Holidays to Switzerland Travel Podcast Episode 170 Transcript

The Perfect 7-Day Switzerland Itinerary for First-Time Visitors

You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Welcome to The Holidays to Switzerland Podcast. If you’re planning a trip to Switzerland, this is the podcast for you. I’m your host, Carolyn Schönafinger, the founder of HolidaysToSwitzerland.com. And in each episode, my expert guests and I share practical tips to help you plan your dream trip to Switzerland.

You’ll get helpful advice about traveling around Switzerland, and hear about the most popular destinations, as well as some hidden gems. And we’ll introduce you to plenty of wonderful experiences that you can enjoy as part of your Swiss vacation.

Each episode is packed with expert tips, itinerary ideas, and inspiration to help make your Swiss vacation planning easy. So let’s dive in. 

Carolyn Schönafinger: Gruezi and welcome to this week’s episode. Today I’m welcoming back my friend James Wilson, the founder of Swiss Table-Made Travel and Consulting. James has extensive knowledge of Switzerland’s breathtaking landscapes and hidden gems and he’s going to guide us through crafting the perfect itinerary for first-time visitors to Switzerland. Whether you’re dreaming of scenic railway journeys, visiting mountain summits, hitting the hot spots, or discovering quaint Swiss villages, this episode is packed with insights and helpful tips to make planning your trip to Switzerland so much easier. Hi James, thank you very much for coming back onto the podcast. For our listeners who haven’t heard you on one of our previous episodes, would you like to introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about what you do?

James Wilson: Good morning, Carolyn. Thanks for having me again. It’s great to be here. Yeah, I have a company called Swiss Table-Made Travel and Consulting and we primarily look after the needs of tour operators when it comes to creating new programs or existing programs, improvements to existing programs in Switzerland. And we represent a number of Swiss companies all of whom involved in tourism in some form or another whether it be hotels, cable cars, scenic railway journeys and we look at incorporating as many of those products and services into the aforementioned tours of the tour operators. And we’re based in Wengen in the Bernese Oberland and we’re on the ground here so offer full year round support for any of those tour operators and the end consumers who make it over here.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay fantastic and what a beautiful part of the world to live in.

James Wilson: It is, yes it is, very much so.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Now I know for a lot of our listeners deciding on an itinerary is often the hardest part of planning their trip to Switzerland. And as someone who creates itineraries for tour operators, I’m sure you’ve got plenty of suggestions for us. But before we hear one of yours recommended itineraries, do you have any tips or suggestions, things that people should consider when they start planning their itinerary?

James Wilson: Yeah I think first of all even though the temptation will be there don’t try and cram too much in. When it’s certainly a first trip to the country the temptation is going to be to tick as many things off the list as possible. And what that does is just creates a program which is a bit too much of a hurry. And you can miss bits by simply trying to cram too much in. So I would recommend certainly coming for no less than a week if that’s possible and maybe just pick three or four things that you definitely want to see. But then leave the rest of the time flexible so that whoever’s helping you put your itinerary together can actually build in some, I don’t want to call it downtime because obviously you want to keep as busy as possible, but maybe keep those highlights to a minimum or maybe even just focus on one particular area so you’re not spending too much time traveling and not enough time actually doing things or seeing things. Obviously, we have such great railway journeys here, part of the fun of holidaying in Switzerland is spending time on the trains, but don’t try and cram too much in. Come back again, have another trip. I think also totally relevant to our discussion is if you’ve not been before, get some guidance from someone that knows the destination. Again, you can be tempted to cram too much in but if you really do want to see a lot in a short space of time then get help from someone that knows the destination. Don’t try and do it yourselves. It’s a very small country but it can be quite complicated. And especially when it comes to choosing the right way to go about traveling around for example. That’s something which if you’ve never been here before and you’ve not done your research, you risk buying the wrong ticket or whatever and I think the two tips I would therefore recommend, have a list of things you want to do but keep it as short as possible but then also seek the right guidance and get advice from people who do know the destination inside out like yourself.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah absolutely, excellent tips. So with those tips in mind is there an itinerary that you’d recommend for first-time visitors who are coming to Switzerland and have about a week to spend in the country?

James Wilson: Yeah I think one of the ones I had in mind was a trip which would take us from Lucerne down to Lake Geneva. And I’ll talk you through it in a bit more detail. There are obviously hot spots that people want to see as a first-time visitor, Lucerne being one of them. And this itinerary allows visitors to see some of the hot spots, some of the must-sees, but also going off the beaten track slightly and seeing some of what we’d call real Switzerland. In a relatively short space of time but without it being too much of a rush. And the itinerary I wanted to talk about would take you from, let’s assume that the guests have come into Zurich airport, they would then travel down to Lucerne which is only an hour away on the train and then spend some time in Lucerne and perhaps depending on the time of arrival do one of the mountain excursions. Lucerne is surrounded by many mountains, most of which are accessible by cable car or train. The one I’d recommend however is the trip up the Stanserhorn. And the reason for that is because I think it combines everything that you could possibly imagine within a mountain excursion within a quite a short space of time plus it has the advantage of seeing all the other mountains surrounding it. And Stanserhorn itself consists of a funicular from the valley station in Stans which takes 10 minutes to reach the midway point at which guests will then change from the funicular to the world’s first cabrio cable car. So you actually stand on the top of the cable car. Now that’s not as precarious as it may sound, it’s perfectly safe and there are barriers all the way around but it’s the world’s first and it’s totally unique. Once you’re at the summit you do have these amazing views as you can imagine overlooking Lucerne and all the lakes and all the mountains around it. But I think the main advantage with the Stanserhorn amongst many is the fact that it’s actually from the center of town, from the center of Lucerne I mean, it’s only 45 minutes to the top. Which means you can actually squeeze it into an afternoon or a morning comfortably without it being any kind of a rush. And once you’re up there not only are the views amazing, you have this amazing experience with the Stanserhorn rangers who are there to show you what all the views are, what the mountains are called, plus there’s a revolving restaurant there which as you can imagine offers amazing views whilst you sat having your lunch or your afternoon tea. And then once back down in Lucerne, most guests would certainly want to stay overnight. In terms of hotels there’s a world of hotels to choose from. As you know Carolyn, Lucerne is a really beautiful city, all walkable but the amount of hotels which are in walking distance of the train station, you know you’ve got literally dozens and dozens of several, of all categories I would say within a comfortable 15 minute walk along the flat from the station.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mmm, okay great. So I mean we’ve already packed a lot or seen a lot, a varied number of things just on the first day of arrival in Switzerland. So as you said we’re assuming people arrive in Zurich, it’s only a one hour train ride to Lucerne and then there’s still plenty of time if they arrive before or around lunchtime to go up to Stanserhorn and see all those magnificent views from up there.

James Wilson: Yeah that’s right. And then on day two we would also then include a scenic railway journey. Now I mentioned just at the beginning of the episode how a scenic rail journey is certainly part of any trip to Switzerland and so it should be. But the temptation of course is to try and do them all within the space of a week. The one I’ve chosen takes you from Lucerne in just two hours down to Interlaken. And that’s on the Lucerne-Interlaken Express. You travel past several lakes over a mountain pass, you come out of Lucerne into typical Swiss scenery on really great trains which have these panoramic windows which means whichever side of the train you’re sitting on you’re not going to miss any of the views. But it’s a relatively short journey as well. So I mean some people like to sit for literally eight hours on a train and that’s fine too but others perhaps with maybe younger children for example whose patience isn’t as good as the adults, a two hour ride with lots of amazing scenery is perfect. And this particular journey on the Lucerne-Interlaken Express is that one. And on the way down towards Interlaken there’s also the opportunity to stop at Brienz which is a very pretty lakeside town in its own right where the starting point for the Brienz Rothorn Bahn is. But one experience I would highly recommend and also because it’s included on the Swiss Travel Pass is a visit to the Ballenberg Open Air Museum. And what that is, a collection of buildings from all the way across the country which have been deconstructed and reconstructed on site to create this experience of old Swiss living and old Swiss traditions. It’s an interactive museum, it’s outdoors but obviously a lot of the interactive stuff is inside. And within even just an hour you can experience Switzerland in the past in this amazing environment. It’s actually quite difficult to describe. It’s so worth a visit and it’s on the route of the train down to Interlaken. So guests looking to have a really typical Swiss experience with a difference that’s what I’d recommend on route. And then once that’s done of course you then carry on to Interlaken which is along the shores of Lake Brienz at which point you would then change trains and start heading up the Lauterbrunnen Valley. That’s only a 20 minute ride from Interlaken and then from Lauterbrunnen just the final 12 minutes up to Wengen which is my recommended stopover point or next stopover point for this particular itinerary.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah great. And one thing we should mention too if our listeners are thinking yeah I’d love to get off in Brienz and go to Ballenberg. They can actually store their luggage. There are some lockers at Brienz station, I have stored my luggage there before so that is a possibility as well. And I believe, correct me if I’m wrong, does the Lucerne-Interlaken Express have a luggage transfer service?

James Wilson: Well the luggage transfer service can be arranged. Luggage transfers in Switzerland from any point to the next can be arranged. There’s plenty of luggage space on the trains, that should also be pointed out. But anybody wishing to transfer luggage from let’s say hotel to the next hotel, that is possible with SBB and it can be arranged. But guests should also be aware of the fact that it’s not always simply a case of dropping your luggage off at whatever time you want and then it arriving at exactly the time you want it. Do check in advance because all routes are possible but the timings at which luggage needs to be dropped off and then picked up the whether it be the same evening or the following day can vary from one place to the next although from the major cities or the major towns it’s usually very very straightforward but always check in advance and check locally.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah okay great advice. Okay so do you have a hotel recommendation for Wengen because I think our guest will be staying there for two nights.

James Wilson: The hotel I would recommend in Wengen is the Hotel Falken. Again many options to choose from it’s often difficult to decide. One of the main reasons why I would always choose the Falken is simply because of the view. It has south-facing rooms overlooking the Jungfrau and when you open your curtains at the Hotel Falken and you see the Jungfrau right in front of you. There are, it’s incredible. Again very difficult to describe but well recommended to have a south-facing room at the Falken. Secondly it’s just a few hundred yards from the station, a slight uphill walk although guests of course will be met at the station so they can have assistance with their luggage. It’s a family run hotel and it’s just celebrated 130 years of being open always with the same family and I think one general recommendation across the country not just in Wengen is if there is the possibility of staying in a family owned hotel up in the mountains then do take advantage of it because they do offer that something that little bit special. And there’s so much tradition at the Falken, it’s officially a Swiss historic hotel which means they have to do everything possible to preserve its originality and its original features. And you do feel like you’re going back in time when you get there. It’s very very quirky but it’s such a beautiful building and the views as I said are absolutely magnificent so that would be my recommendation.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Okay fantastic. You certainly don’t get hotels in Australia and probably not in the United States either that have been owned by the same family for 130 years that’s amazing.

James Wilson: And then next on the next day once you’ve enjoyed an evening at the Falken the next day the recommendation is to get out there and enjoy the mountains. And my recommendation here is to do something perhaps which is certainly suitable for all levels so this is hopefully going to appeal to the widest possible number of listeners. Take the Wengen Männlichen cable car up to the Männlichen which is Wengen’s home mountain at 2,200 meters above the village. Similar to the cabrio cable car at Stanserhorn it also does actually have a small balcony itself which can take 10 people. Obviously the views up there are amazing and it runs every 15 minutes from the center of the village and the journey to the summit takes only 6 minutes. And once you’re up there you have your first view of the famous trio of mountains, the Eiger, Mönch and the Jungfrau. And once you’re at the top of the cable car station you’ll see those mountains you literally can’t miss them. And my recommendation is to take in the views even more by taking the hour and 30 minute hike over to Kleine Scheidegg. Now viewers shouldn’t be put off, sorry listeners shouldn’t be put off. This is a hike which is for 99% of people who have a relatively good level of fitness and anything above that. You start from Männlichen, you walk to Kleine Scheidegg and you are literally staring at the three mountains all the way across. So the first tip always make sure if you’re going up to Wengen and doing this hike, don’t do it from Kleine Scheidegg to Männlichen because you’ve got the mountains behind you the whole time. Do it in the direction that I’m suggesting. And you’ll be blown away, Grindelwald down in the valley over to your left and the three mountains right in front of you. I say an hour and 30 minutes, sometimes it will take people three hours simply because of the amount of times that they put the rucksack down and take a photograph. It’s a photographer’s heaven up there.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah it absolutely is and one of my very favorite hikes in Switzerland the as you said the views just oh they’re just incredible.

James Wilson: Yeah I mean as someone that lives here and does it regularly with my dog for example, you never get tired of it that’s the other thing. That’s how good it is. It really is sensational but as I say it’s something for everybody. It’s not a tricky hike, it’s not in any way dangerous, it is something that you should do whatever your if you’ve got the capability and the fitness level to spend some time walking around in the mountains go and do this hike because it will blow you away. And then once you reach Kleine Scheidegg there are a number of options first of all maybe time your walk so you get there at lunchtime, there are several restaurants at Kleine Scheidegg both on the station complex but also around the station and at the nearby hotel. And then from Kleine Scheidegg loads of different options either head up to Eigergletscher and onto the Jungfraujoch or what a lot of people like to do is then start walking back towards Wengen. Now that may take 2 hours, 2 hours 30 minutes but there are two points along the route where you can actually jump back on the train if you’ve had enough of your walking for the day and you want to head back to the village by train. Around 30 minutes down from Kleine Scheidegg is Wengernalp station from where you can take the train all the way down to the village. Or carry on further for an extra hour and then you reach Allmend which is the station above Wengen. Really nice place to stop for a snack or lunch or just a drink in the afternoon before then the final part of the walk which is just 30 minutes back to the village, not even that in fact or just jump on the train at Allmend and it’s just a 10 minute ride back to the village from there. This is typically one of those excursions which you can actually do quite quickly depending on how you do it but don’t rush it take in the views they are mind blowing. And I wouldn’t suggest trying to cram anything else to such a day because there’s so much to see you really don’t want to miss anything.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah absolutely. Okay so after a relaxing evening in Wengen taking in the views as long as there’s daylight what are we going to do on day four?

James Wilson: So on day four we incorporate another brilliant part of the Swiss travel system first of all and that’s by taking a lake cruise. So we’ll leave Wengen after breakfast head down to Interlaken but then instead of heading back towards Lucerne and Lake Brienz we take in the other lake. Interlaken named as such because it’s between the two lakes Lake Brienz and Lake Thun, take the train from Interlaken Ost to Interlaken West and then at Interlaken West you get off the train and the boat is literally parked right next to the station at Interlaken West. A small, a short underpass from the station platform takes you right to the boat at which you can then jump on the boat and enjoy a lake cruise across Lake Thun. Depending on where you want to get off and carry on all the way to Thun or just jump off at Spiez from where from either point you can then catch the train to Zweisimmen, Zweisimmen down the Simmental and then from Zweisimmen one final change of trains for the last 10 minutes section of the journey to Lenk. Now Lenk’s probably one of those places I would certainly categorize as as certainly off the beaten track and it’s not a hot spot. It is relatively unknown which I think makes it so attractive because you’re away from the crowds. But down the Simmental which is where the the Simmental cows originate from you really are in typical Switzerland it’s everything you would imagine it to be visually. And yet you are away from the crowds. And once you get to Lenk recommended hotel is the 5-star Gourmet Spa Resort the Lenkerhof where they will pick you up from the station and take you to the hotel. And let me tell you once you get to the Lenkerhof you’re made to feel extremely welcome it’s an absolutely sensational property and I know Carolyn you’ve also spent some time there recently.

Carolyn Schönafinger: I have James yes and it was all thanks to you. I’ve been visiting Switzerland for 30 odd years and I had never been to Lenk which is now I’m wondering why it took me so long. So thanks to you I heard about Lenk and decided to visit and yes you recommended the beautiful Lenkerhof Gourmet Spa Resort and yeah wow it’s beyond words I have to say it it’s just absolutely incredible.

James Wilson: Yeah I think it is exactly as you describe that the food for a start is just magnificent. The views are like most places in Switzerland of course absolutely amazing. But the food is one of the reasons why you’d go to the Lenkerhof. It’s also somewhere I would say if you want to wind down and just get away from it all and spend maybe a couple of quieter days should we say in your trip do make the most of it enjoy the spa facilities of course which are all included but then have dinner at the hotel. Don’t wander in with all due respect to Lenk and its and its restaurants have dinner at the hotel because the dining experience is at the Lenkerhof world-beating you know they’re that good. And I would certainly incorporate at least one dinner in one of the restaurants in your stay at the Lenkerhof but then combine it with some downtime. In and around Lenk you have again a typical Swiss village but make the most of the mountains as well. The gondola station for Betelberg is right outside the hotel so you literally as you’re pulling up to the hotel in the car that’s picked you up from the station you’ll see the gondola station on the left. On day five head up there just have a look at the views or have a walk around once you get up there but do spend some time at the hotel but at the same time make sure you get up into the mountains and have a wander around up there. Maybe as you finish the day do spend some time in Lenk it’s such a beautiful village. There’s obviously alpine cheese making dairies there, you have a local beer brewery which is perhaps more of interest to some people as well. But spend some time in the village it’s beautiful. And it’s typical Switzerland.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah and I think one of the things that appealed to me so much too is that most of the other tourists that were there when I was there were Swiss. It’s not you know you weren’t you didn’t feel like you were somewhere where with a thousand other Australians and Americans and and Brits you know like or the majority of the conversations that you heard as you walked around were in Swiss German so that was really nice. And as you said there it’s such a typically Swiss village there’s so much, well you know there’s probably not so much is probably the wrong term but there is a lot to keep you entertained if you don’t want to spend all day using those beautiful wellness facilities. Betelberg you mentioned we also went to the Simmen Falls, the waterfalls which were great. You can see them from the bottom in the valley by catching a bus from not too far from the train station but you can also hike up to the top of the falls which we did that took about an hour and a half and was quite a taxing hike. It was very steep in parts but we did it and then yeah obviously much easier coming down so there’s there’s plenty of beautiful sights in Lenk. There’s a lovely little lake actually that you can stroll around but just seeing all those typically Swiss chalets too was beautiful.

James Wilson: Yeah it’s a lovely place. On the one hand we I like to tell people about Lenk and get as many people there as possible to enjoy it but on the other hand I don’t want to tell too many people because I also want to keep it a secret.

Carolyn Schönafinger: That’s right so for all our listeners you can go there but shhh don’t tell too many of your friends.

James Wilson: Exactly. I think that’s the right strategy.

Carolyn Schönafinger: So after a couple of beautifully relaxing days in Lenk where will we head off to next?

James Wilson: Well again we’ll incorporate another scenic rail journey and this one takes us from, we actually take the little branch line from Lenk back to Zweisimmen and this time again instead of heading back towards Thun and Lake Thun we take a left turn if you like and that puts us on the Golden Pass line down to Montreux. Now the Golden Pass line is the line itself but there’s a number of different options when it comes to the trains and you have the Belle Epoque carriages on one of the services you also have the brand new service with the Prestige Class carriages which have really taken luxury to another level. But the Belle Epoque carriages as well they you shouldn’t miss those either so the advice I would give is when planning the journey down towards Lake Geneva just check the the time table, the train time table itself locally and it will tell you clearly which train is running at which time and which carriages are available on which service. So if you like your Belle Epoque and your old world kind of 1930s thing that’s your Belle Epoque carriages. Prestige Class and the new modern locomotives they’re they’re amazing as well. But check before you travel along the line you do have the choice with your Swiss Travel Pass which connection you take but if you if you do want to sit in a specific type of carriage check before you travel. And the journey is also very relatively short so you’re not on there all day you’re only on there I think for two about two and a half to three hours down to the lake. And the journey takes you through this rolling this typical rolling beautiful alpine scenery and then towards the end of the journey as you as you approach Montreux you do actually cross over a brow and you you see Lake Geneva for the first time. Now fingers crossed the weather’s good on the day that you’re traveling and it’s a really special moment when you see the lake for the first time from up above it’s it’s and that’s that’s a real highlight of the journey and once you start crossing down towards Montreux then you start to see the the Lavaux vineyards unfolding in front of you. It’s the Lavaux vineyards are UNESCO World Heritage because of the techniques used in rel- in very difficult conditions to to grow grapes which then go on to produce some fantastic wines but the the scenery itself is amazing. And that part of the journey that end part of the journey down towards Montreux is very very special. First you get the dramatic lake appearing before your eyes and then you see the vineyards unfold it’s a it’s a really special journey. And to finish the journey that way is brilliant so that’s I again do it do it in this direction because you get the highlight at the end.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah. We’ve started with a lake at Lucerne, we’ve come by Lake Brienz and Lake Thun and then we’re ending at Lake Geneva so with plenty of mountains in between so that’s the perfect Swiss itinerary.

James Wilson: Yeah.

Carolyn Schönafinger: What about a hotel recommendation in Montreux? I’ve stayed at the Grand Hotel Majestic which was absolutely beautiful. Is there another that you would recommend?

James Wilson: I think there’s plenty of hotels in in Montreux that I’d that I’d recommend but I wouldn’t look beyond the one you’ve recommended Carolyn simply, first of all you you come off the train and it’s right there at the station. But then on the other side of the hotel you have the lake. And you are we’re literally talking 20 yards between the station and the hotel reception. And whilst you’re in Montreux certainly if you’re staying in Montreux you want to have the lake view. You just wouldn’t go to stay in Montreux not be able to see the lake. Any person that’s asked me in the past where would you stay without even thinking about it I’ve recommended the Swiss Majestic. Because of because of its location and you’re in such a special town anyway treat yourself to a night there why not. I think you’ve got to. With all due respect to all the other hotels in Montreux I would always recommend that one because it just ticks all the right boxes.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah absolutely and it’s such a beautiful old building but it’s been obviously renovated with all the modern furnishings and modern features that that people expect of a hotel today.

James Wilson: Yeah.

Carolyn Schönafinger: What about some of the sightseeing options in Montreux? What should people make sure they include in their itinerary?

James Wilson: Well a number of things really but I would probably depending on the interests of course of the listeners you have Freddie Mercury’s time in Montreux which is commemorated by a statue of him on on the lakeshore and actually something I did quite recently which was really good was go to what was one of Queen’s recording studios. Go and have a look at that it’s really really interesting. It’s just a walk along the lakeshore. That’s something really really cool really quirky that you can do on a rainy day or whatever or when you’ve got limited time. Because that was a Montreux was a special place for for Freddie Mercury as most people will know so go and learn a bit more about his time there. But then the other recommendation I go back to what I mentioned about the rail journey go and spend some time in the vineyards. Go and spend an afternoon walking around the vineyards and doing some wine tasting with the wine growers. This is as close as you can get certainly in Switzerland to actually drinking a glass of wine in exactly the place where it’s produced with exactly the person that picked those grapes. It’s brilliant. And all that with the backdrop of Lake Geneva. You can create your own itinerary or you can do a suggested itinerary. Jump on a train from Montreux to the far end of the vineyard and walk back towards Montreux with a few stops at different wine growers and enjoy a glass of their local wine with them learn about how they go about doing things at the same time I as I’ve said you’ve got this amazing backdrop which makes drinking a glass of wine on Lake Geneva in the Lavaux vineyards is a an experience you can’t do in many other places it’s it’s totally unique. That would be my recommendation for your for your afternoon down in Montreux.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah that sounds like the perfect uh perfect way to spend an afternoon. So we’ve uh started in Lucerne with one night, headed to Wengen for two nights and then two nights in Lenk and one night in Montreux. If people wanted to extend their itinerary obviously they can move on to other destinations in Switzerland but is it easy enough to add in additional nights at those places that we’ve already covered?

James Wilson: Definitely. Again that’s the beauty of traveling around Switzerland it’s you can extend or you can add difference on at different places on at the end or even at the beginning for example. The possibilities are endless. One thing I would also recommend however is that if you’re going to do any kind of multi-center trip like the one we’ve just described have a look also at the amount of days on which Swiss Travel Passes are valid so that you’re not wasting a day of the Swiss Travel Pass. Maybe check in advance before you start planning where you’re going to overnight look at the duration of your trip and buy yourself a Swiss Travel Pass that covers that duration and then build the hotels within that length of trip so that then even if you know exactly how much time you can spend in Switzerland buy your Swiss Travel Pass first and then build the nights around that. So that what you don’t want to be doing really is let’s say having a a Swiss Travel Pass for a certain duration then deciding that you want to add extra nights because then you’ve got to also buy an extra pass or work out what the best ticket is to cover those extra days. But in terms of extending in any places I mean is two nights in any of these destinations enough? No it’s not. No. So um therefore maybe do one trip where you’re spending three nights in Lucerne and three nights in Wengen for example. The possibilities are endless but but going back to what we were discussing earlier get guidance from someone that’s been there and knows what they’re doing um who will then help you create the itinerary. Don’t try and muddle along by yourselves if it’s the first time and you really you’re going into it blind. Speak to you Carolyn you’re the best person to do this and they will then realize the value of people’s experience in creating a trip which will then become a really really memorable experience. But in terms of extending it I mean like I say I I’d spend three months at the Lenkerhof and uh wouldn’t get bored.

Carolyn Schönafinger: No I’m sure you’re not alone there either. Uh so what is it about this itinerary that you think makes it perfect for first-time visitors to Switzerland?

James Wilson: I’d say it includes some of the famous hot spots the must-sees. It incorporates two fantastic scenic rail journeys which should be part of any trip for a first-timer. There’s also a nice variety not only of the places where you stay but also of the accommodation. All are relatively well priced as well. We have talked about the luxury at the Lenkerhof but price-wise if you can time your trip so that you’re traveling through Lenk during on a weekday you you’d be very surprised at how relatively inexpensive it is. And also I think we are going through typical Swiss towns and and scenery. We’ve talked about Lenk and how typically Swiss it is visually Lenk and then on down towards Lake Geneva it’s so beautiful. But then Montreux is so cosmopolitan and different so the reason I love this itinerary so much is you see so much in a relatively short space of time so many different things but not in any kind of a rush.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Mmm yeah. I think you said earlier too that that you’ve got those beautiful panoramic train journeys but they’re not long journeys they’re just the right duration you’re not sitting on a train all day and they’re starting and finishing in amazing locations.

James Wilson: Yeah.

Carolyn Schönafinger: So if any of our listeners like the sound of this itinerary and they’d like to use it as the foundation for their trip what are the different ways that you suggest they go about booking it?

James Wilson: Well there are a number of different partners that we have over here DMCs we would call them destination management companies who can create these trip for the listeners from scratch according to their wishes. I think a good starting point of course for anyone would be to speak to you um Carolyn who maybe not only can you give all the advice that they require but specifically on the type of rail ticket or Swiss Travel Pass that’s required. A lot of people will be tempted to try and do it by themselves and that’s absolutely fine but I would say the starting point was to when anyone’s trying to do it by themselves make sure you get the the correct rail ticket and then build build the itinerary around that based on on the recommendations that we’ve just been been talking about. But depending on the length of the trip depending on how many you are with whether it be a family a couple or maybe a small group um there are experts on the ground here who can make sure that they can deliver exactly the right holiday package for for the needs of of the of the group.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah. So for someone who’s more of a a DIYer they they like you know researching and and booking everything themselves we’ve talked about the Swiss Travel Pass so that’s a great starting point because it covers all the public transportation uh their entry to Ballenberg as you said even uh Chillon Castle on um on Lake Geneva lots of other things and they get discounts for well actually the the Stanserhorn excursion is fully covered with the Swiss Travel Pass they get a discount for the Wengen Männlichen cable car so there’s plenty of advantages of buying a Swiss Travel Pass. But if someone wants a bit more support maybe they haven’t got time to do all the research and all the bookings themselves who do you recommend in regards to having someone do everything for them?

James Wilson: Well I would recommend a company called Watch and Cow higher end luxury uh DMC so they take care of individual travelers and bespoke itineraries across the country. They would be my recommendation and they really go into an extremely high level of detail when curating these trips. But also you have uh Switzerland Travel Centre who can also not only help you with creating an itinerary but they also have maybe off-the-shelf itineraries which people may like the look of and which may pretty easy to put together and match more or less the the itinerary that we’ve just been describing. Um try both of them. Watch and Cow are my partner I officially work with them and they’re my default partner for anybody traveling here and they take care of you from start to finish. But in any case I know on your website Carolyn you you’ve got a number of recommendations as to as to how to create such a trip whether you want to do it by yourself or you want someone to take care of everything. There’s an option for whatever your needs are.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Yeah that’s right. And uh you mentioned Watch and Cow and also Switzerland Travel Centre who are partners of Holidays to Switzerland so they both have kindly offered our listeners a 5% discount off any of their trips and I’ll include the details about those in the show notes for this episode as well as a copy of the whole itinerary that we’ve discussed today so that uh if people want to copy that or use that as the base for their own trip they’ve got all the details there with all those hotel names as well. Thank you again James for sharing that all with us. I hope that um lots of our listeners now know exactly where they want to go in Switzerland and they’re going to take your advice and and follow that fantastic itinerary.

James Wilson: Thank you Carolyn for having me on the on the show as always. It’s always great to share my passion for the destination with you and and tell your listeners all the great stuff that we can get organized for them over here. I hope as many of them as possible take some of those tips and and use them for their travel planning.

Carolyn Schönafinger: I’m sure they will. Thank you again.

James Wilson: My pleasure. Take care Carolyn, see you again soon.

Carolyn Schönafinger: Bye. 

Carolyn Schönafinger: Thanks so much for tuning in today. Don’t forget to check out the show notes for all the information from today’s episode including the promo codes to get 5% off your Watch and Cow or Switzerland Travel Centre vacation. And podcast listeners can also get 15% off stays at the Lenkerhof Gourmet Spa Resort with our promo code too. That’s an offer you don’t want to miss. If you found this episode helpful please share it with a friend, family member, or colleague who is planning a trip to Switzerland. Until next week when I’ll be back with more Swiss travel tips and inspiration. Tschüss.

You can see the full show notes and listen to this episode > here.