Information

Arrive in Zurich - I will greet you at the Zurich (ZRH) airport. We will then travel by train to our first destination - Zermatt. This is the home of the iconic Matterhorn. After getting settled in our hotel, we will board the Gornergrat cogwheel railway which takes us up from the village to over 10,000 feet above sea level. During the trip, you will have a constant view of the Matterhorn. The panorama at the top of the Gornergrat is breathtaking - mountains & glaciers as far as you can see. For the return to Zermatt, you have the option to hike partway down or just ride the train all the way down. We will enjoy a wonderful dinner in town before settling in for the night.

After enjoying breakfast at the hotel, there will be some time to explore the wonderful, car-free village of Zermatt. We then say goodbye and make our way by train to another car-free village, Wengen. Our journey will have us first arriving in the Lauterbrunnen valley. Lauterbrunnen, flanked on both sides by 72 waterfalls, is something to behold. Strolling along the valley trails, or even hopping on an e-Bike for a ride, are wonderful options for exploring the area. Once we are ready, we catch the train for a short, but oh so spectacular, ride up to Wengen. After getting settled at the hotel, we will get together for a wonderful dinner with views that are amazing.

Today we are heading out to our first Berner Oberland mountain excursion - Schynige Platte. We'll head there by train from Wengen down to Lauterbrunnen and make our way to the rack and pinion railway which will carry us up to the mountain top. This train is the only remaining railway of this type in Switzerland. It climbs the 7 km trip in 50 minutes. At the top, hiking and panoramic trails are found along with a wonderful restaurant for refreshments. The summits of the Berner Oberland are visible, including the Eiger, Mönch & Jungfrau mountains. Once we return to Wengen, you'll be able to explore the village or take a hike on one of the many trails in the area. Again, a wonderful dinner at the hotel is planned before we settle in for the evening.

A new day, a new adventure. We are traveling up from Wengen to the top of Männlichen via our first cable car ride in Switzerland. Once we arrive at the top, you can hike the Royal Walk up further to an incredible observation platform which allows you views down to Lauterbrunnen on one side and on the other side you will see the Grindelwald valley. From here, we begin the beautiful Panorama hike to Kleine Scheidegg. It's hard to describe the beauty you will witness during this hike. Once we arrive in Kleine Scheidegg you will have the option to hike down to Wengen or hop on a train for the trip down. We will all meet up again at the hotel for dinner.

Today's destination - Grindelwald. We will be traveling via several transportation modes today. After fueling up at the wonderful hotel breakfast buffet, we begin the day with a train ride up to catch a ride on the newest cable car addition to the Jungfrau region - the Eiger Express. With exceptional views of the Eiger, we are quickly transported down to Grindelwald. Next, we hop on a bus for a beautiful scenic ride thru the Swiss mountains to the top of Grosse Scheidegg. Here we begin our hike over to the First mountain top. Quite a few attractions await us upon our arrival, including the First Cliff Walk and another wonderful mountain top restaurant for recharging. Then you will have several options to choose from for your descent back to Grindelwald. We eventually make our way back to Wengen and will enjoy dinner together at a restaurant in town before heading back to the hotel for a well-deserved night of rest.

Bond, James Bond - Today we will explore the world of 007 at the top of the Schilthorn. An early morning start down the mountain and back up the mountain on the other side of Lauterbrunnen will have us on our way to a glorious breakfast buffet in the 360-degree rotating Piz Gloria restaurant on top of the Schilthorn. Afterwards, we will stop off at Birg to do the Skyline Thrill Walk before heading down to Mürren. Eventually, an alpine meadow hike will take us back to make our way to Wengen again. We will enjoy our final dinner at this location. Tomorrow, we transition to Iseltwald on Lake Brienz.

Saying farewell to Wengen after breakfast, we make our way down the mountain one last time. Today we are heading to our next stop, Iseltwald on beautiful Lake Brienz. We will travel to our hotel and then quickly head out to explore the turquoise waters of the lake via a ferry boat ride to the Giessbach Falls and then across the lake to the town of Brienz. Brienz is well-known for its tradition of wood working. The "Most Beautiful Street in Europe", the Brunngasse, is lined with houses adorned with intricate wood carvings. Many of the houses date back to the 18th Century. We will enjoy a lovely dinner in Brienz before making our way back to the hotel for the evening.

Rise and shine with a beautiful view of Lake Brienz to enjoy along with a scrumptious breakfast at the hotel. Today we will once again travel across the lake to Brienz. There we hop on the Brienzer Rothornbahn for a ride to the top of the Rothorn. It takes one hour for the small locomotive steam engine to push the train to the 7,700 ft summit. The views from there down towards Lake Brienz are stunning. Once we return to Brienz, we jump on a bus for a short ride to the Ballenberg Open-Air Museum. Here we can enjoy displays of traditional Swiss buildings and architecture. Over 100 original buildings have been relocated from their original sites. Ballenberg is considered a Swiss Heritage Site of National Significance. Later we return to our hotel and enjoy dinner there.

Medieval towns, castles and lakes....the theme of the day. We make our way to Interlaken for a ferry boat ride on Lake Thun all the way to the city Thun. The medieval Thun Castle above the town is a striking focal point. This is a completely preserved castle which contains a Knight's Hall, one of the few surviving halls of its type from the Middle Ages. Afterwards, a train takes us to the Swiss capital city Bern. Bern is built around the Aare River and traces its origins back to the 12th Century. Its medieval architecture is preserved in the scenic Altstadt (Old Town) which includes the Zytglogge which dates back to the 13th Century. We will also visit the Bern cathedral, the tallest cathedral in Switzerland. We then travel back to our hotel to enjoy our final dinner in Iseltwald.

Sadly, our time in Switzerland is coming to an end. Today we head back to Zurich. But first, we will take a trip to Lucerne, one of Europe's must-see destinations. Here we will be able to enjoy the restored medieval town center and the famous wooden Chapel Bridge, which is considered to be Europe's oldest covered bridge (built in 1332). After our sightseeing comes to an end, we will enjoy dinner in Lucerne before traveling on to Zurich for our final night in Switzerland.

Enjoy breakfast at the hotel (if your departure time allows) and then I will assist you with transportation to the Zurich Airport. Here we say Tschüssli, after what I hope was a very memorable time spent together.

Travel up to Jungfraujoch and enjoy the Top of Europe experience

Visit Meiringen and the Sherlock Holmes museum and Reichenbach Falls

Explore Trümmelbach Falls and Staubbach Falls - waterfalls in the Lauterbrunnen area

Rent a bike and ride up to Kleine Scheidegg or thru Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg

Paraglide from Mürren down to Stechelberg

Travelers WiFi - carry a portable WiFi router with you and always be internet connected even on the highest mountain

Traveler Insurance - Information about insurance policies

Swiss Public Transportation - you can search all of the Swiss public transportation schedules here

US State Department - a wealth of information, including travel advisories and passport requirements