Switzerland Itinerary - Another Try!

On day 4 - I wouldn't bother trying to make it from Lauterbrunnen to Bern for an afternoon. I liked Bern, more than most I've seen here, but not enough to say you should spend that much time on a train for an afternoon there, especially over getting that afternoon in the Oberland. Weather permitting, the walk along the river in the valley is very easy and lovely.

Also, if you are already planning on taking the ferry between Lausanne and Montreux (which I do recommend), I don't think the boat on Lake Thun is also a must-do, if you want to maximize your time.

One of my favorite stops in Switzerland was visiting Murten, which Rick talks about in his book. If you are going to Fribourg, it's an easy train ride to Murten from there. It was an easy walk along the ramparts, with great views for pictures, plus several fantastic little bakeries where you can sit and sample the local pastry specialty (also mentioned in the RS book). That was a great afternoon.

At Chillon, definitely take Rick's advice about skipping the last set of stairs. As he says in the book, it is not worth the climb. :)

Kimberly, Thanks for your reply. It is good to hear from those who have "gone before."

I'm with Kimberly on day 4. Too much to do Lauterbrunnen and Bern and back in one day.I suggest 2 days spent on either side of the Lautebrunnen Valley, then on to Bern. We went to Ballenburg for an afternoon- it's a big place but pleasant, lots of walking.A favorite Suisse moment from my vacation was waiting for the postal bus at Ballenburg in late afternoon, just listening to the cow bells and gazing at the green green hillside- was lovely.We only went to Schilthorn side of mountains and I wish I had allowed another day to do the other side after gazing across the valley at it.
The more I travel, the more I try to slow it down. Have fun !

It seems like you are going to spend a lot of time in transit from place to place. I would cut it down and spend more time enjoying the scenery. Gimmelwald is my favorite place in Switzerland and you might want to consider staying there for a couple of nights.

A couple other things I wanted to mention - I think you said in one post that weren't able to do particularly long walks. If the weather is good, I would highly recommend taking the train up from Lauterbrunnen to Wengen and then the gondola up to the Mannlichen - Kleine Scheidegg path. The views up on that side are spectacular. The full hike might be too much, but I think it would be wonderful to pack a couple of sandwiches and drinks, take a leisurely stroll part of the way and pick a good spot to picnic. Hang out, enjoy the scenery and take the gondola and train back down. It is a nice, wide, flat path the whole way so it makes for a nice Alpine walk without being too strenuous.

Also, just tell yourself now that it will be perfectly okay to adjust your plans when you are there. I had my itinerary so packed before I went, and about the 4th day in I decided I didn't want to set an alarm and be rushed. Slept in, took the train from Bern to Fribourg, strolled a bit, train to Murren, walked the ramparts, ate pastry and drank champagne and train back to Bern. I could have fit two more towns in that day, but it was delightful the way it ended up.

Thanks to all of you for your feedback. I would love to be very flexible but feel I need to make hotel reservations before I'm there to save time doing it there, and (I hope) to book at some of the places Rick Steves recommends, which I imagine book up in advance. (A friend went to Geneva with his wife and two kids last summer and didn't book ahead- ended up spending $800/night for two rooms!) Hence the need for an itinerary. I'm sure we will end up varying what we do on a given day once we are there.