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What to see on a 5-day trip to Switzerland

Switzerland is undoubtedly the most beautiful place that I have ever visited. I have put together a short diary of my trip and would like to share some useful information for those who are planning on visiting Switzerland someday, too!

Here are some tips on what to see on a 5 day trip to Switzerland:

The first thing we did was to buy a Swiss Travel Pass for all of us in the group. This all-inclusive pass grants you unlimited travel on Switzerland's public transport network on either 3, 4, 8 or 15 days - either on consecutive days or on flexible dates.

Day 1 - Zürich & Rhine Falls

We had planned mainly to see Zürich and the Rhine Falls. We reached Basel airport from London and from there took a train to Zürich. We roamed around the city and did some sightseeing.

What to see in Switzerland - Rhine Falls

Zürich is the largest city in Switzerland and has a large number of museums and art galleries. As we were already running behind schedule, we did not go to the museums and just took a stroll around.

From the main station, we departed for Schaffhausen, the city where the Rhine Falls are located. The Rhine river flows into the breathtaking structure of the Rhine Falls, which are the largest waterfallsin Europe.

The serenity of the river comes to a sudden halt just outside the idyllic city of Schaffhausen, as the water plummets over the long wide rock that is almost 500 meters wide before falling into a cascading waterfall that is over 75 feet in height. Finally, the Rhine settles in a sea of white froth. The water returns to its smooth glassy nature again as the river makes a U-turn.

This natural turning provides a spectacular view of the falls.

You cannot resist taking pictures at such a beautiful place. We took lots of photos and then returned back to Zurich. From there, we continued to our final halt for the day, Interlaken.

How to Make Friends in Switzerland - Interlaken

Interlaken is the one of the most popular holiday destinations of Switzerland.

It lies in the Bernese Oberland between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz. As a vacation destination and convention location of international importance, Interlaken is an ideal starting point for countless excursions like skiing, hiking, ice skating, biking, etc.

Day 2 – Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe

The best part of our Switzerland visit was the journey to Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe, at 3454 meters Europe’s highest altitude railway station!

Kleine Scheidegg - Copyright by Rio Akasaka

We took a train from the Interlaken Ost station to Jungfraujoch. The train journey was awesome, providing a scenic view of the alpine landscape, the snow and the surrounding mountains.

A large complex of tunnels and buildings has been constructed on top of the Jungfraujoch, mostly into the south side of the Mönch. There is a hotel, two restaurants, an observatory, a research station, a small cinema, a ski school, and the Ice Palace, a collection of elaborate ice sculptures.

Another tunnel leads outside to a flat, snow-covered area, where one can walk around and look down to the Konkordiaplatz and the Aletsch Glacier, as well as the surrounding mountains.

We also did some skiing here, and the experience was wonderful!

From Jungfraujoch, we returned back to Grindelwald by train. Grindelwald is a beautiful village located in the Bernese Alps, and taking a walk there relieves all the worries.

What to see in Switzerland - Grindelwald

And finally, we returned back to Interlaken by train.

Day 3 – Mt. Titlis

Mt. Titlis is a mountain in the Urner Alps of Switzerland. We took a train from Interlaken to Hergiswil and then Hergiswil to Engelberg. Engelberg is the lower part of Mt. Titlis.

What to see in Switzerland - Engelberg Titlis

We had our tasty Breakfast at Engelberg, just below Mt. Titlis. And then we headed for the Glacier Cave. From there, one needs to take cable cars to reach the top of Mt. Titlis into the Glacier Cave. It is a journey of three different cable cars, out of which the last one is a rotating car called Rotair.

The ice was lit up in different colors, and they changed constantly in the Glacier Park which was a very cool sight.

Then we headed for the Glacier Park. We took a ride on the ice flyer, which was an amazing experience. The Glacier Park was awesome! We all enjoyed our tube rides down the ice track. We also did some sleds and saddles down a ramp. We had a great time at the mountain. Finally, we went down to Engelberg and bought some souvenirs.

What to see in Switzerland - Luzern

Then, we went to the final destination of the day: Lucerne, a city in north-central Switzerland. We packed our dinner from there and got some city views. Day 3 was also over and we all headed for our hotel.

Day 4 – Glacier Express

We planned the fourth day of our trip for resting, but inside a train! So we got tickets for the Glacier Express. The Glacier Express is one of Switzerland's most famous train excursions. It is billed as "the world's slowest express train" on its most popular route from Zermatt to St. Moritz, or vice versa.

What to see in Switzerland - Glacier Express

First, we went to Chur by regular train and then took the Glacier Express ride from Chur to Zermatt. We roamed around the village of Zermatt and enjoyed the sightseeing.

Day 5 – Boat Cruise and Paragliding

The final day of our trip was reserved for Interlaken and its sports activities. First off, we took a boat cruise on Lake Thun. Later in the day, we were all set for paragliding!

What to see in Switzerland - Paragliding Interlaken

Paragliding Interlaken is a unique experience. It is a sort of a roller coaster ride that is three dimensional. It leads over two alpine lakes, and you will see the pine forests and the valley sail beneath you...

Finally, we headed for our return trip to Basel and then back to London!

(via Hubpages with permission from Anupama; paragliding photograph copyright by skywings.ch)

Dimitri Burkhard

As the founder, editor, and community manager of Newly Swissed, Dimitri owns the strategic vision. He is passionate about storytelling and is a member of Swiss Travel Communicators. Dimitri loves discovering new trends and covers architecture, design, start-ups and tourism.

22 comments

  • hai my name Ashith and I’m planning a trip from Bahrain to Swiss.How much it will coast for me? and i’m planning to go for a solo trip any advs?

    • Hi Ashith! We’re glad you found Newly Swissed… One way to keep your budget in check is by staying at one of the many youth hostels in Switzerland. Depending on your expectations and your budget, you might want to stay in smaller towns and avoid tourism hotspots like Interlaken. Essentially, Switzerland is small enough so that you may reach any spot even when staying off the beaten track. Good luck!

  • hi,
    i am having plan for 5 day holiday trip to switzerland and then to amsterdam for official work.
    i wanna have a clear picture where to take night stay??
    i mean whole trip wat you have described is beautiful except the night stay part.so can u help me in that part.

    • Hotel Alpenblick in Wilderswil (near Interlacken). I see my brother Peter also recommended Lauterbrunnen, many nice hotels there too.

  • Hi
    Really good information. V r visiting switzerland in the middle of november for 7 days.. Is it gonna b too cold? What precautions v shd tale? We are planning to hire an appartment in interlaken for 7 days. Is that fine?

  • While a trip to the top of Jungfraujoch is wonderful, I might suggest not going all the way up on a tight or limited schedule. Views from Kleine Scheidegg to the massif or from other parts of the valley below are arguably better and more varied. When in the mountains, time and daylight are more precious than the CHF used to get there!

  • Hi, i am visiting Switzerland for 5 days with my parents in June. i would like to take the same tour as above. all i need to know is which city would be advisable to stay each night after the tour. i am arriving in Zurich and Departing from Geneva. your suggestion will help me know where to plan my stays and book the hotels accordingly

    • We’re glad to hear that you will be visiting Switzerland this summer! Please pose your question on our Facebook page, as we do not provide travel planning… But if you read the article carefully, you can find some of the places to stay (eg. Lucerne). I hope you understand.

      Dimitri

  • Hello we’ll be travelling to London middle of July for our brother’s graduation and fly to Zurich on the 19th July. We have a 6mo+ baby travelling with us. What is the weather in Switzerland on July? Is it ok to bring our baby along to Engelberg?

    • Hi Alanna,
      Great to hear that you’ll be visiting Switzerland! July is mostly nice and hot, although Engelberg will be the perfect spot to find some crisp air during the summer. You should be fine bringing your offspring along ;-)

  • Very useful information! Can you please tell me which Swiss pass you bought for this 5-day trip? We are travelling to Switzerland next week for 5 days from London and following an itinerary that is very similar to yours. We are thinking to buy 4 day Swiss Consecutive pass starting from the second day of our travel and pay for the train tickets for our first day (Basel – Rhine falls – Zurich).

  • Hi. We are going to be in Switzerland early January.
    Is any of this trip accessible in winter or should some variation be considered?
    Gruyere for instance, instead of hanging around Interlaken?

    • Great that you’ll be coming to Switzerland. Most of these suggestions will be too chilly to try in January. However, cities like Bern, Lucerne or Zürich can be lovely on a winter day. Gruyère has the Cailler chocolate factory nearby, which is a great place to visit. Finally, if you are craving for sun rather than snow, head down to the Lavaux region around Montreux. It is lovely any time of the year! Best of luck, Dimitri

  • Hey! May I know when was your trip? I’m planning to visit Switzerland on 21 March-25 March. Do you think the same itinerary is suitable?

  • Hi I’m planning to visit Switzerland first week of June with my parents,my father is handicap I will need your help this 5 day trip will it be comfortable for him and where should we keep our base so that it’s easy to commute to all these places on daily basis.

  • Hi,
    I plan a trip to Switerland with my family (includes 1 year old daughter) from 2nd Aug morning from Milan -6th Aug late afternoon back to Rome. can you suggest me how to plan if i want to travel zurich , Geneva, Bern, Interlaken. also, can you suggest whether i should take car or travel by train or buses. thanks in advance

  • Hi Dimitri,

    Im planning to visit Switzerland in March/April. Is this a good time to visit the places mentioned above in your blog? Im planning for the same itinery as yours.

    Thanks.

Dimitri Burkhard

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