11-DAY SWITZERLAND ITINERARY: LUCERNE, GRINDELWALD, WENGEN, ZURICH

Switzerland is one of the most beautiful destinations I’ve been to, with the most picturesque mountains, lakes, and villages. I’ve been to Zermatt and Geneva, but this is my first trip to Lucerne, Grindelwald, Wengen, and Zurich during the summer. We visited at the end of August to early September for 11 days and had perfect weather, with only one day of rain when we arrived.

Since I was pregnant during the trip, we kept our trip pretty simple, and it was very relaxing. So if you’re also planning a baby moon to Switzerland, this is the perfect 11 Day Switzerland Itinerary in Lucerne, Grindelwald, Wengen, and Zurich.

*I used a travel advisor to help book our hotels and transportation (private transfers and trains). I highly recommend Madeline from The Check in Collective. I’ve been IG friends with Madeline for years, and she was so helpful; there is no fee from her, and she’s super responsive. She will give you a full itinerary with all your information and documents needed for your trip in an app.

THINGS TO KNOW

Visitor Pass: Ask your hotel for a visitor pass in each city. It provides free transportation on buses and discounts on many other things.

Swiss Travel Pass: We did not get this, but it may be worth it if you’re taking many trains, buses, and boats within 3-15 days.

Taxis: Taxis are very expensive; I recommend using Uber.

No need for cash. We were able to use Apple Pay for everything.

Everywhere we went was stroller friendly!

For all of our activities, we purchased tickets the day of, except for the Lindt Museum; we purchased tickets a month in advance.

DAY 1-3: LUCERNE

We flew from NYC to Zurich and used a private transfer to Lucrene. We knew we would be too tired to deal with the train, and it was a great decision to take a private transfer.

WHERE TO STAY IN LAKE LUCERNE

We stayed at Bürgenstock Hotel & Alpine Spa located in the mountains above Lake Lucerne. The hotel has the most amazing spa with a heated infinity pool. It is kid-friendly; however, the spa pool has limited hours for children. There is also a kids’ club where kids above a certain age can stay with the staff. The resort has its own cable car down the mountain where guests can take a boat into Lucerne for free.

DAY 1

Arrive and relax at the hotel. If you have time, go into Lucerne for a walk around Old Town and dinner. We were tired and relaxed at the hotel and enjoyed the pool.

DAY 2: TRANSPORT MUSEUM

We spent almost the full day here: Highly recommend this with children. There is so much to do; it’s super interactive, with museums for rail, road, water, and air travel. A full-day ticket might be worth it, but we only paid the entrance fee and did the Swiss Chocolate Adventure. They also have other special on-site attractions:

Swiss Chocolate Adventure: We booked this one! It was a fun ride detailing the history of Lindt Chocolate.

Planetarium: A digital show exploring the universe

Filmtheatre: Switzerland’s largest cinema screen showing 3D nature and engineering documentaries.

Hans Erni Museum: An art gallery featuring works by famous local artists.

CHAPEL BRIDGE & OLD TOWN

Walk along Chapel Bridge for beautiful photos.

Other things to do are to visit the Lion Monument, Aeschbach Chocolatier, 1 Hour Discovery Cruise.

DAY 3: HAMMETSCHWAND LIFT

This is the highest outdoor lift in Europe and 40 minutes walk from the Bürgenstock Resort. It was a fairly easy walk, and we also took the stroller. The lift takes 60 seconds to the top, where you can have lunch or even go on a hike. We spent half the day here.

Another option for day 3 is Mount Pilatus and Mount Rigi. If we had another day in Lucerne we would have done one of these! These would be a full-day activities. Mount Pilatus has the longest toboggan.

WHERE TO EAT IN LUCERNE

Scala Restaurant for the views, Brasserie Bodu, Casa Tolone, Pikante, Wolf Burger and Steak Bar, Restaurant Lumieres for sunset.

DAY 4-6: GRINDELWALD

We hired a private transfer from Lucerne to Grindelwald.

WHERE TO STAY IN GRINDELWALD

We stayed at Boutique Hotel Glacier in The Signature room with a hot tub. The temperature can be adjusted, and waking up to the views of the mountains was so picturesque. It was also kid-friendly; they provided a crib, and the restaurant was one of our favorites!

DAY 4

We spent the day relaxing at the hotel and took family photos with @mairbird. Highly recommend using her!

DAY 5: GRINDELWALD FIRST, CLIFF WALK, BORT ALPINE PLAYGROUND, EXPLORE THE TOWN

Spend the day at Grindelwald First. The cable car has a few stops and takes you all the way up to the peak. This is where you can do all the activities, such as the free Cliff Walk, which is what we did. Other activities include: Hiking to Lake Bachalpsee, First Flyer, First Glider, First Mountain Cart, and First Trottibike down the mountain.

After the Cliff Walk, make your way down and stop at Bort Alpine Playground. My son loved exploring the playground, and there are plenty of viewpoints for photos. End the day in town and have a nice lunch.

DAY 6: GLACIER CANYON

We visited Glacier Canyon and only spent a little over an hour and a half here. Another option for the day is the Rodelbahn Pfingstegg Toboggan or spend a full day in Jungfraujoch and visit the Ice Palace. The elevation is too high for pregnancy, so we did not do this.

WHERE TO EAT IN GRINDELWALD

Fondue Gondola, Base Camp, Cafe 3692, Hotel Restaurant Fiescherblick, Restaurant Adlerstube

DAY 7-9: WENGEN

We took the train from Grindelwad to Wengen. It is super easy and the trains are very nice!

WHERE TO STAY IN WENGEN

We stayed at Grand Hotel Belvedere and loved the view we had of Lauterbrunnen Valley. During our stay, it was quite hot, and there is no air conditioning, so just something to consider when visiting during the summer. Make sure to ask the hotel to meet you at the train station to pick up your luggage.

DAY 7

We spent the day relaxing and exploring Wengen! It’s an adorable town and has a great playground! Take the cable car up to Männlichen for the Cow Playground. The elevation is quite high, so we skipped this.

DAY 8: LAUTERBRUNNEN, MURREN, ALLMENDHUBEL

This was a full day of activities! We took the train to Lauterbrunnen to visit the Alpaca Farm but unfortunately arrived during lunch when it was closed. You can spend a whole day here visiting all the gorgeous waterfalls, but we decided to head to Murren to explore the town and then up to Allmendhubel for the Flower Playground.

Another option is visiting Gimmelwald, but we went back to Lauterbrunnen for the Alpaca Farm. It’s called Lampaca Farm, and guests can hike with them for an hour or visit and feed them, as we did for CHF7. It was one of our favorite activities! Next to the farm is an ice cream shop and an area for kids to play with cars or mini golf.

DAY 9: INTERLAKEN, ISELTWALD, BRIENZ

This is another full day of activities! We took a train to Interlaken, and if there is time, head to Harder Kulm. We then took a boat to Iseltwald, it’s a small, cute town for lunch and photos of the famous castle along the water. Next was a boat ride to Brienz to explore the town, but I found it quite boring. I would recommend doing a day trip with the Brienz Rothhorn Cogwheel Train instead of . This is a gorgeous scenic train to the summit. This is high on my list, but since I’m pregnant, the elevation was a little too high, so we skipped it. Another option is exploring Lake Thun.

WHERE TO EAT IN WENGEN

To Go Kaffeehaus, The Deck Restaurant, Mira’s Steakhouse, Restaurant Goldlöckchen & Bar

The Deck Restaurant for Fondue at sunset

DAY 10-11: ZURICH

WHERE TO STAY IN ZURICH

We stayed at La Reserve Eden. It was about a 10-minute walk into town which was okay. I liked that it had a nice rooftop bar/restaurant La Muna. But if I were to go back to Zurich, I would prefer staying somewhere more central.

DAY 10: EXPLORE ZURICH AND SHOP

Explore the town and go shopping around Bahnhofstrasse.

DAY 11: LINDT MUSEUM

Highly recommend getting tickets a month in advance as tickets sell out fast. The Lindt Museum was so fun; it had 4 chocolate tasting areas and a Lindt Cafe. Other things to do in Zurich if you have time are the House of Laderach, and Zurich Zoo.

WHERE TO EAT IN ZURICH

B2 Hotel Zurich Cafe has over 33,000 books, Zeughauskeller Restaurant for classic Swiss food, Seerose, Samigo, Razzia Restaurant, Widder Restaurant, Cafe Schober, Babus Bakery, Haus Hiltl is the world’s oldest vegetarian restaurant.

This trip was absolutely amazing, and I highly recommend visiting Switzerland during the summer! I would love to be back during the winter and take the Glacier Express from St. Moritz to Zermatt.