Switzerland itinerary for late July, 2022

Posted by racker on 10/30/21 03:37 PM

I've been reading many threads about Switzerland and some of my questions have been answered. My wife and I are scheduled to be on a choir tour to Germany, Prague, Vienna, and Salzburg, ending at the Munich airport early on July 20. We are thinking of extending our trip another week into Switzerland. After consulting RS's guidebook, I have come up with the following itinerary. Comments and suggestions are welcome:

Day 1: From Munich (or from Chicago if the choir tour doesn't go): fly to Zurich and take a train to Luzern and stay 2 nights.
Day 2: Luzern: boat tour on Lake Luzern, visit Mt Rigi if the weather is good.
Days 3-5: Berner Oberland. Train to Interlaken, then up to Lauterbrunnen and Murren. Stay 3 nights.
Question: are 2 days enough, or should we stay another night for 3 full days there, in case we encounter one day of bad weather?
Days 6-7: Train to Lausanne, stay 2 nights.
Day 8: Train to Geneva, fly home to Chicago.

Any other destinations worth considering? If the choir tour doesn't go, is it worth visiting Appenzell or other parts of Switzerland in addition or instead of the above?

Assuming all is good for travel next year, at what point should we start making reservations for accomodations? We would take a close look at cancellation policies and get good travel insurance.

Posted by Carol now retired

Lynnwood, Washington

10/30/21 04:41 PM

8886 posts

I would take a night from Lausanne and give it to Murren.

Posted by Sam

Green Bay

10/30/21 05:42 PM

21160 posts

If you do it in reverse starting in Geneva, you will have a choice of 3 nonstops back to Chicago on United or Swiss from Zurich. Nothing but connections from Geneva.

Posted by acraven

Washington DC

10/30/21 07:20 PM

28090 posts

I think it would be smart to have an extra day in the mountains; as you note, you can't count on having great weather for outdoor activities every day.

It's a great idea to extend your trip to take advantage of already being in Europe and already having gotten past the jetlag stage.
It's also prudent to consider the possibility that the tour might not operate.

There are many lovely areas in Switzerland. In fact, you have to work quite hard to find an unattractive spot. I enjoyed Appenzell. The rolling countryside (dairy country) made a nice contrast to the high-mountain regions. You might also consider taking one of the scenic railway trips. It appears the Bernina Express is considered the very most beautiful, but there are many worthwhile choices. Folks more knowledgeable than I am will be able to make suggestions.

If money is a concern at any level, I'd suggest doing some checking on lodging costs before you finalize the number of days you want to spend in Switzerland. It is a very expensive country to visit. For the same reason, I'd tend to want to make lodging reservations as soon as I had a solid plan. Make sure they're cancelable, of course, but the best-value places get snapped up earliest. Booking.com is a good place to start your research. You don't need to make reservations there, but the reviews are helpful; you can't leave a review if you haven't actually stayed at the property.

Posted by The Happy Traveler 😎

Noblesville, Indiana, USA

10/30/21 08:05 PM

1406 posts

If you're only going to visit Lauterbrunnen and Murren then 2 days/3 nights should be ok. If you plan to do some hiking as well as see Wengen, Kleine Scheidegg and Grindelwald maybe you should add another day/night.

Posted by Suki

10/31/21 03:22 PM

11570 posts

Add a day to the Berner Oberland.

Posted by racker OP

10/31/21 06:13 PM

17 posts

Thanks for the heads up about the lack of nonstop flights from Geneva. Good idea to reverse the itinerary, and also to add a day to Berner Oberland. I hope to use Murren as a base for exploration of both sides of the valley.

If our choir tour is cancelled (postponed twice since 2020 because of Covid and might be again if not enough singers sign up) we may alter our itiinerary to fly in and out of Zurich, but having Berner Oberland accomodations set shouldn't affect our plans.