Anonymous wrote:slight detour on the OP, but I have many questions on the different fare passes in Switzerland and there aren't that many Switzerland threads here. We are staying 6 nights in Murren/Wengen, by way of Zurich/Lucerne--I THINK we are best served by the BOP and the Swiss Half Fare passes combined. Any thoughts?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were in the Bernese Oberland last summer for about 10 days, mainly hut to hut hiking with a few hotels in the mountain towns.

We actually did not find Switzerland that expensive, which may be bit of a shocker. The mountain huts were inclusive of breakfast and dinner. The hotels always included breakfast. The local coop (supermarket chain) had excellent sandwiches and pastries for lunches on the trail and were quite cheap. And when you're hiking you're not really spending money, right? It wasn't a cheap vacation but we were expecting to be spending more money and it turned out not to be the case. Do make sure you get the half fare pass as that gives you 50% off almost all train/bus/cable car in the country.

I think, logistically, it's slightly easier in Switzerland. You could book an apartment or hotel in Murren or Wengen in the BO and do plenty of day hiking trips up to a mountain hut or berghaus for lunch, returning to either town at the end of the day. The valley floor has sights like the Trummelbach falls (amazing) and cable cars up to Piz Gloria peak. Lucerne and Bern are both pleasant one night stopovers on the way to the BO.

I've also been to the Dolomites. The mountains in Switzerland are higher and that much more dramatic. But the Dolomites are gorgeous as well. Do strongly recommend staying in huts or berghauses or refugios up in the mountains, not just hotels in the valleys. Food is perhaps also better in the Dolomites, which has a strong Austro-German influence in the cuisine, but we still ate well in Switzerland. If you went to the Dolomites, you could probably combine it with a few days somewhere in Northern Italy like Verona or Lake Garda and in checking at flights, flights to Milan right now are cheaper than flights to Zurich.

Hiking in both areas is very easy with signs everywhere and different levels of trails. Make sure you are comfortable with the higher grade trails with more exposure. All in all, while I loved the Dolomites, if you really want Alps, Switzerland hands down.

We spent our Switzerland trip the same way as you - lots of hiking, hotels with breakfasts and eating at coop - food prices at coop were similar to the USA. I just don’t think the average dcum would be okay with that kind of vacation lol. They’re going to want restaurant food every night with drinks and apps.

Oh and one more thing to add - I’ve spent over 3 weeks in Switzerland in 2024 - went in summer and was there last month. It’s the restaurants that are going to kill a budget. I didn’t find lodging anymore expensive than what you’d find in the USA - in fact I thought some places were cheaper and a better value.

It’s the eating out and drinking that kills a budget in Switzerland. So if you’re okay with grocery store meals and hotel breakfasts it can definitely be affordable. And don’t knock the Coop pre made food - it’s really good.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were in the Bernese Oberland last summer for about 10 days, mainly hut to hut hiking with a few hotels in the mountain towns.

We actually did not find Switzerland that expensive, which may be bit of a shocker. The mountain huts were inclusive of breakfast and dinner. The hotels always included breakfast. The local coop (supermarket chain) had excellent sandwiches and pastries for lunches on the trail and were quite cheap. And when you're hiking you're not really spending money, right? It wasn't a cheap vacation but we were expecting to be spending more money and it turned out not to be the case. Do make sure you get the half fare pass as that gives you 50% off almost all train/bus/cable car in the country.

I think, logistically, it's slightly easier in Switzerland. You could book an apartment or hotel in Murren or Wengen in the BO and do plenty of day hiking trips up to a mountain hut or berghaus for lunch, returning to either town at the end of the day. The valley floor has sights like the Trummelbach falls (amazing) and cable cars up to Piz Gloria peak. Lucerne and Bern are both pleasant one night stopovers on the way to the BO.

I've also been to the Dolomites. The mountains in Switzerland are higher and that much more dramatic. But the Dolomites are gorgeous as well. Do strongly recommend staying in huts or berghauses or refugios up in the mountains, not just hotels in the valleys. Food is perhaps also better in the Dolomites, which has a strong Austro-German influence in the cuisine, but we still ate well in Switzerland. If you went to the Dolomites, you could probably combine it with a few days somewhere in Northern Italy like Verona or Lake Garda and in checking at flights, flights to Milan right now are cheaper than flights to Zurich.

Hiking in both areas is very easy with signs everywhere and different levels of trails. Make sure you are comfortable with the higher grade trails with more exposure. All in all, while I loved the Dolomites, if you really want Alps, Switzerland hands down.

We spent our Switzerland trip the same way as you - lots of hiking, hotels with breakfasts and eating at coop - food prices at coop were similar to the USA. I just don’t think the average dcum would be okay with that kind of vacation lol. They’re going to want restaurant food every night with drinks and apps.

Anonymous wrote:We were in the Bernese Oberland last summer for about 10 days, mainly hut to hut hiking with a few hotels in the mountain towns.

We actually did not find Switzerland that expensive, which may be bit of a shocker. The mountain huts were inclusive of breakfast and dinner. The hotels always included breakfast. The local coop (supermarket chain) had excellent sandwiches and pastries for lunches on the trail and were quite cheap. And when you're hiking you're not really spending money, right? It wasn't a cheap vacation but we were expecting to be spending more money and it turned out not to be the case. Do make sure you get the half fare pass as that gives you 50% off almost all train/bus/cable car in the country.

I think, logistically, it's slightly easier in Switzerland. You could book an apartment or hotel in Murren or Wengen in the BO and do plenty of day hiking trips up to a mountain hut or berghaus for lunch, returning to either town at the end of the day. The valley floor has sights like the Trummelbach falls (amazing) and cable cars up to Piz Gloria peak. Lucerne and Bern are both pleasant one night stopovers on the way to the BO.

I've also been to the Dolomites. The mountains in Switzerland are higher and that much more dramatic. But the Dolomites are gorgeous as well. Do strongly recommend staying in huts or berghauses or refugios up in the mountains, not just hotels in the valleys. Food is perhaps also better in the Dolomites, which has a strong Austro-German influence in the cuisine, but we still ate well in Switzerland. If you went to the Dolomites, you could probably combine it with a few days somewhere in Northern Italy like Verona or Lake Garda and in checking at flights, flights to Milan right now are cheaper than flights to Zurich.

Hiking in both areas is very easy with signs everywhere and different levels of trails. Make sure you are comfortable with the higher grade trails with more exposure. All in all, while I loved the Dolomites, if you really want Alps, Switzerland hands down.

Anonymous wrote:The food is much, much better in the Dolomites - if that factors into your decision

Anonymous wrote:Yes, budget is a big factor.

A gin & tonic in the swiss alps might be $35. A sausage might be $50. One sausage plate.