Switzerland Summer 2024

[jwright]

I'm mostly just daydreaming but after seeing that Taylor Swift is playing in Zurich next July, I started thinking about a summer trip there.  I really want to do the Mount Pilatus Golden Round Trip near Lucerne, but that's they only other thing on my list.

If you have been to Switzerland, how long were you there and what cities did you visit?  Is it easy to pair with another country (assuming Austria/Germany or North Italy)?  Any favorites you can share?

Thanks in advance!

[tvlmm]

We went in April of 2022 and had an amazing time. If you PM me your email, I'll send you my very through trip report.

[dutchgirl678]

We went to Switzerland as part of a longer trip to southern Germany and Austria.

We stayed in Lauterbrunnen and went hiking a lot near Mürren and Grindelwald. We also took the train up to the Jungfraujoch. It was an amazing trip. We also went to Zurich to visit friends.

[erbear]

We were there summer 2021 (and quite a bit before that…maybe 2000?). We did Murren, interkaken, zurich, Lucerne — then Vienna, Salzburg, Budapest and Munich. It was awesome. Highly recommend all but zurich (which I didn’t love)

[gardengal]

I really like Gruyeres. Both cheese & chocolate factories & a castle! Totally winning.

[krystee]

I was in Geneva for work and loved my day trips to Montreaux and Annecy, France!

[Whitecaps]

We did a spur-of-the-moment long weekend to Lucerne this past February. It was incredible! We only had three days on the ground (flew in/out of Zurich) so we spent one day in the town of Lucerne, one day doing the Mt. Titlis summit and one day doing the Mt. Pilatus summit. We kept Lucerne as our home base the whole time.

In Lucerne, we took ourselves on a self-guided walking tour we found online, hit the main tourist highlights like the bridge, browsed shops, ate fondue and had fun people-watching. It was the start of their version of Carnivale/Fat Tuesday (the time just before Lent) so we encountered a parade, marching bands, public artwork and lots of parties in hotels throughout town that we just dropped in on and watched the different celebrations. We honestly did not expect the Swiss to have something like Mardi Gras so that was very fun to discover.

Mt. Pilatus was beautiful and a great introduction to the Alps in winter. We took a public bus to the town where the gondolas depart from and it was an easy journey. Elevation is about 7,000 feet and there is a hotel, restaurant, shop and small cafe at the top. The main visitor areas are paved and shoveled, but there are also two other short hikes (one is at the same elevation through some caves along the side of the mountain and one going up to a higher vantage point) where you would want boots or something grippy in the winter. After dinner back in Lucerne we attended an organ concert in a cathedral.

I was worried Mt. Titlis might be too similar but it absolutely was not. This was the heart of ski season in Switzerland and Titlis is a huge destination for skiers so the vibe was much different. We took a train to get to the base of the mountain, which took about an hour I think, and the views along the way were absolutely gorgeous. The train was also packed with vacationing Swiss skiers, so that was fun. Elevation of Mt. Titlis is about 10,000 feet and the first gondolas take you almost straight up, then there’s a middle area with shops and restaurants, plus some tamer ski hills, before you get on a big rotating orb to go the rest of the way. At the top it was definitely the place to go for skiers, so most of the summit was not paved, so wear boots. There were lots of other fun things to do for observers like us. We went on a long, swinging suspension bridge around one side of the mountain, climbed up to an overlook spot above the bridge and also took a special chairlift down/up to get a better view of the ski runs and watch the skiers. There is also a cafe and several shops, including a Lindt shop.

I honestly loved it all because we really like just immersing ourselves in a place and learning more about local culture instead of knocking things off of a must-see/do list. We met some lovely people and feel like we got a taste of winter in the Alps. I will note that Switzerland is quite expensive compared to other nearby countries, so don’t be afraid to go in the off season like we did. We were also impressed but not surprised by the ease and efficiency of Swiss trains and public transit, so I’m sure you’d have no problem whatsoever taking day trips or moving on to a second or third location.

[erbear]

Turns out I already answered this, lol

[midwestmama]

We recently went to Europe, mainly to Germany, with one day in Salzburg, Austria and a couple days in Strasbourg, France. I would say if you can carve out a day or two for Strasbourg, it is a beautiful place to visit. We also loved Salzburg, so if you can get there, I would recommend that as well.

[mrspez07]

I’ve been to Switzerland 2x, one with kids. My DH’s family is from the Ticino area, so that’s where our focus always is. We’ve had it as part of bigger trips.
First trip in my 20’s was London, Paris, Bellinzona and then Milan. Trains on all parts except the Bellinzona area where we did have a car until Milan. We didn’t venture too far beyond each place, staying local and hitting up all the tourist stuff in the big cities. Smaller towns in/around Bellinzona.

2nd trip was in 2019 with 2 kids and husband. We did Zurich, Lake Constance area of Germany, a day trip into Austria and then drove south to Lake Maggiore and home based out of there for the region, then took the train down to the coast of Italy for a few days, then the train back to Zurich home. We had a car until we headed to the Italian coast.