Oh, Where oh Where to GO? Flying into Zurich..

Our knowledge of European geography is challenged.

Get a map.

To maximize your sightseeing time, minimize your travel times. See things close to Zürich. You didn't say what time of years. That matters.

First of all, I would say see the Berner Oberland. It's fairly close. Another area would be around the Bodensee (Lake Konstanz - Schaffhausen, Meersburg, Konstanz, Mainau, Friedrichshafen, Lindau). If you want to go a little farther, see the area around Munich - Rothenburg and Ludwig's castles in Füssen.

There's plenty to see within a short distance of Zürich.

Don't recall saying we didn't have maps.. We've got maps of the entire continent, in triplicate, I think. But, thanks for the thoughtful reply.

We're going May 29 to June 9.

Best Wishes.

hi greg, there are lots to do around zurich, and you are going at a great time, less tourists and good weather.rothenburg, munich and the bavarian lakes are close, also salzburg and vienna are not to far, but really the berner oberland is a few hours away by train (i am going next week) and everyone says it is very beautiful, you could also add a few days in lucerne, and that would make a great trip. you have lot of options!

Hi Greg,

With 10 days I'd concentrate on seeing Switzerland. A an example, our trip to Switzerland went like this:

Flew to Zurich and rented a car. First day we visited Appenzell and stayed in Triesenberg, Liechtenstein. We then drove to and spent 2 nights in a village called Bivio, just outside of St. Moritz. Dropped the car in St. Moritz, we had an 8 day Swiss Pass and from St. Moritz we went to Zermatt for 2 nights, Wengen (BO) 4 nights and Luzern or 2 nights (including our last night before flying home from Zurich).

Of course, this is much less "ambitious" than what you are thinking of, but we never felt rushed (or that we were trying to see too much) and really enjoyed our trip. Everyone's travel "style" is different. This just happens to be ours.

Hope this helps.

Paul

You havent said whether you will drive or train. It will make a difference when you allot time for each day.

The advice to get a map is vital. Never plan a trip without looking at the area and deciding how far apart each city is. Then create an itinerary showing what you plan to do each day. Allot time for each activity so you will know how much you will get done.

Go to google.com and search for 'Zurich sights', 'Vienna sights' and all the other towns you mention. In that way you will know what is important to see in each one.

Budgeting your time is critical. And remember to keep your plan flexible so you can change it as necessary. If you are typical you will find you will run out of time to do all you plan.

Be prepared mentally to change your plans. Also allow a little time for finding your way when you get lost, which all of us do.

Thanks so much for the replies. We will be using the trains as much as possible. We did that in Italy and found that worked out well.

The only times we didn't use the trains in Italy were:
* when there wasn't train service available
* when we wanted to take a bus or boat ferry
* when renting a car was the best option (ex: daytripping around Tuscany and Umbria)

We flew into Zurich last summer. Stayed at the Ibis hotel and took the train to Lauterbrunnen the next morning. The section from Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen is on a small local train. We love this train and get a 6 day pass. That way we can visit lots of small villages and change what we do. I have been there 4 times and still haven't seen everything. I even camped two different years. We have been to several other areas, but this suits our wants and needs. My husband is a hiker and I am a walker, so we find a place to meet after training to the top. Next time we will rent a car for one day in Zurich and turn it in at Interlaken. Last year when we left Lauterbrunnen we rented the car in Interlaken the night before we left and got to load it right out of the hotel. We drove to Rutte from ther and then on to the Romantic Road in Germany. We have stayed in Castle Harburg twice. It is real!
Mary Joe

Those destinations are indeed pretty far from Zurich.

I flew in and out of Zurich on my recent trip to the Black Forest. You could easily head to the aforementioned Bernese Oberland (Lauterbrunnen, etc.) for a few days then head to Freiburg or Baden-Baden and spend a few days exploring the BF villages. Train travel within the BF region is free (if you stay in certain towns) with the Konus Karte, a guest pass you receive from hosts.

www.blackforest-tourism.com/index.php/content/view/full/20514

(click "more" for list of towns.)

If you just want to see Zurich itself and not surrounding Swiss areas then you could probably do well with just a day or two. I love Zurich as some have seen from my other posts, but it is a fairly compact city. Maybe take out Hamburg and substitute Munich or another area in Southern Germany that would be much closer? Happy travels!!

Thanks for the replies, everybody. We're working on our itinerary. We're looking at Prague as the furthest we'd like to reach out.

We realize that isn't anywhere close to Zurich, but we're working on a plan to step our way out to Prague and then return to Zurich, seeing as much as we can. We don't want to be traveling every day, so we're thinking 3 cities/towns, maybe 4 on the outside is the best strategy.

How do you all like this idea? Zurich, .... (pick one, or two), Prague, Munich, back to Zurich.

Thanks again for the replies.

Honestly, Prague may be stretching it...per Mappy it's nearly 8 hours by car (which isn't bad but will be too difficult to do in a 10 day trip...). It's also 115€ worth of gas, plus whatever it costs to get a rental car....perhaps it could work with a night train though? I don't know if that's an option you'd consider? You could rent a car and make your way over there (ie, stop in Germany or Austria on your way)? I don't know, it'll be hard if your trip is 10 days...

Hi Erica,
We'll definitely be traveling by train. We were thinking if we broke up the trip to Prague with stops along the way there or back, it wouldn't feel like such a trek to get there.

Thanks!

The route sounds good to me. I'm certain you will love all of those cities - all pretty different from each other! I know some say that it is a lot to cover in 10 days, but we normally travel at a fairly fast pace and I would certainly do this trip. To each his own - you know your own pace and how you like to travel. Have a great trip!

Hi Erica and Lauren,
Thanks again for your responses. We're boiling the trip down into legs, and also focusing on just a few cities - Salzburg, Vienna, Prague, now that we've somewhat improved our knowledge of the geography.

So.. we've decided to go directly to Salzburg upon arrival in Zurich. It's only a few more hours by train. What's a few more hours, when you've just done double digits, right?

We're looking at a 2-2-3 schedule. 2 days Salzburg, 2 days Vienna, 3 days Prague.

Appreciate the thoughtful replies.

Hi Greg,

If you are trying to maximize your time then I am definitely with you on traveling straight to Salzburg. Usually for us, we are so tired even if we did sleep on the plane that we only can do very little the first day. You might as well spend it on the train where you can sleep! I'm certain that leaving from Zurich that your train will be right on time (so make sure you have plenty of time built in to get to your train). I have not been to Salzburg but am under the assumption (correct or not) that it is probably the smallest and quietest of the cities. So it sounds nice to start out your trip in a relaxing city and work your way towards Prague that is probably has the most differences from the US. Sounds like a great trip and sure it will be memorable. I can't wait to hear your trip repot.