Switzerland two-week by train itinerary...Rick Steves

I know quite a lot about Swiss scenic trains but I have not seen Rick's talk.

Can you summarise which routes and trains he suggested that you intend to follow?

As this is only your second post I'll just mention that we are all volunteer fellow travellers and not Rick Steves staffers.

The route we are planning is: Fly to Zurich- Zurich-1 night, Appenzell-2 nights, Luzern -2 nights, Pontresina-2 nights, Zermatt-2-nights, Lausanne-1-night, Gimmelwald or Murren-3 nights, Bern-1 night then back to Zurich. We have not figured out the train transportation between the cities we plan to visit yet.

Well it sounds like a 15-day Swiss Travel Pass for each of you is in order. 1st class or 2nd class?

One fly in the ointment is that it would appear that you want to take the Glacier Express from Samedan (near Pontresina) to Zermatt. Seat reservations are required for this train and they go on sale 93 days before departure. Often, tour companies suck up most of the these reservations as soon as they become available (and maybe even sooner according to some). So you need to decide on the specific date for this journey, and be ready to go on-line early in the morning AT SWIZERLAND TIME, exactly 93 days before that date.

As an example, today, the furthest out to get seat reservations is June 23. The 7:15 am departure has 20 1st class seats and 26 2nd class seats, and this train requires a connection at Brig to a regular train. The 8:46 am departure is direct and has only 1 seat in 1st class and 15 seats in 2nd class. The 9:46 am departure is direct and has 7 seats in 1st class and 39 seats in 2nd class. The 12:15 pm departure only goes as far as Chur and then regular trains from there to Zermatt.

Everything else is pretty easy and you probably do not need any other seat reservations. Trains are at least every hour.

Rick Steves offers a lot of great info, but honestly his full itineraries are crazy to me. Unless you’re on a bus tour that takes care of all your transportation and luggage transfers, the pace of his itineraries is stressful and not the best way to really experience the country. You’ll just be constantly on the move and when you only have 1 night in a spot it really only gives you a few hours to explore. You’re better off doing less bases and doing some day trips. You’ll see a lot more if you move a bit less.

With 14 nights, I’d suggest something like this….

Fly in to Zurich > Murren 4 nights > Montreux 2 nights > Zermatt 2 nights > Pontresina 2 nights > Luzern 4 nights > Zurich Airport

Hypothetical itinerary (adjust for weather & activity preferences)

Day 1 - Zurich Flughafen > Murren - explore the village
Day 2 - Schilthorn + Birg Thrill Walk + easy walk down to Gimmelwald (or cable car if you can’t walk)
Day 3 - Wengen > Mannlichen + optional easy hike to Kleine Scheidegg > train back to Wengen for exploration > train to Lauterbrunnen and do the easy valley waterfall walk > return to Murren via Stechelberg
Day 4 - Lake Thun boat ride with castle stops at Spiez, Oberhofen & Thun
Day 5 - Train via Golden Pass Express to Montreux - explore the town, optional Lavaux vineyard terrace tour

Day 6 - Walk the lake promenade to Chateau de Chillon (do the English audio guided tour) + boat ride to Vevey & Cully
Day 7 - Montreux > Zermatt - explore the village
Day 8 - Gornergrat scenic train to see the Matterhorn
Day 9 - Zermatt > Pontresina via the Glacier Express scenic train
Day 10 - Pontresina
Day 11 - Pontresina > Luzern - explore historic old town
Day 12 - boat ride to Vitznau + cog train to Rigi
Day 13 - optional day trip to Bern OR scenic boat ride to Fluelen OR mountain excursion to Pilatus OR day trip to Lugano via the high speed tunnel to experience “Italian” Switzerland
Day 14 - another from the list above
Day 15 - Luzern to Zurich Flughafen (airport) via 1 hr direct train

For train info, you should really lean towards the Man in Seat 61. And also look at his recommended tour company Railbookers. By doing that you should also get ads for similar companies and you can either hook up with them or use their planned itineraries as "inspiration" for your own trip.