Zermatt? Chamonix? Montreux? Help!

If you go to Chamonix, make sure you get the multi-day pass to access the lifts and gondolas.
The Aiguille du Midi -> Panoramic Mt Blanc -> Monte Bianco is amazing (make sure the Panoramic
is running in June). The pass is a much better deal than paying for the gondolas ala carte.

Also, Chamonix is kind of spread out, and the gondolas can have long lines, which makes a day
trip more risky.

In my humble opinion, commuting in the Alps can be time consuming. Also depends on what
you want to do in each of these mountain towns. Some of the activities will be similar no matter
where you are.

shoeflyer, I appreciate the response. One thing I like about the day trip option is I can pick the best days weather-wise to head to Zermatt or Chamonix. This worked well for me last year as i was able to pick the perfect day for Zermatt. I do have my France guidebooks out and need to take a look at them as I’m not sure what all is available to do in Chamonix and what interests me.

Carrie, I think you are becoming a Switzerland addict like me.

You have been tomZermatt and know what the train ride is like. If you are content with another daytrip there, then you plan of spending the 5 (free!) nights in Montreux makes sense. I know you liked the hotel there. And it would allow you to plan your Zermatt visit on a good-weather day. Or you could take a chance and commit to dates, and spend 4 nights in Montreux and 2 in Zermatt. It is nice to be able to see the changing light there.

I would give Chamonix a lower priority. We have been there twice for hiking, and for that purpose it is good. But it feels like a big city to me, with busy traffic-filled streets and lots of people. None of the charm and flower-bedecked balconies you find in the Swiss mountain villages. ( Although we did hike to a lovely little mountain restaurant above town with big flower baskets and lots of hummingbird hawk-moths). The train ride is scenic and interesting, especially the part after the ascent from Martigny where you feel like you are going through people’s’ backyards. The Swiss Pass used to cover the train all the way to Chamonix, but no longer; it covers just to the French border. But after your visit to Chamonix you could take the fast bus to Geneva and ride the train from there back to Montreux with your Swiss Pass.

I think you will like Mürren; we find it offers even better views than Wengen. We stay in apartments in Mürren, but I can highly recommend Hotel Bellevue on the basis of dinners we have enjoyed there, and their location, which offers the best views of all.

Lola, I appreciate your insight. I fell in love with Switzerland before I even got there. 😊 I can’t explain it.

Your description of Chamonix is making me think of Grindelwald, which I was not a fan of because of the cars and lots of people. And the videos I have seen of the Aiguille du Midi make me think of jungfraujoch, which I did not enjoy at all. The train to Montenvers appeals to me more, but I wouldn’t consider that a must. I really prefer the lower elevation mountains—mannlichen and rigi—where’s there’s wildflowers and cows and you can comfortably walk around. I guess for whatever reason, the snow and glaciers don’t appeal to me. So, it probably makes sense to just go to Chamonix for the day and just walk around at the lower elevation. If I really like it, I can go back at some point.

I’ll have to ponder some more on whether to stay in Montreux the whole time or head to Zermatt for a few nights. I do like that Montreux has better options if the weather is not great. But, waking up and already being in Zermatt sounds nice.

Thanks for the recommendation for Hotel Bellevue. I’ve seen that mentioned many times here and will definitely check it out. The Hotel Edelweiss is also on my radar because of their apple strudel that I love so much.

Apple Strudel: Better to stay at Hotel Bellevue and then walk to and from your favorite strudel place. Otherwise you might be eating it twice a day. =)

Hi Carol, you make an excellent point. 😊

Are you traveling solo? It looks like Hotel Bellevue does not have single rooms, so it looks like you may have to be content with the Edelweiss and lots of strudel!

Hi lola, yes, this will be a solo trip. I always get a double room though. A lot of the single room look like closets. I figure as long as my travel budget allows for it, I’ll pay for a bigger room.

Carrie, IF you decide to stay farther from your favorite apple strudel, and choose the Hotel Bellevue, communicate directly with the owner Ruth. She answers promptly.
We stayed 5 nights in 2021 and she up-graded our room because hardly anyone was traveling that year. In fact, I hadn't realized our room was an upgrade until I mentioned to her how much we loved our room.
We love eating on the hotel's deck on a sunny day. Not sure if Caesar chicken salad is on their menu.

Thanks for the tip Carol.

Carrie, we loved Hotel Bellevue and Ruth is great with communication. She gave us an RS discount when booking directly. Many of the standard rooms have a balcony and a view of a mountain, (you can hear the cowbells,) and are European small. We debated about upgrading to a room with a bigger balcony and views of the Eiger, Monch, and Jungfrau, and decided not to. Once we arrived at the Hotel and saw the spectacular views, we realized we should have spent more and upgraded, but it was too late, the hotel was full. Our standard room was very nice with a large modern bathroom, and our balcony faced the mountain with the funicular. Breakfast was included. The hotel has a large, comfortable lobby, with overstuffed leather sofas, good for reading on a rainy day, ( cloudy days are still beautiful.) The Bellevue also has the only laundromat in Murren; the Coop store ( and the paprika chips,) are only a block away.

One comment I read on the Hotel Edelweiss is the traveller thought that it was too close to the mounain view and the granite cliffs are too intense; the Bellevue sits back a block or so, giving a more panoramic view. The sunsets on the patio of the Bellevue are fantastic !
Highly recommend this location, and so happy that you're going back, I'm so jealous ! Safe travels!

Thanks Pat, I’ll be sure to request a room with a larger balcony. And good to know that the views from Hotel Edelweiss might be a little too close.

I seem to be having trouble with hotel website “book now.” No matter what dates I plug in, I get “can’t find rooms matching this selection.” I won’t worry about it now, I was just trying to get an idea of prices.

Carrie, you mean booking.com? Again, contact these hotels directly, not through a third party site, for better prices.

https://www.bellevuemuerren.ch/english/hotel-rooms/

Hi Pat, I was on the Hotel Bellevue website attempting to use their online “Book now” feature to pull up some prices. Not a big deal, I won’t be booking anytime soon. I was just trying to get an idea of prices.

just above their booking engine is a form you could complete and send off, noting that you know prices may change for 2024, but you are wondering for the type of room you want what a general idea of the prices would be. Or at the top of the page there is a click for sending an email which they encourage....

good luck!

Thanks Nigel, that’s a good idea to just send them an email. That way I can also ask when they expect to open for the summer 2024 season. I plan to go early June to avoid the crowds and I know not everything will be open at that time.

Hi Carrie! Happy Swiss Dreaming! Here’s a total monkey wrench: why not see the other side of Switzerland? I have a friend who raves about the Engadine area. No, not dramatic but you’re not going to find the Eiger anywhere else in the world. We actually looked at a month just in Switzerland last time, doing a circle. Montreux to Zermatt, then over to the Engadine by Austria and back around ending at Wengen. or, Consider a circle from Montreux to the Italian area? The pass makes it easy! You’re hooked like us, hard to go over there and not incorporate Switzerland somehow. Next time we go back we will do more areas, the thing about the train and the pass is you can always change your mind once there.

Hi cchapin100, thanks for the suggestions. I definitely need to research other parts of Switzerland. I’d like to try and squeeze in a day trip to Kandersteg. That’s been on my radar ever since laurel mentioned it a few months ago.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/switzerland/kandersteg-in-the-berner-oberland

I guess I’m just going to have to take many more trips to Switzerland. 😊

If you do go to Kandersteg, make sure you ride the gondola up to Oeschinensee, the beautiful mountain lake. On the walk from the tops of the gondola to the lake, you are almost certain to meet cows. and if you continue around the lake past the lakeshore mountain inns, you will find a sculpture garden of wood carvings and a small waterfall. Continue up to the farm at Unterbärgli and you will meet more cows.

For photos, scroll past the vertigo-inducing photos of the views from the higher trails to the part about the walk from the gondola to the lake (“Part 1: Kandersteg Gondola to Oeschinensee”) and on to Part II (Oeschinensee to Unterbärgli).

https://fullsuitcase.com/oeschinen-lake-hike/

Hi lola, thanks for the info. on Kandersteg. I’m adding that and the link to the blog post to my notes.

Hi Carrie. We also like the Engadine, specifically staying in Pontresina where we spent a week in 2018. We are going back this Sept for another week. Great hiking at all levels, close enough to Italy that there is a little Italian vibe (many workers there come from Italy). Most lodging includes a pass for the local gondolas and funicular and this year our apartment includes a bus pass as well. I have a few hikes there I can recommend if you choose to go.

Hi laurel, I appreciate the response. Pontresina is on my radar too, especially after Pat raved about it after her trip.

This is my hesitation with basing in places like Pontresina and Kandersteg and even Zermatt. I have it in my head that while these are great places for walking/hiking, there isn’t much to do besides that. So, if I have a really rainy day, I wonder what I would do. I could be completely off base on my thinking because I haven’t researched those areas yet.

With places like Murren, Wengen, Montreux, and Lucerne, there’s good options on a rainy day—take a boat ride, day trip to bern or somewhere, etc.

I’ll have some time after my march and may trips to do some research.

Carrie, from Pontressina you can ride the Bernini Express regional train down to Tirano and back. As we have learned in Switzerland , even cloudy, intermittent rainy days can be beautiful. But you're right, if it poured all day, your options are limited. Our hotel did give us a pass to the heated pool (outdoors) and spa.

Thanks Pat. At the moment, I’m leaning towards staying in both Zermatt and Chamonix. But, I’m sure I’ll change my mind a million times before it’s time to book. 😊

I think I have finally solved my problem—3 nights in all 3 (Montreux, Zermatt, and Chamonix). I’m going to try very hard to not use 5 of my vacation days this year so I can carry them over to next year and give myself an extra week in Switzerland. 😊 But then I have an even bigger dilemma—which Pass to get? 😊 Just kidding on the Pass, not looking for any response.

Carrie, maybe you and I can find a lifetime STP? If they ever create one, you and I will be the first in line!😉

Sign me up Pat!!!!!! 😊