I'll be traveling to Switzerland on May 7, and I'm considering to drive through the Saint Gotthard PASS to Lugano. Is it a safe period to drive in early May through the PASS or should I rather do it through the Galleria Stradale del San Gottardo (highway/tunnel). I'll be driving a standard rental car. My concern is about snow on the roads. The same concern on the Furka Pass through the Furkastrasse. In both cases I'd prefer to go through scenic routes rather than highways. Thanks in advance. Daniel
Posted by
Redmond, WA
295 posts
I see your concern. I drove both passes last summer in early July - no snow, but what a route! I wouldn't do it with snow. I'll ask my daughter, who lives in Switzerland and has relatives with a condo in Oberwald, at the entrance to the Furka Pass. Will post a response when I hear back.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
It's realy quite simple. If the pass isn't safe to drive, it won't be open. But even in the depth of winter, when snow falls frequently and heavily, many of the passes remain open because the road crews quickly plow and salt them. If the amount of snow begins to accumulate faster than the crews can clear it, they don't hesitate to shut off access to the passes.
Posted by
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
Daniel, The "Alpine pass square" over there has 5 major passes (St. Gotthard, Stuten, Furka, Grimsel, Novena) above 2000m altitude. St Gotthard, Novena and Grimsel are usually opened at the end of April. Furka and Stuten take a tad longer. That depends on each season though. If snow is light, they can be all opened at mid-April. If snow season has been heavy, it might take till the end of May. They don't open the road if it isn't safe, and indications about which passes are opened or not are posted on major highways and the Swiss road authority website.
Posted by
OP
Lima, Peru
2 posts
Than you all for your valuable feedback. Best Regards, Daniel
Posted by
Kansas City
454 posts
I also highly recommend driving over the passes if you can. As you drive down south on the Gotthard autobahn from Luzern/Zurich you'll likely start seeing signs regarding the status of the passes. Also www.tcs.ch (the Swiss version of AAA) generally posts pass statuses in early spring. I STILL haven't driven over the Gotthard myself, but the Grimsel and Furka are amazing. Just be prepared, crossing them is slow with many turns and even more spots you're going to want to pull out and take pictures!