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Switzerland-Itinerary Help Please!

My girlfriend and I will be arriving in Zurich June 20th and departing June 27th. Below is our tentative schedule:

June 20th: Arrive (stay in Zurich)
June 21st: Lucerne (stay in Zurich) * will be using hotel pts to stay for free so will have to travel back and fourth.
June 22-June 24: Staying in Lauterbrunnen: Would like to explore mountain towns, hikes, etc
June 24-June 26: Staying at Grandhotel Giessbach: Would like to explore Interlaken and surrounding areas.
June 26: Bern/Kandersteg/Lake Oeschinen/ return to Zurich

We are seeking ideas of how to plan our days based on the areas we will be in. We will have a rental car but are open to ditching it at times to see mountain towns, etc. Any help would be greatly Appreciated.

Posted by
11359 posts

You really do not need a car for any of this Trains are excellent and frequent, so save yourself the hassle of a vehicle

The best guide for planning your days is the Rick Steves Switzerland Guidebook. He lays out the sites, hours, hikes, transportation and everything you need. Must say your June 26 looks a bit busy. You can certainly go to Bern as a day trip from Interlaken.

Posted by
768 posts

Personally, I wouldn't spend 2 days at Geissbach. There's one nice trail there around the falls, but otherwise I'd be bored. There's at least 10 days worth of stuff to do around Lauterbrunnen, so I"d spend those extra days there. I'll send you my dozen fav hikes in the area. Check your private forum mail by clicking on your name in the upper right.

Posted by
5695 posts

I can certainly understand wanting to use hotel points. If you had another way to use them, I would say to go directly to Lucerne on your arrival day and stay there two nights. Lucerne was my favorite city that I visited in Switzerland--charming town on a lake surrounded by mountains with the possibility of going up to a summit for views and hiking.

Posted by
303 posts

We just returned from Switzerland. We also stayed in Zurich, but wished we had stayed in Lucerne. My only comment would be to make sure the hotel in Zurich has AC!! Ours did not, and it was uncomfortably warm and then loud as we had to leave the window open. Not much sleeping going on!! You will LOVE Lucerne!