Hello all! Needing some advice and you all know so much. My Mom, daughter and I will be landing in Zurich May 26th and back out June 9th. I feel like I have gone down a rabbit hole of trying to plan the best route, several times. Any advice would be amazing. So far I have:
Land Day 1 Do Zurich…(stay night)
Day 2..Rhein Falls(stay night leave AM)
Day 3..Lucerne (stay night)
Day 4..Mount Rigi or Kulum (Lucerne the night leave AM)
Day 5… Lauterbunnen (stay night)
Day 6 Lauterbunnen (stay night)
Day 7..Zermatt (stay in Lauterbunnen?)
Day 8.. Gruyère and Montreux (Go to Geneva and make it a hub and hit these?)
Day 9-14 This is where I get lost. Go to Geneva and hit Anncey, France, but we have time to go many places in France..just need help on what makes since. Paris will have the Olympics and we are not interested in that bustle. These days are all just what I have so far. I really need help on the back end and if I should adjust day on the front end. I want to maximize our time, and not aware enough to what would be most ideal. We will need to make it back to Zurich to fly out June 9th. We plan on getting the Swiss travel pass. Any suggestions are welcome. Thank you a TON!
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
6442 posts
I would add a night to Lauterbrunnen, 2 if you might want to day trip to Bern.
Day 8, I would stay anywhere but Geneva--Lausanne, Vevey, Gruyere
Posted by
Bend, OR
1035 posts
I agree with Jules, it’s a 3 1/2 hour train ride to Zermatt for one day and could be very disappointing if it’s cloudy in the afternoon. We found early mornings are usually the best time to see the Alps.
Posted by
OP
46 posts
Lauterbunnen to Zermatt is 3.5 hours?
Posted by
Bend, OR
1035 posts
I just looked it up again, anywhere from 2 hours and 52 minutes to 3 hours and 22 minutes from point A to point B according to the different train schedule sites. So that does not include wait times.
Posted by
Michigan
217 posts
You might consider a boat ride from Nyon or another port on Lake Leman (aka Lake Geneva) across the lake to Yvoire, France. I traveled there last year in late April. It was a beautiful little town. My understanding is that the town is very beautiful from the end of May to first of June as the town plants flowers everywhere. There were a few flowers blooming but a friend who lives in Switzerland said the flowers are outstandingly beautiful in the summer. I hope to return there in June some day. The boat trip was covered by the Swiss Travel Pass. The boat timetable is available online.
We also spent time on the waterfront in Montreaux. It was beautiful. There were places to buy food and ice cream. Beautiful flowers. Very relaxing. Lots of children.
Also near Montreaux is Castle Chillon. We have toured it twice through the years. I would visit again.
On Mt. Rigi is an easy walk for children. I cannot recall exactly where it is located. I took the walk a few years ago.
There is a nice waterfront park in Brienz with some fun interactive things for children. I don't know your daughter's age but even if she is older she might find it enjoyable. My husband and I did last year.
That's all my ideas for now.
Have a great time and happy planning!
Traveler Girl
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
6442 posts
If you do get the Swiss Travel Pass, Chateau Chillion is included on it as is the boat ride and train up to Mt. Rigi
Posted by
OP
46 posts
So, go to Zermatt as a single stop? I had no idea it was that far away from Lauterbunnen. I have No desire to stay an extra day incase the weather is bad. So, maybe leave Lauterbunnen….see what we can see in Zermatt…and leave next day? Or are we pushing it? We really don’t care about weather. Can’t control it. So, if we have good weather wooohooo..if not..we don’t care.
Posted by
OP
46 posts
So, maybe leave Lauterbunnen and stay in Zermatt a night? Then head to Gruyère/Montreux?