28-60ab-4837-b4b4-91a2486eb732

The above is my Trip Report from 2021. Obviously, and thankfully, ignore the COVID issues.

I would suggest adding more time to Lucerne, and skip Zermatt. Once you're in the BO, it is magical, and you won't want to leave . It's beautiful even on cloudy days.
Are you talking this June? If so, book lodging asap. There's unprecedented pent-up demand for European travel this year, as many folks haven't been across the pond since 2019. Posters have reported here that lodging is scarce and expensive.
Have a great trip in this fantastic country. Pls keep us posted as your planning evolves. Safe travels!

Pat,
thanks for the reply. I went through your trip report and hope that once I arrive all the travel stressors will melt away also. I read that you went to Jungfrau. Maybe that would be a good place to go to if Zermatt doesn't work out. I know it'll be super expensive also though. Right now I have a full day in Lucerne. Hopefully it will be enough because to add a day would be to take a day away somewhere else and rebook hotels. I already booked the hotels (though i have free cancellation) and it will be
1 night zurich (i arrive in zurich that morning at around 9:30 AM and planned to stay the day there but maybe i should drop it, i don't know)
4 nights murren
1 night lucern
so i'm really not there that long. I haven't bought a return flight yet though.