You all are so knowledgeable and helpful, please share your opinions on this. We are dividing our time in Switzerland between Lauterbrunnen and Lucerne. I don’t want to lose the day that we travel between the two, so I’m thinking of purchasing Swiss Saver Day Passes so that we can spend the day exploring Interlaken before the journey to Lucerne. Perhaps St. Beatus Caves, Harder Kulm for lunch, ferry across Lake Brienz and pick up the train there. The 2nd class SDP is currently CHF 49 (with the half-fare card), so I think it would make sense to grab it now. What do you think? And what would you do with six or so hours in Interlaken?
Posted by
Washington DC
30501 posts
I haven't checked the half-fare prices on the trips you mentioned, but this sounds like an opportune time to use a Saver Day Pass--you have a fixed date to work with and some free time to take trains, buses and boats. I used an SDP two years ago for a long day of scenic train rides between Bellinzona and Tirano (Italy). It was a great deal for me even though I didn't have a half-fare card and had to pay CHF 52 for the SDP. I believe you know that the price of the SDP you're looking at will continue to rise as the travel date approaches.
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
12227 posts
My guts reaction is that yes, it’s a good deal. Worse thing that could happen is the weather is bad and you cannot do everything on your list. Compare the SDP to the one way fare Lauterbrunnen to Luzern. Assume you will not have a Berner Oberland Regional Pass, is that right? If you have that pass, then the SDP is irrelevant.
Posted by
Nashville, TN
1328 posts
Sounds fine, but note that Harder Kulm isn’t included in the Saver Day Pass.
St Beatus Caves is a 25 minute bus ride (in the wrong direction) + 10 minute steep walk to get to, which means it’s going to eat up around 3 hours and isn’t really a highlight in my opinion.
Personally I’d probably take the train to Brienz, store your luggage at the train station and take the boat over to Giessbach, ride the funicular up to the historic hotel for lunch with a view and an optional hike to the waterfall. Then boat back to Brienz to walk around the lake front and see the picturesque street Brunngasse before continuing on to Luzern.
If you want to boat more, you could also go to Iseltwald or do a longer ride by boating from Interlaken to Brienz, store your luggage and then catch the 13 minute boat ride back to Giessbach without your luggage.
Another option is to train to Brienz, short boat ride to Giessbach for lunch, then back to Brienz, train to Meiringen to walk the Aare Gorge before continuing on to Luzern.
Posted by
Arctophilia, Northamptonshire, England
36631 posts
train to Meiringen to walk the Aare Gorge
or have a walk over to Reichenbach Falls and either hike up or take the old funicular and channel your inner Sherlock Holmes