Switzerland with or without Austria (8-9 nights)

Are you counting travel days? How many nights do you have to work with? That's a pretty short trip to see more than 2-3 places, let alone two countries.

We would spend eight or nine nights in Europe (Austria and / or Switzerland).

8 or 9 nights means one country or the other, IMO. Trains between the two countries make for long trips. Even just Luzern to Innsbruck is 5 or more hours by train. Luzern to Salzburg is 7 and Luzern to Vienna takes 9-1/2.

There is plenty to do in either country, but what do you like to do? What do you envision doing? Will you take mountain walks? Do you prefer cities and museums?

With young children, 2 bases of 4 or 5 nights each will make travel more relaxing. Do Salzburg and Vienna in Austria or Luzern and the Berner-Oberland (where you will find Grindelwald among many other charming villages) in Switzerland.

Thanks for the information. It does seem to make more sense to stay in only one country. If we travel in June, how will the weather be in either country. I think most of our traveling will be by train or foot (short walks). With young children, I do not think museums will be visited. We would like to be outside most of the days if the weather is good. I think with one country, we would stay in the city that we fly into (Vienna or Zurich for example). Then, our second base would be a small city or kid friendly village (Salzburg, Interlaken, Lucern, etc....).

I wouldn't stay in Zurich without a good reason. By Swiss standards it's a large city, but not a particularly interesting one. Switzerland is expensive no matter which way you look; no sense paying those prices to stay in a city that most folks find comparatively dull.

Lucerne is an often-recommended city. There's an hourly direct train from the Zurich airport to Lucerne, departing at 47 minutes after the hour. A second train makes the run each hour with just one change; those trains depart at 18 minutes after the hour.

Vienna to Zurich is more ground than I would want to cover in 8-9 days. I personally would stick to Switzerland or Austria. I recently got back from an 8-night trip in Switzerland with 3 bases (Lausanne, Gimmelwald, and Lucerne), which was a little rushed for me, but planned by the guy with whom I was traveling.

That sounds nice about the short train to Lucerne from Zurich. Would you recommend a second base to stay at as well? We would probably stay close to Zurich Airport for the last night.

Guess I was slow to hit the "Post" button!

I think Lucern + somewhere in the Interlaken/Gimmelwald/Mürren area.

Would it be possible to add Zermatt to the itinerary even as a day trip? Or is this place worth it?
Thanks again.

Interlaken may be best for transportation connections.

Make note of 2 places with similar names: Grindelwald (touristy town, but I hear it has a lot for kids -- I would defer to someone who has been there) vs Gimmelwald (less-touristy small village located near Mürren).

Luzern to Zermatt is around 3.5 hours per SBB website. Luzern to Interlaken is just under 2 hours. I have not been to Zermatt, so it's hard for me to say whether it's worth it. My understanding is that the Matterhorn is often shrouded in clouds, so it's a good idea to have a few days in Zermatt if you want to see the Matterhorn. Some of the decision may depend on how long you want to have a toddler on a train!

Re: Zermatt

You will probably want to check fares before falling in love with the idea of a day-trip to a high-mountain village. A round-trip ticket from Interlaken to Zermatt costs 83 francs per person if you don't have a half-fare card. From Lucerne the round-trip cost is 120 francs. The Swiss franc is at par with the US dollar today, so for two adults, a side-trip to Zermatt would cost $166 from Interlaken and $240 from Lucerne. Only you can decide whether that would be worth it. At the least you'd want to pick a day with good weather; that's not guaranteed in Switzerland even in mid-summer.

The half-fare card I alluded to above costs 185 francs per person. Depending on how much moving around you'd do in Switzerland, it could easily pay off.

I'm not up on deals for children, but I suspect that both your children may travel for free within Switzerland.

If those prices sound horrifying, consider Austria instead.

BTW, I have been to Lucerne -- you should be able to find lots to do with young kids, I think. During my stay in the Berner Oberland (the more proper name for Gimmelwald/Mürren area), I stayed in Gimmelwald. It was very peaceful but, again, you may want a place with shorter transportation connections with young children.

Using the search bar at the top of the forum, I found this post on the Berner Oberland with kids, which includes a post from a parent who took two kids under 2 to the area.

Thanks so much!

So it sounds like we should Fly into and out of Zurich with a tentative itinerary below:
Day 1: Fly from USA into Zurich
Day 2: Arrive in Zurich, Train to Lucerne (Night 1 Lucerne)
Day 2: Lucerne (Night 2)
Day 3: Lucerne (Night 3)
Day 4: Train to Grindewald or nearby (Night 4)
Day 5: Grindewald or nearby (Night 5)
Day 6: Grindewald or nearby (Night 6)
Day 7: Grindewald or nearby (Night 7)
Day 8: Train to Zurich or near airport (Night 8)
Day 9: Fly to USA from Zurich

Any other recommendations, comments, etc. would greatly be appreciated.

Thanks

Michael, just keep a close eye on the local weather and be flexible enough to adjust accordingly.

Your itinerary is perfect! I have not been to Grindelwald, but have stayed in Murren twice. I believe it is smaller and less touristy than Grindelwald. I loved it, but I’m sure either would work. Definitely forget the day trip to Zermatt. It’s too far especially for an 8-9 day trip. Have fun!!!