I am going to be in Les Diablerets Switzerland in early June for a conference. I was going have my wife fly over after the conference and do a vacation, but I'm not sure where I want to go. We've talked about going to Germany and Switzerland in the past, but it looks like we're relatively close to Paris and southern France and could even get to Italy relatively easily.
We have 7 days to travel and would prefer to stay in 1 or 2 countries.
Any thoughts? Thanks!
With quick flights, high-speed rail, and night trains the choices are endless. I say stay in Switzerland. Checkout the Berner Oberland region of the Alps: Interlaken, Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, Muren, Gimmelwald, Grindelwald. Rick's Switzerland guidebook has all the details.
I would add that both of us love doing long day hikes and would love hiking in the Alps!
If you're into day hikes the BO is for you. The area is kind of like a "Disneyland" for day hikes...and I don't mean that in a bad way.
If you could only visit one destination in Europe it should be the Bernese Oberland. Wengen & Murren are 2 fantastic villages to call home during your stay there.
Joe, you will be very close to Montreux, so i would make a stop to visit the Château de Chillon and Montreux, a one night stop to visit Bern and the rest of the week a would definitely spend in the Bernese Oberland, it is beautiful!
Hi Joe,
Switzerland is the perfect place for hiking. I'd also consider using the city of Pontresina in southern Switzerland as a base--there are many trails that leave from the city and you can also take a chairlift up to higher altitudes for additional trails.
From there, you can take the train into northern Italy for a daytrip or an overnight stay.
Based on everyone's suggestions, it seems like we could easily do a whole week in Switzerland and not have to add on another country like Germany or Italy.
Staying in Switzerland would keep things simple and you wouldn't spend valuable vacation time traveling to a farther-away destination.
On other hand, I always love Paris and if you haven't been, it would be worth the time!!!
Switzerland is also one of the few countries in Europe where a rail pass is worth your while. The Swiss Pass will cover all inter-city trains, buses, boats, and cable cars. It also get you free admission to most museums. For tourist trains (Jungfrau), and high-mountain cable cars (Schiltorn), you get steep discounts. Click the "railpasses" tab at the top of this page for all the details.
I lived in Switzerland for some time and I would highly recommend staying in the BO region - as a matter of fact, thats where I always stay when I'm there. From that area, you can hop a train and within roughly an hour you can be in Bern, Luzern or even down in Brig. The hiking/scenery there is absolutly amazing. One bit of advice, Swiss cities (unlike most European cities) are fairly unremarkable. Switzerland's true charm is the land and the small villages. If you truly want to see the country, buy a SwissPass and ride some trains. Some of the best routes are Zermatt-Chur, Chur-St Moritz, St. Moritz - Poschiavo, anywhere in the BO, Luzern-Interlaken, Spiez - Brig or Luzern/Zurich-Lugano.
Another vote to stay in Switzerland -- you can easily fill a wonderful week.
If you'd like to 'get a taste' accross the border -- you could easily side-trip into France from Montreux, or could hit Freiburg Germany from Interlaken or Lucerne -- but I think you'd do well to spend your time right where you start.
If you like hiking, and scenery, pick at least one scenic rail journey on your trip. This web site summarizes several options pretty well. Research on that site, but don't necessary buy tickets through them.
I'll add my vote for staying in Switzerland. As Martine suggested, the Chateau de Chillon in Montreau is definitely worth a visit. While in Montreau you could take the cog train up to Rochere du Noye (my spelling may be incorrect) for fantastic views over Lake Geneva and the Alps and for hiking trails. If you like hiking, by all means go to the Berner Oberland for some of the best hiking in all of Switzerland. As for villages to stay in there, I'm partial to Gimmelwald and Murren. Marcus said Swiss cities are unremarkable which they are compared with Italian cities. But they do have a charm you will not find elsewhere; Luzern and Bern are my favorites. I'm almost hesitant to suggest this, but another possibility would be to go to Chamonix, France, which would not be to far. You will also find excellent hiking there. With most other replies, I'd say, stay in Switzerland. Enjoy the cheese and the chocolate!
