Four Spectacular Days in Switzerland

Before we boarded Uniworld’s S.S. Antoinette in Basel, Switzerland, I thought it would be fun to plan a four-day pre-cruise adventure by land to see some of Switzerland’s gorgeous countryside. I don’t know about you but when I think of Switzerland, mountains and lakes immediately come to mind and that was what I was bound and determined to see. Although Switzerland is a small country, you really can’t cover it in four days so I had to make a decision about what section of this gorgeous country we were going to see.

Knowing that we were going to end up in Basel, I focused on the northwestern part of the country. As I started doing my research, I quickly realized that buying a four-day Swiss Pass would be an excellent investment as it would entitle us to free travel throughout the Swiss Travel System with a few notable exceptions.

We landed in Geneva and spent a day exploring the city, including Geneva’s Old Town and the shore of Lake Geneva. Not wanting to spend a fortune for dinner (our dollars didn’t buy us many Swiss francs and a very ordinary dinner could easily cost at least $100), we found a cozy little restaurant called Fifty-Fifty with a convivial atmosphere. We met a Brazilian couple, David and Daniela, sitting next to us who lived in Geneva and struck up an interesting conversation with them. Before long, the owner was offering us a glass of the house limoncello.

The next day we were off to Montreux to catch the GoldenPass Line, one of Switzerland’s classic scenic train routes which goes from Montreux to Lucerne. Our plan that day was to take one train from Montreux to Zweisimmen and catch another train from Zweisimmen to Interlaken. However, due to a bridge undergoing renovation, we had to get off the train at Château d’Oex and bus it to Zweisimmen. Yes, even the super precise Swiss Travel System hiccups once in a while.

In Interlaken, we stayed at the Hotel du Lac, a charming hotel located between Lake Brienz and Lake Thun that has been run by the same family for generations. Our corner room had a gorgeous view of Lake Brienz. The cream of asparagus soup I had at the hotel restaurant was very tasty.

Our primary reason for coming to Interlaken was to visit the Jungfrau region, where majestic Mt. Eiger, Mt. Mönch and Mt. Jungfrau make their presence known. The $64,000 question of the day was how far up this Alpine massif were we willing to go given the weather conditions. Our Swiss Passes would get us from Interlaken (elev. 567 feet) to Wengen (elev. 4,180 feet); to go any higher we would have to start shelling out Swiss Francs – lots of them. At Wengen we decided to bite the bullet and pay an additional 84 Swiss francs and take the Wengernalp cog wheel railway to Kleine Scheidegg (elev. 6,762 feet), where the views of the Eiger north face were spectacular. We spent over an hour breathing the clean fresh air, photographing the stunning landscape and appreciating Mother Nature at her finest.

As much as I had wanted to board the Jungfrau Railway, Europe’s highest-altitude railway which runs partly through a tunnel hewn out of rock to Jungfraujoch (Top of Europe, elev. 11,333 feet), it was obvious at Kleine Scheidegg that we would see nothing but fog if we took the trip. If our Swiss Passes would have allowed us to do it without paying an additional 250 Swiss francs, I would have done it in a heart beat just to experience this pioneering masterpiece among mountain railways. However, for 250 Swiss francs, a view of fog just doesn’t cut it.

From Interlaken, we took the GoldenPass Line to Lucerne, where we spent two wonderful days. In Lucerne, we particularly enjoyed strolling across the Chapel Bridge, the oldest wooden covered bridge in Europe and walking on the walls of Old Town Lucerne where we savored some beautiful views of the city. The highlights of our visit, however, were the trip to Mt. Rigi (its name stems from the Latin “Regina Montium” or “Queen of Mountains”) and a boat ride around Lake Lucerne.

We started our venture on a boat from Lucerne to Vitznau and transferred to the cogwheel railway that led to the summit of Mt. Rigi (elev. 6,000 ft). The weather was gorgeous and the views of the Swiss Alps and Lake Lucerne from the top of Mt. Rigi were breathtaking. It was everything that I imagined Switzerland to be and more! I’ve never been fond of German food, but the bratwurst and fries I had for lunch at the summit sure hit the spot. We then walked partly down Mt. Rigi to catch the cable car from Rigi-Kaltbad to Weggis.

Rather than returning by boat directly from Weggis to Lucerne, we decided that there was still a lot of Lake Lucerne to explore so we opted to take the five-hour boat road all the way around the lake to discover its idyllic bays and romantic inland lake fjords. Lake Lucerne and Lake Tahoe are both beautiful but Lake Lucerne is surrounded by Old World European elegance. I happened to strike up a conversation with a Swiss woman who was traveling with her father and he pointed out the location of a secret munitions factory in which he worked during World War II. We then cruised by Tell’s chapel, where according to legend, William Tell leapt from the boat of his captors during a storm and escaped, allowing him to assassinate the tyrant Gessler and initiate the rebellion that led to the foundation of the Old Swiss Confederacy. God knows how many other interesting stories I could have uncovered about Lake Lucerne if I had spent more time.

After four days of unpacking, re-packing and running around to catch trains, buses, boats and cable cars, I was ready to board the S.S. Antoinette, my floating boutique hotel which would take me down the Rhine from one fabulous destination to another.

More photos of Switzerland