Switzerland – from north to south, between Rhine and Adda

Guided tour, 8 days, not including transportation to Switzerland. Code 0886

Route

Zürich – Rhe­in­fall – Luzern – Engel­berg – Titlis – Grim­sel Pass – Zermatt – Nufe­nen Pass – Bel­lin­zo­na – Luga­no – Chur – Tira­no – Ber­ni­na Pass – St. Moritz – Zürich

Highlights

Pano­ra­mic tra­in ride on the Ber­ni­na Express
The ste­epest funi­cu­lar rail­way in Europe
The lar­gest water­fall in Europe
The highest suspen­sion brid­ge in Europe
The most beau­ti­ful moun­ta­in in Swit­zer­land – Matterhorn
Alpi­ne che­ese fac­to­ry visit
Ride along Alpi­ne serpentines
Small and frien­dly groups

Itinerary (in short)

Day 1

Arri­val in Zurich air­port and trans­fer to a hotel in Zurich.

Free time in Zurich city cen­ter (old town, lake, shopping).

Accom­mo­da­tion in Zurich.

Day 2

(the first tour day with our tour guide)

Zurich — Swiss Natio­nal Museum — local guide.

The Rhi­ne Falls — 2 boat rides.

Accom­mo­da­tion in Lucer­ne area.

Day 3

Lucer­ne — old town — local guide.

Titlis — 3238 m — cable car, Titlis Cliff Walk suspen­sion brid­ge, ice cave and snow experience.

Accom­mo­da­tion in Lake Brienz area.

Day 4

Grim­sel Pass (2165 m) — Gel­mer­bahn (funi­cu­lar)

Gel­mer Lake — walk aro­und the lake 2h, nor­mal condition.

Small Alpi­ne che­ese factory.

Accom­mo­da­tion in Upper Vala­is area.

Day 5

Zermatt — Gor­ner­grat (rack rail­way) — Matterhorn

Free time in Zermatt.

Accom­mo­da­tion in Upper Vala­is area.

Day 6

Nufe­nen Pass (2,478 m) — the second highest road moun­ta­in pass in Switzerland

Castel­gran­de — the lar­gest castle in Belin­zo­na (UNESCO World Heri­ta­ge List)

Luga­no — San Salva­to­re, funi­cu­lar, vie­wing point (Luga­no, Ita­ly, Cam­pio­ne di Italia)

Luga­no Lake Promenade.

Accom­mo­da­tion in Chur.

Day 7

Ber­ni­na Express (tra­in; UNESCO World Heri­ta­ge List) — from Chur to Tira­no in Italy.

Trans­fer to the Val­ley of Upper Enga­din, St. Moritz area, Switzerland.

Muot­tas Muragl — vie­wing point, funi­cu­lar, restaurant.

Accom­mo­da­tion in St. Moritz area.

Day 8

Trans­fer to Zurich or Zurich air­port. Arri­val ca. 12:00 (noon).

No accom­mo­da­tion.

Full description of the tour

Day 1 – Zürich

Arri­val in Zürich, Switzerland’s big­gest city. We will meet you at the air­port and take you to a hotel in the city cen­ter of Zürich. Free time to rest after your trip to Swit­zer­land, walk aro­und the old town, to the lake or shop­ping. This day is witho­ut our tour guide.

Day 2 – Zürich, Rheinfall

Our tour begins with a visit to the Natio­nal Swiss Museum. Loca­ted in a sty­lish pala­ce at the conver­gen­ce of the Lim­mat and Sihl rivers, this is the most fre­qu­en­tly visi­ted histo­ri­cal museum in the coun­try. Here, we will learn a lit­tle abo­ut the histo­ry and cul­tu­re of the Swiss and the most impor­tant pro­ces­ses that ulti­ma­te­ly sha­ped Swit­zer­land into the coun­try it is today. After our museum visit, we will head out for lunch. Along the way, we will see, among other things, a neo-rena­is­san­ce rail­way sta­tion. The after­no­on will be spent away from the hustle and bustle of the city, at the Rhe­in­fall (Rhi­ne Falls), the lar­gest pla­in water­fall in Euro­pe, in the can­ton of Schaf­fhau­sen, the most nor­thern region of Swit­zer­land. We will make the most of this beau­ti­ful natu­ral spec­tac­le, as a boat will take us across to the rocks in the mid­dle of water­fall, and we will also have the oppor­tu­ni­ty to visit Lau­fen castle abo­ve us. In the castle museum, we will learn abo­ut this region’s eco­no­mic deve­lop­ment thro­ugho­ut histo­ry. Accom­mo­da­tion in the area of Luzern.

Day 3 – Luzern, Engelberg, Titlis

On the third day, we will head south to visit cen­tral Swit­zer­land. We will go sight­se­eing in Luzern, a cul­tu­ral hub in the area, on the sho­res of its epo­ny­mo­us lake. We will expe­rien­ce the 15th cen­tu­ry Kapel­l­brüc­ke – the oldest, and second lon­gest, roofed wooden brid­ge in Euro­pe – and visit, among other things, the old town and for­ti­fi­ca­tions. After lunch, we will tra­vel to Engel­berg, a town known for win­ter sports and an impres­si­ve Bene­dic­ti­ne mona­ste­ry. A uni­que gon­do­la lift — Titlis Rota­ir — that spins on its own axis will take us up to Mount Titlis (3,238 m a.s.l.). Cove­red with snow all year round and boasting the only gla­cier in this region, Titlis offers not only bre­ath­ta­king views, but also the chan­ce to take part in typi­cal­ly win­ter acti­vi­ties at the height of sum­mer. The Ice Fly­er cha­ir­lift will take us to an ice the­me park whe­re endless fun awa­its us as we can go snow riding (snow toys, snow­tu­bing), take a walk thro­ugh a 150 m long cave insi­de a gla­cier (tem­pe­ra­tu­re ‑1.5°C / 29.3°F) and feel the thrills of wal­king on the Titlis Cliff Walk, the highest suspen­sion brid­ge in Euro­pe. After we return to Engel­berg, we will go for din­ner. Next, we will head fur­ther south for an over­ni­ght stay near the Lake Brienz. Along the way, we pass thro­ugh stun­nin­gly idyl­lic sce­ne­ry, such as the char­ming Lake Sar­nen, the Lake Lun­gern and the Brünig Pass.

Day 4 – Grimsel Pass

Our jour­ney takes us fur­ther south. From the Ber­ne­se Obe­rland, we will tra­vel thro­ugh the Grim­sel Pass (2,164 m a.s.l.) to the can­ton of Vala­is. The Grim­sel Pass is undo­ub­te­dly one of the most beau­ti­ful pas­ses in Swit­zer­land. Water dams, shim­me­ring lakes sur­ro­un­ded by moun­ta­ins, gla­ciers, a hydro power sta­tion and a some excel­lent tourist attrac­tions make this pla­ce a defi­ni­te must-see on any tra­vel iti­ne­ra­ry! As we jour­ney across to the pass, we will visit a small Alpi­ne che­ese fac­to­ry whe­re we will have a chan­ce to taste local spe­cia­li­ties and, if we are luc­ky, we might also get to see the che­ese making pro­cess in action. From here, we will go thro­ugh 70 metre long suspen­sion brid­ge to the Gel­mer­bahn rail­way sta­tion. The Gel­mer­bahn is the ste­epest funi­cu­lar rail­way in Euro­pe, with a gra­dient of up to 106%. Then, we will go up to the Gel­mer­see dam. Our route to the pass will takes us past two more dams and the marvel­lo­us Lake Grim­sel. We enjoy a meal on the pass and then have the oppor­tu­ni­ty to visit a mar­mot park. In the after­no­on, we will arri­ve at our accom­mo­da­tion in the area of Täsch (the can­ton of Valais).

Day 5 – Zermatt

We tra­vel by tra­in to Zermatt (ca. 15 minu­tes), a town that is car free. A rack rail­way will take us up to Gor­ner­grat (3,089 m a.s.l.), whe­re you can admi­re the pano­ra­mic views of the Mat­ter­horn (4,475 m a.s.l.), con­si­de­red to be Switzerland’s most beau­ti­ful sum­mit, and the Gor­ner Gla­cier. This fabu­lo­us pla­ce is the per­fect set­ting for a restau­rant meal. From Gor­ner­grat, a lift will take us down to Roten­bo­den (2,819 m a.s.l.), from whe­re we will take a walk to the Rif­fel­see lake. The reflec­tion of the Mat­ter­horn on the sur­fa­ce of the water tru­ly is a won­der to behold. The fifth day of our jour­ney will end with a leisu­re­ly stroll thro­ugh Zermatt.

Day 6 – Nufenen Pass, Bellinzona, Lugano 

After a bre­ak­fast inc­lu­ding an excel­lent selec­tion of che­eses and dried meats from the Vala­is can­ton, we will head towards Bel­lin­zo­na, a capi­tal city of the Ita­lian-spe­aking can­ton of Tici­no. Our way will lead along a pic­tu­re­sque Nufe­nen Pass (2,478 m / 8,129 ft high), the second highest road moun­ta­in pass in Swit­zer­land, open for car traf­fic only in Sum­mer. In Bel­lin­zo­na we will visit the lar­gest of three castles towe­ring over the city – Castel­gran­de, which is on the UNESCO World Heri­ta­ge List. We will spend the after­no­on in Luga­no, Ticino’s big­gest city. Wal­king thro­ugh the city park and the beau­ti­ful pro­me­na­de on the banks of the lake, we will have the chan­ce to marvel at the local land­sca­pe – this set­ting is the per­fect pho­to oppor­tu­ni­ty! A funi­cu­lar rail­way will, then, take us up to Mount San Salva­to­re (912 m a.s.l.), to a vie­wing point which boasts magni­fi­cent views of the Luga­no area, neigh­bo­uring Ita­ly and Cam­pio­ne d’Italia, an Ita­lian exc­la­ve within Swiss ter­ri­to­ry. The­re is a restau­rant, a museum and a cha­pel on the top of the moun­ta­in. After leaving Tici­no, we will stay over­ni­ght in the can­ton of Gri­sons, in eastern Switzerland.

Day 7 – Chur, Bernina Express, Tirano, St. Moritz

After bre­ak­fast, we will leave for Chur, the regio­nal capi­tal of the can­ton of Gri­sons and the oldest city in Swit­zer­land. Here, we will step on to the Ber­ni­na Express, a famo­us pano­ra­mic tra­in, and embark on a four-hour jour­ney. This stretch of the Rha­etian Rail­way con­nects Chur and the Ita­lian town of Tira­no, on the banks of the river Adda. The route is con­si­de­red to be one of the most spec­ta­cu­lar in Swit­zer­land. It is listed on UNESCO World Heri­ta­ge List which testi­fies to its value. During the tra­in ride, we will pass thro­ugh are­as with vary­ing alti­tu­des, from 2,253 m abo­ve sea level on the Ber­ni­na Pass to 429 m abo­ve sea level in Tira­no. Along the way, not only will we see the bre­ath­ta­king land­sca­pes that exem­pli­fy the Swiss Alps in the best way, but it will also beco­me cle­ar that the brid­ges, tun­nels and via­ducts we will see along the way real­ly do show off Swiss engi­ne­ering at its finest! It will be time for lunch when we get to Tira­no, fol­lo­wing which we will tra­vel back to Swit­zer­land, via the Ber­ni­na Pass. We ride by a funi­cu­lar to Muot­tas Muragl 2,454 m abo­ve sea level, whe­re the­re is a vie­wing ter­ra­ce pro­vi­ding the views of both Piz Ber­ni­na – the highest sum­mit in the can­ton of Gri­sons (4,047 m a.s.l.) – and the beau­ti­ful val­ley of Upper Enga­di­ne . The per­fect pla­ce for a din­ner. Next the­re will be time for a leisu­re­ly stroll along the banks of one of the lakes in the valley.

Day 8

After bre­ak­fast, we will head back to Zürich / Zürich air­port. Then will come our good­by­es to our tour participants.