We have a business trip to Basel in March and will be staying in Zurich for 5 nights. We are thinking of adding on Lucerne for 2 nights. We are undecided whether to extend our trip beyond that. Is there any place else we should be considering for another 2 nights? I am a little concerned about the weather in March and even though we are skiers we would rather make that a separate dedicated trip.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Is this beginning or end of March? End of March is getting towards the end of the ski-ing season. But, don't forget Switzerland has glacier ski-ing the whole year round.
Luzern is a good base for day trips on the lake and up into the hills, but is otherwise a nice tourist town on the edge of the Alps, but has no ski-ing. If you want ski-ing I would stay further into the Alps, and I would add one or two more days taken from your time in Zürich.
For starters, look at: http://www.titlis.ch and the town at the bottom of the mountain: http://www.engelberg.ch/
And welcome to Basel. There is lots to see here. Start by looking on http://www.basel.com More to see than Zürich IMHO, but I am biased.
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7937 posts
Geneva is another city worth considering.
BTW, in March 2003, we were in Zermatt for a week, and while the snow wasn't outstanding (a huge dump of powder in February was followed by No New Snow for several weeks) and was pretty much boilerplate hardpack, it was still a great destination for the experience and the food. From the top of Klein Matterhorn, we also skied into Cervinia, Italy one day for an excellent lunch and soft Spring snow on the south-facing slopes.
Posted by
OP
Upstate NY
99 posts
Thanks for the help. Clarification- we will be there the last week in March and we are not looking to ski on this trip. I am looking for feedback on the typical weather for touring. March is pretty yucky where I live.
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7937 posts
The 3rd week in March in Zermatt, we had a mix of sunny and overcast days, but (sadly) no snow. Of course, that was 11 years ago, and could vary from one year to the next and one day to the next. Down in the "lowlands," you could get rain, snow, or shine. Back in April 2000 (I know, a different year and month) in Glarus, it was very pleasant, and just a light jacket was plenty to stay comfortable. Hopefully some others with better weather suggestions will post.
And Glarus is a neat place, but might not be on your list of priorities for this trip.