Free Time Planning?

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/lucerne-62eb4d28-60ab-4837-b4b4-91a2486eb732

We did this tour pre- COVID at the same time as yours and you're in for a real treat. I realize some of the stops have been changed.

Above is my Trip Report from a subsequent trip, but you may find some useful info for free time activities, especially in lucerne. What day is the week are you coming in? The Saturday Farmers market is great. Note that the Swiss cities are quite warm in Sept., so you will need summer clothes and mountain layers.
You may benefit from the Swiss travel Pass or Half- fare card. There are dozens of threads here under the Swiss section explaining these . A sale starts April 15.
Also, there are threads here from others taking this tour asking your same questions.
Mountain weather is fickle, so if you have a beautiful day for Rigi or Pilatus , just do it, as weather in Murren could be cloudy and rainy.
Enjoy!

I have taken seven RS tours, including Best of Switzerland (which was fabulous). Although I read the guidebook to become familiar with the areas we will be visiting, I don’t plan ahead for the scheduled free time (unless there is something that needs to be booked ahead - I don’t think there’s anything like that on the Switzerland tour.).

I find it best to wait and decide what I want to do based on my mood and energy level, whether others in the group are doing something that sounds appealing, whether I want company or not, what the weather is like, etc., etc. The guides always go over many of the options available and are more than helpful in answering questions, giving directions, etc. Sometimes they announce that they will be doing a particular activity and invite anyone in the group to join them. I often take them up on this offer because the guides have all been so engaging and fun, I don’t want to miss out!

"unless there is something that needs to be booked ahead - I don’t think there’s anything like that on the Switzerland tour."

I think this is the key....it depends on the tour. For Switzerland it's not like you need to book timed entries for big museums. For my Italy tour last Fall I did book several things ahead of time in Venice and Rome but that will not be the case for Switzerland. I have NOT done this tour but I'd look a little at what hikes are available and then wait and see what you are in the mood for and what the weather is doing!

Thank you all for your advice. I think I will just make plans for Lucerne and wait to see about the other days. Maybe do a little research so I'm not totally clueless. It will be nice not to have to make reservations everywhere. We are arriving on a Saturday so I will be sure to look into the Farmers' market! I was wondering if I should buy a half-fair card so I will look into that on April 15th. Pat, thank you for sharing your report. I am very good navigating the regular Travel Forum on Rick Steves' site but am still getting to know how to use the Tour Travel Forum. Again ... I'm very grateful for your help!

We did this tour a few years ago and it has slightly changed since then but I'd still advise some planning ahead. No need to put everything in stone but look at various options for the free days and see if any require more planning. The guide will give a 10-15 minute overview but that isn't going to be enough detail for some things you may want to do. If you want to take a longer hike in the Lauterbrunnen area, for example, it's worth planning it out in advance. Same with figuring out how you might want to spend free time in Bern since there are plenty of options.

Hi Joy, since you do like researching your past trips, I would treat this upcoming RS tour as another trip. Just figure that you have a half day or full day of activities to research, along with any restaurants, etc. that interest you.

Then, when you’re in the bus heading to the next location, your guide might mention some options for your free time. You can weigh those ideas against the ones you thought sounded fun and make your decisions when you’re there. That’s much better than not having any ideas and doing something just because it was mentioned last-minute.

My roommate during one of the tours (I didn’t know her previously) had all of her days of free time already planned. Each day as we finished being together as a group, she had her plan and was off, having a wonderful time!

That's one reason they send you the guidebook ahead of the trip, and want you to bring it with you - so you can figure out what you are interested in doing in free time. Its good to have some things in mind, but to be flexible and open in case other folks in the group have good ideas, or you decide you just want to relax or get some shopping or laundry done. My observation has been that when the group is breaking up for free time, the guide gets overwhelmed by people coming up to her asking to be told what to do, but who haven't done any planning ahead of time.

Thanks to everyone for your advice! I am going to do research on our stops in Switzerland where there is free time but leave myself open to changes and not make reservations. I missed doing research anyway but being my first organized tour, I wasn’t sure whether it would be necessary!