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.

Geneva

I stayed at Hotel Le Square located about a 5 minute walk from the central train station. Don’t buy a day pass for public transport - your hotel will give you a complimentary one that is good for the extent of your stay. Buy only a single trip ticket if you initially need one to get to your hotel.

Montreux

I stayed at the beautiful old Golf Hotel René Capt, 35 Rue de Bon-Port. Take the 201 bus from the train station to the Bon-Port stop. Enjoying a drink or meal while sitting on the spacious patio with a view of the mountains is not to be missed. (The snow-capped mountains in the distance are Les Coronettes de Bais, elevation 7,980ft.)

Day trip from Montreux to Martigny to visit Apothibières bar for cider. Did not do that - next time.

I took the Golden Pass Line from Montreux to Interlaken.

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).

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.

Interlaken

Interlaken a a popular spot for hang gliding and paragliding. Paragliding Interlaken is one of the larger operations. I used Bumblebee, a small three person company. They were excellent. They pick up next to the Interlaken West train station.

A nice tour of Lake Brienz is available on the paddle steamer Lotschberg which boards from both Interlaken and Brienz, and at numerous smaller towns along the way. You can book the tour with breakfast on the 9:02 sailing from Interlaken (order the “Captain’s Breakfast” for a hearty meal), as well as lunch and dinner at other times. There also tours of Lake Thun.

There are some nice accommodations that I saw during the cruise at some of the small towns that the tour boat stops at. Look at Hotel Oberländerhof in Bönigen (CHF145), Hotel Seeburg (adults only) in Ringgenberg (CHF300-450), and Strand Hotel in Iseltwald (CHF250-350). The Brienz cruise website recommends Grandhotel Giessbach next to Giessbach Falls. Cost is CHF434.75 per night (summer price).

Loetschberg

A popular steam railway runs from Brienz to the summit of Brienz Rothorn. Brienz is located on the opposite end of Lake Brienz from Interlaken, a 20 minute drive away. UK travel site Wanderlust has a good overview of sites in the area.

Brienz Rothorn railway

The railway terminus at the summit is close to the Mountain Hotel Rothorn Kulm located at 2,266m (7,434ft). You can just eat at the restaurant or stay overnight and enjoy the spectacular view — of 693 surrounding Alpine peaks! (Double room for single use - CHF135/night)

Berghaus restaurant and lodge

Interlaken - Brienz Rothorn map

High above Interlaken is the Harder Kulm Restauarant which provides spectacular views of both Lake Thun and Lake Brienz.

Harder Kulm Restaurant

Site many famous scenes in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, the famous Schilthorn Mountain provides a fantastic view of the surrounding Alps (including the Eiger and Jungfrau) and a chance to have a delicious meal at the Piz Gloria revolving restaurant (once every 45 minutes). At almost 10,000 feet, it is a must do. The Trip begins in Lauterbrunnen, a 20 minute train ride from Interlaken. From there take the frequently available 141 bus to Stechelberg. You then take 3 different cable car rides: the first ends at the small village of Mürren, and the next ends at Brig, and the last goes to the top of Schilthorn. It is recommended to buy tickets in advance, though I purchased mine online while riding the bus to Stechelberg. There are abundant hiking trails, so can hike down from Schilthorn, Brig or Mürren.