Switzerland early May

The weather in early May may be very nice or still in transition. However, crowds are thinner and lines for cable cars are shorter.

The Alps are not just Zermatt and BO. There is also Ticino, which is the Italian speaking part.

You have received some very helpful responses to your question on the Tripadvisor Switzerland forum.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g188045-i336-k14873861-Eaarly_May-Switzerland.html

Yes Lola. I am aware of that. I find posting on different forums helpful. Different perspectives are always helpful.

I think you will find more people who either live in Switzerland or spend a lot of time there, and are well-informed to help you with your question about early May, on the TA forum. Some of them (at least two that I know of) also post here, so hopefully they will do so. There are some regions of Switzerland that are better to visit in early May than the alpine villages like Zermatt and the Berner Oberland. Like Ticino, or the Engadine.

You may also get some responses here from people who went to Switzerland once, in early May, and said it is fine. But maybe they are not so interested in hiking in the mountains, and stayed at lower altitudes enjoying the lakes and the cities, possibly spring festivals, and Swiss culture and museums.. That can be a very nice trip.

But personally, if I wanted to be in the Alps, stay in the high alpine villages, and hike, I would not spend the time and the money to go there in early May, especially for a first visit. When we went for our fourth time, choosing late June/early July instead of our usual `August/September, we found it was too early—-we had dreary weather in Mürren and Lauterbrunnen, and ended up hiking in a light blizzard in Zermatt on July 1. Fortunately, we were prepared for bad weather, and had the experience and ability to deal with it in the mountains. And since you live in Colorado I am sure you will be too.

the first 2-3 weeks in May.

Just to clarify, do you mean you will have a shorter holiday sometime during the first two to three weeks, or that your trip will last for that duration?

If it's the latter, that's great because you will likely face a variety of weather and a longer trip gives the possibility of more spectacular days mixed in with rainy/cloudy ones. This past spring was not the greatest in that regard, but spring in the Alps can often be stunningly beautiful!

You'll certainly have plenty of hiking options to choose from. For fun and inspiration, you can check out Switzerland Tourism’s 10 Hiking Facts That Will Amaze You to get an idea of how vast and varied the hiking trails are in Switzerland. You’re by no means limited to the few favorites in the Jungfrau Region - but even with those, some are open all year round, such as the walk from Grütschalp to Mürren, on from there down to Gimmelwald, plus all of the walks in the village of Wengen.

https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-ch/experiences/summer-autumn/listicles/hiking-facts-that-will-amaze-you/

I took a look at the feedback you received on TA, and I think staying near Lake Thun is a fantastic idea at this time of year. Someone suggested Spiez, which is great in terms of access to transportation to various other locations, but your own choice of the Beatus Wellness Center will give you a much more spectacular view. While you'll need to take the bus to Interlaken or Thun to explore other areas, it’s a beautiful location to enjoy local hikes, take a boat ride on the lake, or simply relax and admire the scenery.

During your stay you can expect:

• Green fields
• Snow-capped mountains
• Wildflowers in bloom, including dense fields of daisies or poppies
• Spring blossoms on trees
• Canola fields in bloom
• Cows out grazing
• Waterfalls at their peak

I would check the tourist websites for each location that you are thinking of. Most of them will list local hikes and also the times of year that are best for those hikes. Cycling is also a really great option at this time of year.

As I mentioned already, you can of course, encounter rain, cloudy days and fog. If you’re hoping for a mix of outdoor activities like hiking or cycling and indoor pursuits like visiting museums, this could offer a good balance.

Thank you SwissNomad. Very helpful information. Our trip is April 30 to May 20 so I agree we have lots of options and lots of different weather! Ill check the links you sent. I do have a few hiking books for reference as well. Thanks again for taking the time to respond.

For the Berner Oberland, the value of a May visit depends on what you mean by hiking. Valley walks will be nice and green, with some wildflowers. But up in the higher villages you won’t find much in the way of “hiking”.

Grutschalp to Mürren is a flat walk on a road alongside the railroad tracks. Views of the mountain peaks are not as good as further up the valley.

Mürren to Gimmelwald is a walk down a paved road most of the way, til you find the little dirt path on the left, near the village. It is nice and scenic, but short, like 30.40 minutes. And you may have to move aside for truck or tractor traffic.

The most popular walk in the area is the Panorama Trail above Wengen. This one is very unlikely to be open for your visit, even if you put BO at the end. This year it did not open til well into June, and then it closed again due to a rockslide. Anyway, if Zermatt is your main priority you will want to make that your last stop

@ecmitchell123 you are so welcome! Sounds like you have some good reference material to work with.

@Sasah, one great feature of the Mürren tourism website is that you can filter hikes based on the time of year. For example, selecting May provides a range of options, some of which are sure to get your heart rate up:

https://muerren.swiss/en/maps/summer-maps/hikes.html#area=60825263&cat=Hiking%20Trail&filter=mft-bestMonths-5to5,r-fullyTranslatedLangus-,r-openState-,sb-sortedBy-0&wt=Mürren%20(Switzerland)%0A60825263&zc=12,7.8674,46.55076

Of course, the Berner Oberland is a vast region, and the Lauterbrunnen Valley is just a small part of it. There are countless hiking opportunities for all levels, with far more to explore than anyone could possibly cover!