Switzerland in September-New plan

This looks better! Much less time traveling and more time enjoying and giving yourself options. I like that you have listed your desired activities as placeholders and then can move things around depending on weather. I don’t think you will regret this much time in the BO, even if it rains on X day you will have your pass and can make adjustments. Likewise if it’s a beautiful day you can adjust for that. Now just watch out for paprika chips and chocolate!

Also a fan - wonderful plan!

What a wonderful trip!! Just a few suggestions, we loved Lake Thun, go to the Beatenbucht stop on the ferry and up to the Niederhorn. To us Harder Kulm was just ok. We stayed in Thun for 4 nights and then in Murren for 5 nights on a trip a few years ago and could have stayed many more days. Also, one of the prettiest walks was from Winteregg into Murren, beautiful!! Also a thought, pending your return flight consider staying in Schaffhausen the night before and check out Rhine Falls, the Rhine River flows right beside the town. So jealous, enjoy!

Day 9 suggestions welcome. Wengen/Grindelwald to GRÜTSCHALP. Walk from GRÜTSCHALP to Murren. Break in Murren. Then ride up to Stilthorn and back. Walk down to Gimmelwald. and then??

Taurus the thing about Shilthorn is that you really can’t plan in advance. You will be able to find cameras, likely at your hotel, that will show the view on any day. You can also ask your hotel about the next day. Swiss weather is fickle. As Rick mentions Piz Gloria and the top of these areas are often best viewed early morning. I would just pencil in that you want to do this and whatever day is going to give you the best weather and views, jump on it. Seriously IMO it’s not worth going up there if you can’t see 10 feet. And be prepared to go up maybe for breakfast because quite often it’s best seen early morning before clouds come in.

I would perhaps spend 1 night fewer in Wengen and spend a second night in Pontresina so that you have a full day to see things there too, instead of just spending your time on trains.

And unless your flight is super-early, I would consider a hotel in Zürich proper rather than the airport.

I will “second” both of balso’s suggestions.

Are you staying in Wengen or Grindelwald?

I’d suggest using the SBB app or website and look at the journey times and transfers from Wengen and Grindelwald to all the places you’d like to see. Wengen of course will be more convenient to Wengen/Mannlichen, murren/schilthorn and Lauterbrunnen. I haven’t been to Grindelwald so I have no comments on that location, other then I heard the train ride from Grindelwald to Lauterbrunnen is supposed to be fabulous. And Grindelwald might have better options for dinning and laundry as it is larger than Wengen.

My thoughts on laundry: If it means you can pack lighter, i think it makes sense to do laundry or even dry clean a few items if that service is available at one of your hotels. I was able to get my sister to downgrade from a 29-inch to 26-inch suitcase but that meant we did laundry a few times. She will rewear pants, but not shirts. So, laundry is just something we worked into our budget. And it was an adventure trying to figure out the machines in Lauterbrunnen and find the drop-off laundry place in Lucerne and try to communicate with the lady and her chihuahuas. 😊 Experiences we will never forget.

Lola, I have not yet decided where to stay. will decide later.

Carrie, where would you stay in Wengen? (If you don't mind sharing).

Day 9 suggestions welcome. Wengen/Grindelwald to GRÜTSCHALP. Walk from GRÜTSCHALP to Murren. Break in Murren. Then ride up to Stilthorn and back. Walk down to Gimmelwald. and then??

My only suggestion is to switch that around. For the two big peaks, pick the best weather day and go up first thing before the clouds start to gather at the summit by mid morning or often at the latest at midday.

By the time you have walked along the cliff edge to Mürren you may be too late. Starting from Grindelwald already puts you behind the 8-ball.

When you come back down from the summit you will be in a great position to decide how much energy you have left and what you want to do next. I have had a great time walking the Mürren to Grütschalp stroll in the fog, every once in a while catching a glimpse of Wengen way below peeking out with a bit of sun on it.

I can't give any help with Wengen because I am a firm believer in Mürren. Can't beat the view.

From Wengen or Grindelwald to the Schilthorn it is worth seeing which is faster, cable car and train from Lauterbrunnen and then the walk through Mürren to the gondola station, or bus from Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg and the gondola is immediately ahead of you as you step off the bus - and shoot straight up.... I don't which is faster.

I have reservations at the Hotel Schönegg in Wengen for my June trip. It came highly recommended from several here on the RS forum. I was able to get a good price because I booked early, so keep that in mind. It is a short 3 min. walk from the train station right down the main road in town. There are several hotels that are closer to the train station. Wengen has a lot of nice hotels so I’d check out several of them and see what the prices are.

As I mentioned before, I stayed in Lauterbrunnen last year and also really liked that location. I know the Hotel Oberland changed their policy on cancellations so I understand not wanting to stay there. I’m not sure if you checked out the Hotel Silberhorn. That is super close to the train station. Murren is another great location too. So, you really can’t go wrong with those 3 locations. I suggest finding a hotel you that is convenient to the train station if that will make things easier and book early to get the best price. It doesn’t matter so much where you sleep as you’ll be out and about most of the days. But, you don’t want to be too far away from the things you want to do.

My thinking on price is I’d rather spend a little more for convenience. So, I’m willing to spend a little more to be closer to the things I want to do. It’s your vacation, you want to enjoy it.

Hotel Schönegg is very nice, although a bit too ornate for our tastes (we prefer something simpler and more rustic).. It is not the closest hotel to the train station, but it should be a level or nearly level walk, unlike the (very) steep downhill trek to our favorite Wengen hotel.

If an elevator is important to you, check with the hotel about that. They do not mention it as an amenity on their website or booking page, nor does it show up in the hotel’s listing on booking.com (which generally has a complete list of such things for each type of room). It is fairly common for 3-star hotels in Switzerland to lack elevators.

Hotel Schönegg does have an elevator. It’s listed here under “general”

https://www.booking.com/hotel/ch/romantik-schapnegg.html#hp_facilities_box

Thanks, Carrie. Good to know. I have only seen it attached to the room descriptions on booking.com listings. I didn’t realize there was a “general” section but next time I will be sure to look there!

I do not think we need an elevator for 2 or 3 floors. It would be a bit inconvenient to lug the luggage while checking in and out. But I guess we can manage that. I am somehow drawn to Sunstar-Wengen. https://wengen.sunstar.ch. It looks like this is very close to the Train Station, Cable Car, Co-Op and Golden India restaurant. It has bigger rooms and is a bit economical than Hotel Schonegg.

Sunstar-Wengen looks like a great option—close to train, grocery store, elevator (not that you need one), laundry (will be more expensive than doing it yourself, but it’s a nice option to have), and great reviews. If you’re happy with the price, I’d suggest booking it so you can check that off your list.

Sunstar Wengen is literally opposite the cable car station and right in the main street, so perfect location. Do treat yourself to a valley view room, however - otherwise you might be disappointed. If you cannot afford that, then I would pick a room with a view in a cheaper hotel, such as Edelweiss or Alpenruhe.

Comments on Arenas Resort Victoria-Lauberhorn ?? Economy Double Room with Jungfrau View.

It is next to the Sunstar, ratings and amenities look equivalent. Maybe someone has been and can chip in? Otherwise, on face value it looks like a good option.
Have you checked Edelweiss though? I've heard very good things from friends who've been, and it could be a hair cheaper. No wellness area, though.

Edelweiss is down the steep hill below the station, even lower than our favored Hotel Bären. Both are simpler, less expensive, but very nice hotels ( with excellent food), but I have the feeling that taurus 0515 would not like that hill twice a day.

The climb can't be much more than 20-25 metres / 5 minutes, but that's a fair point, thanks for pointing it out :-). Arenas Lauberhorn or Sunstar certainly look mor convenient.

Any hotel recommendations for Zermatt?

Slight change. Reduced Wengen to 6 nights. Added a night in Pontresina. Bernina Express round trip from Pontresina to Tirano and back straight to Zurich airport.
If I reduce Wengen to 5 days, I can spend a day in Zurich, I guess.
Sept 01: Day 00: Depart from the USA
Sept 02: Day 01: Arrive in Zurich Airport. Train to Luzern. Hotel Waldstätterhof, Lucerne.
Sept 03: Day 02: Mt. Rigi (Placeholder)
Sept 04: Day 03: Chill in Luzern (Placeholder)
Sept 05: Day 04: Train to Grindelwald/Wengen. (6 nights) Hotel Sunstar
Sept 06: Day 05: Grindelwald/Wengen
Sept 07: Day 06: Grindelwald/Wengen
Sept 08: Day 07: Grindelwald/Wengen
Sept 09: Day 08: Grindelwald/Wengen
Sept 10: Day 09: Grindelwald/Wengen
Sept 11: Day 10: Train to Zermatt(3 nights in Zermatt. Hotel Sarazena OR Hotel Parnass
Sept 12: Day 11: Gornergrat (Placeholder)
Sept 13: Day 12: Matterhorn (Placeholder)
Sept 14: Day 13: Glacier Express to St. Moritz/Pontresina. 2 nights in Pontresina. Hotel Bernina.
Zermatt dep: 9:52 am, St. Moritz arr: 5:37 pm
St. Moritz dep: 5:48 pm, Pontresina arr: 5:57 pm
Sept 15: Day 14: Pontresina
Sept 16: Day 15: Bernina Express to Tirano and back to Zurich. Hilton Zurich Airport 1 night.
Pontresina dep: 10:22, Tirano arr: 12:49
Tirano dep: 14:24, Zurich HB arr: 19:53
Sept 17: Day 16: Flight back home.

This looks very good to me.
If your flight isn't stupidly early, you could stay in town rather than at the airport for your last night. This, combined with a slightly earlier arrival in Zürich, could let you have a quick overview of the town.

And a small detail: to get to Pontresina, I would get off Glacier Express in Samedan, and take bus n°1 to Pontresina Post. It won't take any longer and will take you much closer to your hotel than the train.

By the way, your earlier thread is still running and it's a bit confusing :-)

Thanks balso. I don't know how to stop my earlier post. I don't want to delete it. There is a lot of good info in that thread.
Bernina Express has been on my bucket list for years, and that train arrives in Zurich at 19:53. i cannot change that :-).
Maybe I need to add a day in Zurich (to get my Covid test?? depending on rules at that time).

Is there any app/website where I can map my train travel?
Zurich->Luzern->Wengen->Zermatt->St.Moritz->Tirano->Zurich

Ha, I misread. I thought your Bernina Express day and your return-to-Zurich day were two separate days.
Leave it as it is, then. No need for time in Zürich.

As for mapping it all: maybe the SBB Swiss Railways app can help? The SBB Website also has an actual map of the railways: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.sbb.ch/content/dam/infrastruktur/trafimage/karten/karte-geltungsbereich-GA-Halbtax-Seven25.pdf.sbbdownload.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwj_sav0vOb1AhXOyYUKHYhhCJUQFnoECBoQAQ&usg=AOvVaw331Is_LMz33SqLV7inGf3r

No, not this kind of map. I am looking for something like google maps, but only for swiss rail. Google maps does not allow multiple places using public transportation.

" No, not this kind of map. I am looking for something like google maps, but only for swiss rail. " It seems that you are trying to contrive how to make these rail journeys . If so , a map is not what you need , and in point of fact the Swiss map is perfect in order to understand the physical routing, all forms of transport are color coded and following the colored lines is easy . What you do need is to understand HOW to book tickets for these trips . That is best done by going to Bahn , the German rail site , putting in the the departure station , and destination station for each trip , put in an arbitrary date and time and forget the rest . You will need to buy the tickets at SBB ( Swiss rail ) but on Bahn it will be clear about all the pertinent information for each trip https://www.bahn.com/en you will need to spend time on the Bahn site putting in some "dummy " runs to get the hang of things , but it's really the only way . As it is said , " no pain , no gain " No amount of queries here , will suffice . You need to do some homework . This site is also invaluable , the bible of European rail travel , worth a fair amount of time - https://www.seat61.com/

Actually, to me this trip is the perfect candidate for a 15-day Swiss Travel Pass. At CHF 429, it isn't cheap, but it removes the need to buy any ticket, besides the reservations for Glacier and Bernina Expresses, and cable cars/mountain railways that aren't fully covered. I cannot do the math on your behalf, but at a glance, the pass is very likely to at least break even.
A "Half-Fare Card" would probably end up slightly cheaper, but it is much less convenient because you still need to buy tickets - at 50% off.
And regarding SBB: I find the app easier to use than the website.

" Actually, to me this trip is the perfect candidate for a 15-day Swiss Travel Pass. " Preciely so ! I purchased two fifteen day passes for my wife and myself for the Swiss part of our trip next Autumn . You will still need to do the preparation I've outlined in order to know how to locate the trains , the train numbers and times , etc .

I have been playing with sbb.ch and rhb.ch for quite sometime now.
A 15-day 1st class swiss travel pass costs 675 CHF. My main journeys in 1st class cost 759.20 CHF.
Zurich Airport to Luzern 53.00
Luzern to Wengen 78.20
Wengen to Zermatt 133.80
Glacier Express-Zermatt to St. Moritz 268.00
Bernina Express Pontresina to Tirano 59.00
Bernina Express to Tirano to Chur 121.00
Chur to Zurich 46.20
Total 759.20
Now, I need to research and see if it is worthwhile to buy a 5 or 6 day Jungfrau Pass on top of this.
Last year it was 205 CHF for 6 days with Swiss Travel Pass.