Paris to Switzerland and maybe Itlay

Hi Jeffery. I would suggest you start by getting 'Rick Steves books from bookstore or library to give you some ideas. Also, suggest booking your return flight from where you end (e.g. Venice) rather than going back to Paris just to fly home.

For the Golden Pass, you have a 4.5hr. train ride from Paris to Montreux to pick up the scenic train. A typical run will be from Paris-Gare de Lyon to Lausanne on the TGV and then a short ride to Montreux on the Inter-Regional train. One idea for the place to stay is Lauterbrunnen. Take the Golden Pass to Interlaken Ost and then take the local Jungfraubahn train into Lauterbrunnen. It's an extra 30 minutes in and 30 minutes back out in the morning. You'll see more of the Alps from Lauterbrunnen than Interlaken. Then, it's on to Venice. This journey will take 7.0-8.0hrs and require 3-4 train changes depending on the run. Thus, from Paris to Venice via the Golden Pass and Lauterbrunnen, you are looking at about 16.0hrs on a variety of trains.

The Golden Pass is very nice but in my opinion the most dramatic scene is the descent into Montreux rather than the reverse. How about first staying a few days in the Interlaken area (such as Lauterbrunnen) and then maybe 2 days on Lake Geneva with a visit to Chateau Chillon and the lake boat for amazing views between Montreux and Lausanne and you can go one way by rail. You might check out tiny Villeneuve or Vevey for accommodations, as Montreux is big and busy. As for the Interlaken area, we like Spiez on Lake Thun with easy rail to Lauterbrunnen/Murren/Schilthorn and very scenic lake boat. En route to Venice you might consider the Centovalli journey between Brig and Locarno -- very unusual. Definitely check out Rick's guidebooks! You are in for a magic journey........

If you purchase the TGV tix online several weeks before your travel date you can get some really god fares. We just rode the TGV from Geneva to Paris for 27 Chf ~ about 27 US Dollars. That's a great deal.