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Favorite area in Switzerland?

Posted by (Toms River, NJ, USA) on

i have the beginning and end of my europe trip planned and i am still going back and forth on what to do with the two nights in the middle. we will be in italy for 7 nights at the beginning and then end the trip with three nights in paris. my original plan was to take the train from venice to lucerne and spend two nights there to explore a little and maybe get a car for a day to drive up towards basel or staufen, germany area but i really don't know what to do!

can anyone recommend a good plan for a train ride into somewhere in switzerland from venice (mountain/lake area - not city) that we can just explore at our own leisure and then what is our best way to head up to the basel/black forest area for a 1/2 day or so? is a car going to be ridiculous and expensive for one day or is there easy access to a train route to explore these areas? any help would be great!

Posted by
16401 posts

I think if you have just 2 nights for this stop it doesn't make sense to try to visit the Black Forest as a side trip as well. Luzern alone offers lots to do and see in the one full day you will have, assuming you spend 2 nights there.

The train from Venice to Luzern takes a minimum of 6 1/2 hours and requires several changes. You won't arrive until mid-afternoon. Spend the rest of that day exploring Luzern. The following day take one of the lake excursions, possibly combined with a ride by train and cablecar up to the top of Rigi or Pilatus---both mountains right on the lake there. Both offer spectacular views, and Rigi has some nice walks and hikes.

The train to Paris from Luzern can be as fast as 4 hours 40 minutes, with one change in Basel. Other routes take a bit longer, with more changes.

Posted by
12040 posts

One question- what time of year are you visiting?

Posted by
32 posts

we are traveling the first two weeks of september!

Posted by
1633 posts

If you want more of a mountain/lake area--not a city--I would go to the Berner Oberland area of Switzerland (the Swiss alps). Specifically, the town of either Gimmelwald or Muerren. The train trip from Venezia to Muerren is 7 1/2 hrs. Check out Muerren's website: www.muerren.ch You'll enjoy a small town in the alps with breathtaking scenery. There's also lots of hiking trails. If you still want to go to Staufen, I would take the train. Staufen is o.k.--Muerren is awesome. Have fun on your trip!

Posted by
213 posts

Nicole, I agree with Lola's suggestion about sticking to Lucerne and dropping the Black Forest. Although, like Denise, I love the Berner Oberland area, I don't think you'd have time to do it justice. Perhaps you could drop Lucerne entirely and go directly to Interlaken from Venice. Then you'd have a day in Berner Oberland. If you do that, stay in Lauterbrunnen or Murren. However, I think I'd still suggest going with Lucerne. There's lots to see in and around Lucerne, and a day trip up Mt. Pilatus gets you into mountains. You could also explore along the lake. And to be quite honest, it does not make sense to do a day trip to Basel from Lucerne--too much time in travel.

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