Switzerland June 2026

Day 2 Mt Rigi and Klewnalp
Nice breakfast on the terrace then train in and boat to Vitznau for the mountain train to Rigi Kulm (the top) very clear day for views of a bazillion Alp peaks and the lakes (Lucerne and Zug). Hiked to Rigi Kaltbad the slightly indirect route to avoid just following the railway and cable car down to Weggis. Back on the boat to Breckenried and the cable car to Klewenalp. This is a lot more low key but a nice walk and mountain views as well as more lake views and lots of (deafening) cow bells although of course most of them are not actual bells just a can with some sort of clapper in. Back on the boat to Lucerne. We had beer and a nice Charcuterie type offering at some point on the trip back.

Day 3 Lugano
Although there is lots more to do round Lucerne we knew this day would be a likely washout in Lucerne and so it was. So with an unlimited travel pass we just took the train to Lugano where the forecast (and actual) weather was much better. Walked down the steep hill and along the lake to the Monte San Salvatore funicular. Nice views of the lake from the roof of the Church. Next a boat to the quaint village of Gandria right on the Italian border and an early Aperitivo at one of the resturants overlooking the dock. Back on the boat to Lugano and the walk up the steep hill and the train back.

Day 4 Chocolate and Lake Biel
We had hoped to do Stanserhorn but the overcast made this unlikely. We went to one of our rainy day options and the chocolate factory at Root. I can take or leave chocolate but my partner wanted to do it so I was happy to tag along with her. The chocolate model of Lucerne attractions was my favourite. Looking at the Mateo weather app one of the few places in Switzerland where rain was not likely was the somewhat off the beaten path Lake Biel area so again why not head there with our travel passes. Here we had our one failed connection of the trip when the train broke down outside Zurich but it only cost us less than half an hour. At Biel there is a small funicular with decent if not spectacular views from the top and then a low key lake cruise. No first class on the Lake Biel boats but not busy at all and our (my) best boat meal of the week, Some sort of Wurst and a big plate of fries with beer of course. We went as far as La Neuveville - about 90 minutes - the last place to get the train back to Biel. Back to Lucerne with multiple connections and the evening weather had cleared so walked up to the Lion Monument and then caught passing buses to and from the Chateau Gutsch funicular and another drink in the (much busier this time) bar. Our peak travel day with 9 trains, 4 funicular rides a boat and 3 buses. It never felt over rushed though.

Day 5 Lake Brienz
Time to move on to our next hotel at Ringgenberg on Lake Brienz just outside Interlaken. 3 trains to get there some on the Lucerne Interlaken express which although very scenic (Lake Lungern especially) was by a distance the tattiest train we had all week. We only discovered the day before that we were near Interlaken the same time as a 3 day heavy metal festival and the SBB app was advertising the trains as full but they were not too bad. Also we were just far enough away to not actually hear it except when we walked up to the main village. Best hotel of our trip, Hotel Seeburg right on the lake with the ferry terminal basically at the end of the garden but no other buildings nearby. Great lake and mountain views from our room.

Not all the boats stop at Ringgenberg so we got the train and intercepted one at Oberried for the ride to Giessbach falls and the funicular up to the hotel. Did the trail up behind the waterfall and a very nice table overlooking the lake for the inevitable beer and fries. Walked back down to the boat although it is not a very exciting walk and boated to Brienz. This is the end of the trip on the timetable but they let you stay on the boat if your are taking the trip back. This was one of the boats that did stop at Ringgenberg right outside our hotel which was very nice. Much better weather this day. In the evening walked up past the Ringgenburg Ruin (although the church is not ruined) to a brew pub we had previously identified. Other customers were mostly locals. Opening ceremony and first game of the World Cup was on but it was not attracting much attention. Varied our diet with beer and giant pizzas (TBF we did mostly have healthy(ish) salads plus bread and cheese the many days we ate in our room enjoying lake views).

Day 6 Lauterbrunnen and Murren
Trains from Ringgenberg are only once an hour and we were a bit slow (great breakfast) so we walked along the hilly lakeside path about 40 min to Interlaken Ost and the train to Lauterbrunnen. Walked along the valley past the waterfalls to Stechelberg. Although it was not on our original plan decided to visit Trummelbach as we were going past it. I don't know exactly what I expected but you don't expect to take an elevator UP five levels to visit something underground. Then you have to walk up 5 more and down 10 with viewing points at each level. Some of the steps were steep and wet and the falls are not continuous just short bursts in and out of the rocks. It was one thing I would not do again.

Up the gondola to Murren and the nice views. It was a bit overcast but fairly high cloud level. Restaurants were busy and it was a bit cold and although Switzerland is not as bad as Italy for smoking at outside tables coming from California where it is not allowed we don't like it at all so happy to go inside most places. Especially when the view outside is people and traffic. As it happened we lucked out and had a window table with views. Beer and shared racclete.

Next up the incline to Allmendhubel and the North Face trail (kind of). It is not well signposted at that end. By the time we found it and some bits were steeper than I really liked we just turned back (North face was in cloud anyway) and down to Murren which is so steep we would have been better going back up. Then a stroll down to Gimmelwald and the ride down. Very busy as this was the only way up to Murren / Gimmelwald at the moment so it was a dash for the overcrowed bus back to Lauterbrunnen although I think everybody did squeeze on. Trains back just in time to get dinner supplies from the Ringgenburg village store.

Day 7 Zermatt
Missed breakfast for the early train and multiple changes (Interlaken, Spiez, Visp) saw us into Zermatt before 10. Hit the jackpot with a beautiful clear day. Straight up to Gornergrat, got window seats on the right despite not getting the priority boarding. Busy as you might expect but it is not somewhere to go for peaceful contemplation and it was easy enough to get pictures (of the Matterhorn obviously) without other people in them. Just spent an hour or so there as there is not much easy hiking although plenty were attempting more rugged stuff.

Back down to Zermatt and the underground(!) uphill train to Sunnega and individual cable cars up to Blauherd. We didn't have the time or inclination to do all the five lakes but after a false start we did go to the first one Stellisee. Trail was popular rather than busy and great Matterhorn views from a different side. Cable car back to Sunnega and you can ride the Leisee shuttle another self operated funicular down to the lake. An easy walk back up if the line for the cars is too long. No fries at the little bar as it was near closing time but a cheesy potato pizza like local offering was a very acceptable substitute to go with the beer of course. Then back down to Zermatt and retraced our train changes getting back in time for pizza (shared this time) and beer at the Ringgenberg brew pub. Switzerland were playing in the World Cup (in our home town of San Jose) but even that only raised a few restrained cheers when they scored rather than any World Cup fever.

Day8 Wengen, Mannlichen, Grindelwald and a bonus boat ride

3 trains to Wengen and the Gondola to Mannlichen. We didn't go on the roof but plenty did. Walked to the top of the Royal Walk. It is further and steeper than it looks and those of us a bit unsteady on our feet were glad of the ropes to hold onto on the top bit especially on the way down. Anther perfectly clear day so no problem seeing the Eiger, Monch and Jungfraujoch as well as down into the valleys. Then we did the Panorama trail to Kleine Scheidegg probably the nicest hike of the trip. Expensive ride down to Grindlewald for what it was. By this time we were a bit hot and tired so hit the first decent looking eating establishment, inside as usual. We had planned to do Grindelwald First and Bachalpsee next but decided we were not up for another hike so we walked along to Pfinstegg and took the quick ride up for a go on the toboggan which was pretty good although I only went down fairly timidly.
This left time for an additional activity and a couple of trains to Brienz to catch the boat back to Interlaken - our spot of relaxation after a full day of activities.
Back at Interlaken we were going to go up Harder Kulm but the line was very long and it was only open anther hour or so so we never did make it.

Day 9 Lake Thun
We had always planned this quieter sail along day. Weather a mixture of sun and clouds which was ideal. We started with train(s) to Thun and a walk round the castle and the covered bridges where there were a couple of water skiers surfing the escaping lock water. Then the boat as far as Faulansee where we did the pleasant lakeside walk to Spiez to admire the castle. Here we had planned to go back to Thun and then redo the whole lake but that boat was cancelled. Instead we took the following boat on to Interlaken where we again stayed on the boat for the turnaround and the journey along the whole lake back to Thun. Watched the now larger group of early evening water skiers for a while before our train back to Interlaken. We had just missed the hourly train to Ringgenberg so we walked back on the pedestrian walkway across the railway bridge and alongside Lake Brienz.

Day 10 Montreux and Lake Geneva
Time to move to our next hotel the Grand Suisse at Montreux and our third lake view room. We didn't like this as much as the small family run hotels but the view of the lake and the Alps was good and the less than 3 minutes I timed from room to station platform was certainly convenient.
3 change train journey was pretty smooth and as soon as we stored our luggage we made the short journey down the steps to the boat dock. The lake front was a bit of a mess as they were preparing for the Jazz festival even though it was still 2 or 3 weeks away. We took the boat the long way round the end of the lake with a few stops and got off at St Gingolph where we had a short walk over the bridge into the French part and along the lake front. The return journey was straight across the lake to Vevey and then to Montreux.
We had not eaten out much so far but Montreux offered more opportunities and we found a nice place La Table De Montreux, not too busy, not too expensive (if you are used to California prices) and a nice table by the window (rather than eating outside in the busy street which I can never understand).

Day 11 Gruyere and more boating
First part of this route from Montreux is on the Golden Pass Express route. Multiple web sites say booking a seat is recommended but not required. No information on what happens if it is fully booked (Stand ? , Hard luck ?). The train before and after only had a few seats left. The one we went for had nothing bookable. For once the SBB app was of no use for train formation or expected occupancy probably because it is a different train company. So we showed up a bit early and as it happened we had the nicest first class carriage of the vacation all to ourselves.
The cheese factory is right by the station so that was our first stop. They have an audio tour in whatever language you want of cheesemaking and then watching it actually happen as well as a small sample. Next is was a walk up the hill and a look round the castle as well as nice views. I liked the buildings and the setting but I only have so much tolerance for dark rooms with slightly dingy objects in them.

Then we grabbed some lunch at a decent restaurant in the main street (the views from inside were better than those outside).
Back down the hill and a short bus ride and one stop on the train to the chocolate factory at Broc. This was better than the one at Root as they had a slightly cheesy narrated film tour as well as the usual samples and opportunity to watch the factory process. This is the advantage of the Swiss Travel Pass. I don't know we would have paid full price at the 3 places we toured but they are all included so you can just spend as much or little time as you like at each place.

Still only the middle of the afternoon so train (multiple changes) to Vevey and a walk down to the boat dock for the boat into Lausanne. This is a great stretch of the lake alongside the wine terraces and the small villages we were going to visit the next day. Still not done we decided to get the next Geneva bound boat up the lake a bit further. When we got off there were many armed police and we had a (pretty cursory) bag search before we got back on. Possible returnees from the G7 at Evian apparently, which was a bit odd as the Evian ferry was not running on the G7 days. Stayed on as far as St Prex. This was one place we did have to hustle for the train back to Montreux. Trains start alerting you on the SBB app if they are more than 2 minutes late but boats don't have the same strict timekeeping and this was one of a couple we went on that had got 15 minutes behind.

Day 12 Rochers De Naye, Wine walk and the G7.
First train up the hill was nearly empty as was the place when we got there. Which was fine. We just did the slightly tricky walk to the top for the views and did not attempt any other hikes. The plaque showing what you are looking at was nearly worn out but we did figure which was Mt Blanc and where the Eiger etc were. Another mostly cloud free day if a little hazy.
No marmots in the marmot zoo. An hour was enough and even the next train to arrive was not over busy but the one we passed on the way down looked packed and there was a very big crowd waiting on the platform at Montreux for our train to set off back up.

Train to St Saphorin and a walk up the hill and along the service road through the wine terraces just a mile or two but enough to get the idea. Down the steepish hill to Rivaz and wine tasting at the Lavaux Vinorama which has tasting from multiple wineries round the region. Not as authentic as an actual winery perhaps but convenient and pretty decent. Tastings started at 17F for 3x50 ml samples with a couple of breadsticks etc. They did have more substantial food for sale. There was a little theatre with a 20 min film about wine making although we did not stop long enough for the English version to cycle round.

A few minutes walk back along the road to the boat dock and the boat to Lausanne again. Now the G7 had finished so the boats to Evian (France) were running again so we decided to take a quick trip across. Fortunately we had 'snacked' on the previous boat as there was no catering on this one it was just a commuter boat with lines of seats rather than tables. When we got to Evian there were still dozens of police with their special G7 badges looking after stragglers presumably. They were guarding the little funicular up to the conference hotel so we did not try and take it. We went to the (alleged) source of Evian water and filled our bottles and had an ice cream on the lake front (plenty of police guarding the lake front bars!). It seemed like hundreds got off the boat from Lausanne we went back on but we had it almost to ourselves.

Quick metro up the hill from Ouchy and train back to Montreux. We had liked La Table de Montreux so much that we went again. It was just as good and we got the same window table.

Day 13 Geneva for the last day.
First thing we finally walked along the lake front to Chillon for more views of the castle although we had already seen it from the boat. Least hazy day in Montreux so it was nicely set against the Alps. It was not yet open but not really bothered about going in. Courtesy of the SBB app which told us a train was making an unscheduled stop at Chillon we rode the train back. Checked out of our hotel and made the multiple changes to Geneva without incident and eventually found the tram up to the Holiday Inn at the airport. Decent if a bit spartan but less than half the price of the other 3 hotels.

We wanted to make the most of the last day so tram back, a walk up the hill into Geneva old town and the Cathedral then down to the lake front for some touristy pictures with the Jet D'Eau. We took one of the yellow Mouettes for the 5 minute ride across the lake and walked back indirectly towards the station in search of refreshments. Finally found a decent Italian and lingered over our beer and pizza. Caught the train back along the lake to Coppet (nice castle) and a last boat ride back into Geneva.

Tram back to the hotel and a very early walk into the airport to brave the EES exit procedures which turned out not too bad although they would not let us go through more than 90 minutes before our flight even though it was obvious we would be at the non Schengen C gates.

Highlights
Everything really. Apart from the two days in Lucerne we had great weather and the heatwave had not really got started. The mountains are beautiful obviously but we enjoyed watching the scenery go by on the trains and especially the boat rides. Having the unlimited pass let us add in many extra trips as well as doing most of the things on our list and choosing the first class avoided some of the worst overcrowding.

Thank you for all the details about getting around Switzerland and how you were able to use the pass to find the place with the best weather thst day.

Thanks for the trip report. You shared about a few things that I haven’t tried before, giving me some new ideas for day trips. I like the way you chose to pivot regarding the weather and thus enjoyed the freedom of the travel pass.

I have often done the walk from Interlaken - Ringgenberg and really enjoy it. Glad to hear your positive review Hotel Seeburg. In addition to the hourly train, here is also a bus that runs every half hour from Interlaken Ost to Ringgenberg, basically giving three possibilities per hour - 2x bus 1x train (not counting the boat).

This is a great trip report with lots of helpful insight, thank you!

Thank you for sharing! We hope to get to Switzerland soon!