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Switzerland in March - first timer

Posted by (Philadelphia) on

There's another "Switzerland in March" post but that person wasn't a first timer so the responses didn't help me much.

I'm thinking of traveling to Switzerland in March 2026. One of the major reasons for going to Switzerland in March is that there's a direct flight to Zurich from my home city. I no longer take connecting flights to Europe after one disastrous incident a few years ago with missing a connecting flight. I've always wanted to go to Switzerland, and I don't care if the weather isn't optimal as I plan to return in September 2026.

My plan is to focus on the lake regions in March 2026 then do the Alps in September 2026.

My tentative itinerary is to fly into Zurich, go directly to Luzern for 3 nights (only 2 full days) then on to either Montreux or Lugano. I'm torn as to which one but I'm leaning towards Montreux. I could see some of the Alps scenery on my way to Montreux, potentially stop at Interlaken for 2 nights and visit some of the sites in that vicinity such as Jungfraujoch or Wengen then Montreux for 3 nights then back to Zurich. Or I could skip Interlaken altogether and go directly to Montreux. I read that the promenade in Montreux is spectacular! Also want to see the Chillon castle.

Alternatively, I could go from Luzern to Lugano for 5 nights, in which case I'd take a day trip to Lake Como or even Milan. I've read that people prefer Montreux over Lugano though.

I'm just not too sure of the time factor as the train trip from Luzern to Montreux is rather long; that's why I thought about breaking it up with a stopover in Interlaken but I also don't want to spend time in Interlaken that could be better used in Montreux (considering it's March).

I'm just at a stalemate with my planning. The trip doesn't seem to be coming together too easily for me. I feel I should decide rather quickly as one of the better hotels in Montreux seems to be fully booked so I want to make hotel reservations as soon as I can.

Posted by
100 posts

My thinking is that when I go back in September 2026, I'll be able to skip Luzern and go directly to the Bernese Oberland and spend all of my time there.

Posted by
7269 posts

You are smart to stick to cities at that time of year. We enjoyed a couple days in Basel and a day trip to Bern, so those could be ideas for you. We didn't spend much time in Montreaux but it was pretty. We visited the castle and walked around the area admiring the lake and mountain views.

You will love Luzern. We were there in January a few years ago and had a lovely time. If you would be using the Swiss Travel Pass (which gets you into Chillon castle) you could think about an excursion to the top of Mt. Rigi. It includes a boat ride across the lake and a couple cog wheel trains to the mountain top.

Posted by
830 posts

"I've read that people prefer...." People can be unreliable on any subject! Montreux and Lugano are different, even language and food - which is better really depends on you. Having said that, you could also consdier Locarno, which is smaller than Lugano and overlooked because it's not on the main through route to Italy. The reason I say that is because you have already mentioned Luzern and every two hours the Treno Gottardo runs to Locarno (for Lugano you would have to change trains). These uses the original route not the modern very long tunnel that the main trains use to avoid the scenery https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-gb/experiences/treno-gottardo/ for booking tickets use www.sbb.ch check that "Price Display" is set to Full Fare and in Setting switch on Via then add "Airolo" to set the route. In the results should be route IR26 which is the Treno Gottardo service. Price marked % have a pre booking discount and are not flexible. The service is actually hourly south of Arth Goldau, the alternate northern end is Zurich, which is helpful for going home! Locarno has direct rains to Milano, but you would be 40 minutes further. Locarno also has the very scenic Centovalli railway to Domodossola in Italy, which I think would be better use of a day than staring at a cold Lake Como!
https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-gb/experiences/centovalli-express/
https://www.vigezzinacentovalli.com/en/

Posted by
100 posts

Wow! Thank you, Steve! I love your ideas. I'm all for logistics and the idea of heading to Locarno appeals to me. Initially I had wanted to do the Gotthard Express too but somehow detoured off that plan. I love the idea of the scenic Centovalli train trip too. I think I'll investigate these ideas further. THANK YOU so much for your links and the information about the tickets!

Posted by
830 posts

Youtube will find various videos if you search for "Centovalli railway" or "treno gottardo" (in th latter case some could be general railway videos in italian, you want the modern copper coloured trains).

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