-
Hotel Victoria-Lauberhorn, Wengen Stayed here for four nights in September 2018
Pros:
1) The hotel is bang next to the train station - take the immediate left road from the station to get here.
2) The rooms, bathrooms, lobby, restaurant - everything is spotlessly clean.
3) The breakfast spread is quite extensive and is quite tasty. There are lots of vegetarian options.
4) Breakfast starts early - well before the scheduled 7 am start time on most days.
5) The staff, especially the front desk, is very courteous and helps with all your travel needs. The staff spoke excellent English.
6) There is free wifi and it is quite good.
7) Tariff is high per Indian standards, but is quite reasonable among the other options in Wengen.
8) Check-in and check-out was quite quick.
9) The place is very quiet at nights.
Cons:
1) The room and the bathroom were small.
2)The bed was bit too soft for our liking.
- Jagerhof Hotel, Zermatt Stayed here for two nights in September 2018.
Pros:
1) The rooms, bathrooms, lobby, restaurant - everything is clean.
2) The room and bathroom are quite big and spacious.
3) The breakfast spread is decent in spread and taste. There are enough vegetarian options as well.
4) Breakfast starts early - well before the scheduled 7 am start time on most days.
5) The front desk was very courteous and helped us with all our travel needs. The staff spoke excellent English. We needed an early drop off at the station and they gladly accommodated our request.
6) There is free wifi and it is quite good.
7) Tariff is high per Indian standards, but is quite reasonable among the other options in Zermatt.
8) Check-in and check-out was quite quick.
9) The place is very quiet at nights and the bed was quite comfortable.
Cons:
1) The place is far from the station - it is a good 15 minute walk. The hotel does provide free pickup and drop-off. You need to call early to arrange for the pick-up.
2) The hotel dinner menu is very limited - it is just a set menu with 3 choices. But there are plenty of restaurants within 5 min walk from the hotel.
- Hotel Le Stelle, Lucerne Stayed here for two nights in September 2018. Note that all rooms are different in this hotel (and have different price). Depending on which room you book, you get varying reviews.
Pros:
1) The hotel is bang in the middle of the historic old town and in one of its important squares. It is not often you open your hotel window and see tourists cameras pointed at you. The buildings all around you have fantastic murals and all you have to do is to peep out of your window to view them.
2) The rooms and bathrooms are quite clean.
3) There is free and excellent wifi.
4) The place is quiet at nights despite being in the city centre.
5) Tariff is high per Indian standards, but is par for the location.
Cons:
1) The hotel does not have a lobby. You have to walk down about 100-150 metres to Krone Hotel for check-in/check-out and incidentals, which is a bit of a pain.
2) The breakfast is typically not included in the hotel charge.
3) Room and bathroom were small, but that is par for the location.
4) The hotel does not have a lift and the staircase is narrow. So travel light if you are staying here.
- Hotel Hirschen & Weinschenke, ZurichStayed here for one night in September 2018. We checked out early and did not get a chance to try their breakfast.
Pros:
1) The hotel is in the historic old town within 2 minutes walk from the Grossmunster and 5-7 min walk from the train station. You can get to all tourist spots on foot.
2) The font desk was courteous, helpful and spoke excellent English.
3) The place is very clean.
4) The tariff was ok considering the location.
Cons:
1) The wifi did not work for us in the 8th floor.
2) The square was a bit noisy at night - but it was a Friday night. The bed was comfortable.
3) The room and bathroom were quite small.
- We took the 8 day Full Swiss Travel Pass. Cost us close to CHF 400 per head. But it was worth it. All normal intercity train travels were free for the 8 days. All cruises were free. All museum entries free. All city buses free. All cable cars, trolleys, trams, train to Jungfraujoch were at 50% off. We easily saved a lot compared to what we would have paid if we had paid individually. We never had to take a taxi anywhere. Public transportation is excellent. We found the connections to be a bit tight. If we had heavy luggage, we probably would have missed a couple. Please download the SBB app. It is a lifesaver.
- Our Indian credit and debit cards just worked. We had no trouble withdrawing money from ATM or paying at any of the attractions or restaurants.
- We had taken AirTel International Roaming before leaving India and it worked just fine. We have connectivity with good speeds everywhere we went.
- Vegetarian food is not a problem. There are enough Pizza places. We typically found at least one vegetarian item in every local restaurant we went to.
- Overall, we found Switzerland to be very costly. To cut down on the cost, try to make your own meals. There are plenty of Coop and Migros selling cheap food. But they typically close very early. So stock up early or head to the train station - the shops at the station remain open late.
- Jungnfraujoch - Must See: Well, you got to do this. It is expensive. So make sure the weather will be fine before you go up. There are live cams at the station selling the tickets. If you go in the shoulder season, you can get tickets on that morning even if it is a weekend. Staying in Wengen will help you catch the first train up. Mornings are typically clearer than the afternoons.
- Mt. Schilthorn - Must See: It is best to base yourself in Lauterbrunnen or Murren to see this first thing in the morning when the weather is typically clear. Unfortunately, you are looking east. That means, evenings are better for the views, assuming of course it is not cloudy.
- First - Must See: Grindelwald is the base. But Lauterbrunnen is not bad place to overnight to see this first thing in the morning.
- Lakes - Should See: Don't budget a day for the lakes (Thun and Brienze). Keep it as a fall back option on a rainy day. You can easily cover everything from Thun to Meiringen in one day. The falls at Meiringen is good, but not spectacular and it is a good 20 to 30 min walk from the station. Thun castle and town are almost a must see and if you are doing just one thing at the lakes, I would recommend this.
- Schynige Platte - Must See: If you doing just one hike and you are short on time, then a walk up in the Shynige Platte has to be it. You can look down on the lakes and up to the Jungfrau range. But it takes a while to get here. It is an one hour slow train (each way) from Wilderswil. Lauterbrunnen or Interlaken are good bases to see this place.
- Lake Oeschinen - Should See: The closest train station is Kandersteg and there is a baggage drop facility there. It is a 10 min walk to the cable car from the station and a 30 min walk to the lake from the top cable car station.
- GornergratBahn - Must Do: Of course, as with any high altitude train, don't do this in bad weather. There is a live webcam at the ticket office below. Matterhorn is lit up nicely only in the mornings. In the afternoons, the sun is at the wrong angle. But you can get to see the Monte Rosa massif in the evenings. The view is 360 degrees on top and you will not be disappointed as long as the skies are clear.
- Matterhorn Glacier Paradise - Must Do: One of the marquee short walk of the region is the 7 km 3 hour trail between the cable stations of Trockener Steg and Schwarzsee. If you want to do this walk, purchase the tickets accordingly before you start.
- City walk - Must Do; 4-5 hrs: Pick up the free guide available in any hotel and follow the path which takes you through all the highlights. You should be done in 4 to 5 hours.
- Titlis - Must Do; 4-5 hours: Among the various options close to Lucerne, this has the most breathtaking view of the Alps. You cannot see Lucerne from here. It is an hour to Engelberg from Lucerne and there is a free shuttle to the cable station in synch with the train arrival and departure. Go here early before the bus loads of tourists arrive. Leaving Lucerne by the 7:10 would help you miss the crowd.
- Pilatus - Must Do; 4-5 hours: We could do Pilatus and Titlis in one day. Alps are far away from Pilatus, but you get some breathtaking views of the Lucerne (both the lake and the city).
- Grossmunster - Must See; 30 mins-1 hour: It is about 180 steps to the top of the tower. If you are healthy, do it. The view is breathtaking. Don't miss the stained glasses in the main church and the adjacent cloister.
- Fraumunster - Must See; 30 mins: It is a must-see simply for the Chagall stained glass. It is a masterpiece.
- St. Peterkirche - May See; 30 mins: There isn't much on the inside. You get the best views of it from the Grossmunster across the Limmat.
- Munster - Must See; 1 hour: It is 350 odd steps to the top. As you can imagine, you get some dizzying views of the town from there. If you have vertigo, don't do it.
- Einstein Haus - Must See; 20 mins: It is just for the goosebumps.
- History Museum - May See; 1 hour: There are some interesting exhibits. Go here if you have a Museum Pass. Else, you can give this a miss. .The Einstein Exhibition on the top floor is good, but not a must-see.
- Zytglogge - Must See: Well, you cannot avoid this. You will walk past it several times.
- Rosengarten - Must See: Must mainly for the classing Bern panorama cityscape.
TRIP ITINERARY