September 21 – October 6 · Zürich · Geneva · Zermatt · St. Moritz · Luzern
T&C land very late and go straight to hotel after airport checks.
T&C get oriented in Zürich. Slow day; walk past landmarks, lunch & shopping in the pedestrian zone. No dinner plans.
T&C overnight trip to Bern. Outdoor architectural tour during the day; breweries at night. Eat at one of the breweries. Boutique hotel overnight.
T&C see all the museums in Bern. Train back to Zürich in the evening and check into the AirBnB.
Chris & Luke arrive! Meet near airport and get settled in AirBnB. Couple of museums in the afternoon, but mostly fight jet lag.
Nature walk day: scale model of solar system, botanical garden, and arboretum. Dinner reservations at the Old Inn. Last night in AirBnB.
Early start to get to Geneva and CERN. Fill in the afternoon with historic sights. Possible French dinner (not committed yet). Generic hotel.
Depart Zürich Hauptbahnhof · IC1 · Hourly service · ~3 hours
Arrive Genève-Cornavin
Squeeze in a few more sights north of Geneva, then get to Zermatt for the evening. Casual dinner at a local pub; no firm time commitments. Hotel is a ski resort / chalet style.
Depart Gare Cornavin (Geneva central station) · Approximately hourly
IR95 Genève → Visp (direction Brig) · Transfer at Visp · R41 Visp → Zermatt
Total journey: ~3–3.5 hours
Goal of the day is to see the Matterhorn then (relatively short) hike back. Sleep in, late brunch, then cable car up midday. 2 pm reservation for food mid-hike on the way back. Relax!
Glacier express route train day! Take local trains between small towns. Stop off for exploration, short hikes, and food when desired. Evening drinks in St. Moritz at the world’s largest whisky collection. Boutique hotel.
R41/R42 Zermatt → Visp ·
R43 Visp → Andermatt
R45 Andermatt → Disentis/Mustér ·
RE7 Disentis/Mustér → Reichenau-Tamins
IR38 Reichenau-Tamins → St. Moritz
Departures start early morning — plan for an all-day journey.
Finish the train loop around the country. Spend as much time in St. Moritz as we like; train back to Zürich in the afternoon. Ad hoc dinner. Visit the laundromat in some downtime. Boutique hotel.
Via Samedan → Chur → Zürich Hauptbahnhof
Last day for all four in Zürich. Visit a scattering of remaining parks, buildings, and other attractions — including a local game store! Finish up with traditional Swiss cuisine for dinner.
See C&L off in the morning. T&C trip to Luzern. Walking tour & sightseeing turns into a brewery crawl in the evening. Boutique hotel.
Casual day. Visit a few museums in Luzern, then return to Zürich in the evening. No concrete dinner plans. Stay at Zürich airport Hilton.
TBD
Early travel day for Tim & Catherine. Get up very early at airport hotel, then get through check-in and security as early as possible.