How many days is enough for Switzerland? How can I visit Switzerland in 3-5 days?
3-5 days is a good time to experience and enjoy Switzerland within budget. I will help you with a good switzerland itinerary and the best options to cover in this time frame
Before getting into the itinerary have a read about Swiss pass, which is an all rounder and will help us through out and enjoy a hassle free trip in Switzerland.
Where should I go for a short trip in Switzerland? Switzerland trip itinerary
Day 1:
Morning
Airport to Hotel and Freshen up
- Arrival Zurich Airport -> Activate your europe sim (If you are landing from outside Europe)
- Open the downloaded official sbb app -> Search for train from Zurich to Lucerne-> Head to the respective platform
- Lucerne -> Preferably take stay near to Lucerne train station as it is convenient and time saving.
- Tip : Check-In to hotels are generally after 12 PM. So please request for a room or general bathroom to freshen up. Keep the luggage in hotel. If you are not comfortable with this you can reach one day before and stay.
Afternoon
Rigi Classic Round Trip
- Find all details like duration, price, time table, pictures, videos etc below :
Evening
Chapel Bridge
- Once we reach back to Lucerne city, Chapel Bridge can be explored
- Its just walk-able distance from the boat/train station
- You can find nice coffee house/restaurants in the lake side.
- Good ambiance to spend evening
- If you have time, you can explore places like Lion monument, Swiss Museum of Transport etc
Day 2
Morning
Take GoldenPass Line and head to Murren
- Search in official sbb app -> Lucerne to Murren). As early as you start, it is better.
- Find good hotels in Murren here
Find more details about Murren here :
Noon
Schilthorn(Free with Swiss pass)
OR
Jungfrau excursion(25% off with Swiss pass)
If time and budget allows, do all of them as they are amazing experiences. If you are confused, which one to choose, Jungfrau OR Schilthorn OR Rigi, consider Schilthorn and Rigi as they are free with swiss pass. Jungfrau is rated as one of best trips in swiss!
As I got feedback from some travelers that Jungfrau is kind of overrated and also too costly, I did Schilthorn and Rigi with swiss pass.
Jungfrau and Schilthorn are the 2 ends of the same valley.
Find more details about Schilthorn trip here :
Evening
Enjoy Murren
- If you would like to just relax and enjoy have a walk in murren and enjoy the evening. Ema from Eiger guest house will help you with information about a small hike near guest house.
- Also, by late evening you can enjoy free access to the near indoor swimming pool and jacuzzi hot bath tub. Its an amazing experience after a tiring day with beautiful views of Alps.
OR you can Explore waterfalls like Staubbach, Trummelbach in Lauterbrunnen
- Mürren -> Grütschalp -> Lauterbrunnen (Use SBB official app)
- Staubbach Falls -> 15 minutes walk from Lauterbrunnen station
- Trummelbach Falls-> You will find bus 141 in front of Lauterbrunnen station
- Tickets & Opening Times
- The park is open from early April through early November, 9:00 to 17:00, in July and August from 8:30 to 18:00. It can close during bad weather. Check their website for current information
If you are planning to do both Trummelbach and Staubbach, do Trummelbach first as it will close by 5 and then come to Trummelbach
Day 3
Morning
Murren to Interlaken – Check In/Keep Luggages (Start early by first train)
- Take a stay near to interlaken train station as possible. Check in and keep luggage
- Or taking a stay near Brienz lake also would be a great idea, as many feel that interlaken area had lost its old charm.
Interlaken to Kandersteg
- After completing Oischinensee lake, enjoy the Kandersteg Pipe ride. Please find all the details here. Its just beside the cable car top station.
- (Might be closed during winter or bad weather) . Please check with official website
Afternoon
Explore the beautiful OESCHINENSEE lake
- 30-45 minutes walk from the cable car station
Experience the amazing Kandersteg Pipe Ride
Kandersteg pipe ride is just beside the cable car station. So before takign the cable car down, you can do the pipe ride. Find all details here
Evening
Kandersteg to Interlaken
- Use official SBB app for timings and details.
Harder Kulm
If time permits, explore Harder Kulm near interlaken area
Back to Zurich -> Take Flight
If you have few more days, consider the below options:
- Take one more day extra (Day3) in Murren and relax. Also, you can consider covering Staubbach Falls/ Trummelbach Falls in Lauterburren if you didn’t get enough time on Day 2.
- If you spend one extra day in Interlaken, you can explore these places:
- Schynige Platte
- Lake Thun
- Lake Brienz etc
- With more days you explore towards South some of the best places are :
- Zermatt & the Matterhorn
- St Moritz
- Montreux
- Appenzell etc
Pingback: Complete Guide for your Switzerland Trip – Well planned trips for U
Hello ,
I am planning for a trip to Switzerland in October.
I want to cover small villages of Switzerland,unlike bigger and overrated places like zurich,genva or top of europe.
May we connect ?
Thanks
Apurv
90006813401
Hi Apurv,
Thanks for your message. Happy that my blog could reach you and was helpful. Would be interesting to know, how u were able to reach the blog. Google search? 🙂
We covered Lucern, Interlaken, Lauterbrunnen, Murren, Kandersteg etc
4-5 day would be good to cover this comfortably.
If you have more days you can explore Schynige Platte,Lake Thun,Lake Brienz etc
With more days you explore towards South some of the best places are :
Zermatt & the Matterhorn, St Moritz , Montreux,Appenzell etc
You can find all the details here : https://wellplannedtrip.com/complete-guide-for-your-switzerland-trip/
Sim, Schengen Visa, Expense, Food, Travel credit card, What to carry, I have tried to cover everything as possible
Murren, Grindelwald are nice small villages with not much crowds. So you can plan to spend more time there
Posting replies in comments will be helpful for others also. Hence, Please let me know if any more information in comments. I can try to help you as possible.
Please subscribe and stay tuned to our Instagram page for good travel content :https://www.instagram.com/wellplannedtrip
Thanks,
Wellplannedtrip.com