Switzerland Itinerary

Possible itinerary for a Switzerland-only trip to include rail trips and hiking. Buy a Swiss Travel Pass Flex or Swiss Half Fare Card from the official SBB website. And here is a thorough explanation of the Flex. The SBB website has a map showing all the lines on which the discount passes apply.

Long term luggage storage is provided by Bounce in Bern, Geneva, Interlaken, Lausanne and Zurich. Cost is from CHF3.50 to 6.95 per day, also see my Storage page.

Buy and bring back a bottle of Berentzen Apfelkorn (available in most liquor stores) and also a bottle of Mathilde Framboise, if any is still available (no longer listed on Ferrand's website).

CIDER

• MoMö Cider Museum in Arbon
• La Genevoise du Terroir, Marché de Carouge, Place du Marché 1227, Carouge. Take tram #18 (10 min).
• Cave et Domaine les Perrières, Route de Peissy 54, Peissy. Take RL 5 then bus 72 (30min)
• Domaine des Molards, Route des Molards 21, Russin. Take RL5 to Russin (20 min)
• Les Vergers de Féchy. Take RE33 to Féchy as a stop on the way to Lausanne.

For bars and pubs Tom Beers is great. I got to dry one on tap and they sell many but only in 700-750ml bottles. Also try Drinks of the World retail shop.

Day trip from Montreux to Martigny to visit Apothibières bar for cider.
If weather permits take the Golden Pass Line from Montreux to Interlaken (Gelmerbahn Railway, the Brienzer Rothorn Ridge Trail hike)

Go to Lucerne:
Schwyz to Stoos railway is a must do! Take train from Lucerne - 45 minutes.
The "Dragon Ride" cable car or cog railway to Mount Pilatus.
Also check out interesting restaurants on my Lucerne page.

Lucerne > Zürich

See the "Things to see and do in Zürich" and "Food and Drink in Zurich" pages.

Zurich > Appenzell

Appenzell: Try hikes in the Appenzell area especially Mount Schäfler (from Wasserauen station).

Possibly go to Liechtenstein to visit the National Museum and tour some of the small villages - see "Little Europe: Liechtenstein" in the video section. Might be good place to find a Liechtenstein franc. Try elements trading in Vaduz.

Stanserhorn Cable Car (near Lucerne)

While in Interlaken I tried hang gliding with Bumblebee Hang Gliding Interlaken. Cost is CHF260.00. CHF40 for the pictures and videos that they shoot of the adventure.

Home of some of the world's great hiking locations - check out my Swiss walks, Switzerland's 8 Best Day Hikes and More European Hikes on my Fell Walking page. Try hikes in the Appenzell area especially Mount Schäfler. The best ones are in the areas of Zermatt, Interlaken and Appenzell. On hiking in the Bernese Oberland and the area around St. Moritz see the article The 15 most beautiful hikes in Switzerland.

Sites not to be missed (according to a FB video):

Stoos Ridge

Saxer Lücke

Lauterbrunnun
Valley

Grindelwald

Gelmerbahn

Bachalpsee

Aare Gorge

Travel Itinerary Maps

Geneva to Zermatt

Geneva to Lausanne or Vevey by boat

St Moritz to Zurich

Brienz Rothorn Railway

The Brienz Rothorn Railway is a popular mountain route that finishes at a mountaintop restaurant with spectacular views. To get to Brienz from Interlaken, either take the LIX from Interlaken Ost, or the by boat on the BLS Schiff cruiser (where you get a nice tour of the lake plus breakfast or lunch).

 

Mountain Coasters

Besides the Fräkmüntegg toboggan there are seven other mountain coasters in Switzerland.

Rodelbahn Oeschinensee

Moléson Bob-luge

Gurten Rodelbahn

Pfingstegg Toboggan

Alpine Coaster Glacier 3000

Fräkigaudi Toboggan

Feeblitz Rodelbobbahn

Train travel

Switzerland has an extensive rail network. Two of the most scenic rail journeys according to Travelscope host Joseph Rosendo are:
Bernina Express - Chur, Switzerland to Tirano, Italy
St. Moritz to Zermatt Glacier Express (208CHF, 2nd Cl.) or SBB for 78CHF.

Bernina Express map

Glacier Express map

Another scenic railway is the Golden Pass Line that starts in Montreux and ends in Lucerne with side trips to Jungfraujoch and Lenk. Towns along the way are Château d'Oex, Rougemont, Gstaad, Zweisimmen and Interlaken. By regular rail, Montreux can be reached from Geneva, and Lucerne from Zurich. (There is a second website with details on the Golden Pass Line)

Golden Pass - Montreux to Lenk

Golden Pass

Golden Pass route

Golden Pass map

The Rochers-de-Naye Railway starts in Montreux and goes up to a station near the peak of Rochers de Naye mountain, 2,042m (6,699ft).

The Gornergrat Railway goes from the resort town of Zermatt to the Gornergrat Station, the second highest railway station in Switzerland at 3,089m (10,135ft), with a view of 29 peaks above 4,000m (13,123ft) including the Matterhorn (4,478m or 14,692ft).

Gornergrat railway w. view of the Matterhorn

The highest railway station in Switzerland is the Jungfrau station at 3,454m (11,332ft).

Lucerne

ACTIVITIES

Near Lucerne is the famous Schwyz-Stoos railway with the rotating cars (see my page). Take the IC to Arth-Gildau  then the S2 to Schwyz.

FOOD

There are very unusual eating locations near Lucerne. There is a 3-course meal served aboard a cable car going from Weggis to Rigi Kaltbad. But this is only available as a group booking. The Rigi Tavolata takes place on the edge of a cliff overlooking Lake Lucerne and is held only once a year in August. Tickets are sold by lottery and auction in January.

Weggis to Rigi Kaltbad

Rig Tavolata

Try the Old Swiss House for the best true veal schnitzel, their most popular dish. Located at Löwenplatz 4, Lucerne. Tues-Sat 11:30-14:30 & 18:00-23:30. See the menu here. See video of Schnitzel preparation here.

Accommodations

A good article on places to stay outside of the large towns and cities: 11 Places to Stay in Switzerland for Epic Views of Alpine Peaks and Glittering Lakes.

An interesting mountain guest house is Berggasthaus Aescher.

Berggasthaus Aescher

In Zurich, the St. Gotthard Hotel is a good 4-star hotel only a block from the Hauptbahnhof. It looks very old from the outside but rooms are modern.

Stoos Railway & Fräkmüntegg

Stoos Railway

The steepest railway in the world is the spectacular and innovative Stoos Railway that runs from Schwyz to the mountain village of Stoos. The passenger cabins rotate as the grade increases so that they are always level. At its steepest, the grade is 110% which is an angle of over 45°! It is about a one hour drive from Lucerne, or one and a half hours by train.

Fräkmüntegg toboggan run

Located in Hergiswil, Switzerland, the Fräkmüntegg is one of the longest artificial toboggan runs at 1.35km. It is about a 25 minute drive from Lucerne, or 57 minutes by train. Opne from mid-April to October 22, 10:00-17:30. Here is a video of the run.

Click to view video

Gelmerbahn Funicular Railway

A hair-raising ride over what is really a slow-moving roller coaster, the Gelmerbahn rides through the Swiss wilderness with at one point a 106° plummet. You can either buy a one-way ticket — opting to hike one from the end of the run back down to Handegg — or roundtrip, riding in the cable car back. Cost id CHF18 for one-way and CHF36 for the round trip. It is located near the town of Handeggfallbrücke, about a 53 minute drive from Interlaken. Open from May 26th to October 21st.