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Swiss Trip with two boys (3 and 6 yo) in July - itinerary help

Hello!
After days of researching and thinking, here is what I came up with.
July 13 - traveling from Tubingen to Zurich by car (we will be in Germany before Switzerland)
3 nights in Zurich (we have friends there)
July 16 - Zurich to Chur, Chur to Andermatt via Glacier Express
1 night in Andermatt
July 17 - Andermatt to Luzern (takes almost 2 hours with one 3-minute change in  Göschenen (WILL WE MAKE IT?! With 2 suitcases, 1 stroller, and 2 kids??)
2 nights in Luzern (July 17-July18) (any recommendations of hotels convenient for 4 and near the lake?)
July 19 - Luzern to Wengen (2:43h and 2 transfers)
4 nights in Wengen (July 19 - July 22)
July 23 - Wengen to Zurich
1 night in Zurich (airport?)
July 24 - Flying out

What do you think? I am trying to minimize our time on the road and train changes.. really want to do the Panoramic train but Bernina would take me too far.. though I could I maybe fly back home from Milan? Will make the trip longer though

Looks like can’t really do the car anywhere because of Glacier Express (can’t return a car in Andermatt?)

I could use more days. I don’t have a return ticket yet, but we will be in Germany for 8 days for Switzerland, so seems like a long trip already.

I can’t get to Wengen earlier than July 17th or stay past July 23 (that’s Alpenrose’s availability for the quadruple room they have).

Appreciate all the tips and help on how to make this easy and fun!

Posted by
421 posts

If your goals are easy and fun, I’d skip the Glacier Express and add another night in Luzern. The long train ride may not be that exciting for young kids and the stop in Andermatt doesn’t add much while also requiring another round of packing and unpacking. You’ll see plenty of great scenery elsewhere so unless you are a big train buff, doesn’t seem worth the diversion to me. Best would be to go to Berner Oberland from Zurich and then end in Luzern, but depends what your hotel budget is like.
Either way, for Luzern, I would actually look at staying a bit outside of town. Have a look in the nice suburb Meggen, which was recently named the best place to live in Switzerland, for example Hotel Balm. Easy quick 10 min bus ride into Luzern (free with guest card), plus nearby kid friendly attractions like the lake and Schloss Meggenhorn “castle” which has a great garden and playground, all with beautiful lake/mountain views.

Posted by
724 posts

This seems like a lot to me with 2 small kids. I’d skip the glacier express/Andermatt, add that night to Luzern and just do Zurich/Luzern/Wengen.

Ideally if you can look into other alternatives in Wengen (there are tons of chalet apartments, not just hotels) then I’d do 3 nights Luzern > 5 nights Wengen > 3 nights Zurich and see your friends at the end so that you don’t have to move again to an airport hotel. The more moving you do, the less time you have to enjoy and it’s always a pain with kids.

Look at e-Domizil, Interhome, chalet.myswitzerland.com, Wengen Apartments, Alpine Chalet Services, etc for an apartment in Wengen to make your schedule more flexible for less moving around. Hotels are not always the best option with families and while Alpenrose is lovely, it’s quite an uphill walk from there to the train station for little ones. Not sure you’re going to love that as a base, unless your kids are experienced hikers.

And for your time in Wengen, look at the alpine playgrounds at Mannlichen, Allmendhubel, Winteregg, Gimmelwald, Bort below First & Wengen, as well as the children’s trail from Mannlichen to Grindelwald (Lieselotte)

Here’s a helpful link with more ideas: https://swissfamilyfun.com/jungfrau-region-family-hikes/