Anonymous wrote:I spent a good bit of time (months) in Switzerland as a child and remember very little of it. I do remember European vacations to other locations.

Personally it’s very far to travel with kids. I’d take my kids hiking in Vermont and save the $ and emissions. Your kids don’t care if the hiking is VT or Switzerland. You eventually get used to the scenery anyway.

Perhaps leave the kids at home if you need to go hiking in Switzerland and not the US.

I take your point but in a week of hiking I never really got used to the scenery— the joke was that we’d stop for pictures every 10 minutes even though it just another waterfall/mountain/scenic vista. I’d love to go back

I spent a good bit of time (months) in Switzerland as a child and remember very little of it. I do remember European vacations to other locations.

Personally it’s very far to travel with kids. I’d take my kids hiking in Vermont and save the $ and emissions. Your kids don’t care if the hiking is VT or Switzerland. You eventually get used to the scenery anyway.

Perhaps leave the kids at home if you need to go hiking in Switzerland and not the US.

I go to Switzerland for the hiking. It's amazing. If you find it boring, your problem. What a silly thread.

Anonymous wrote:Geneva is fun for 2 days. It is small but very nice and there is enough to see for a weekend. It seems like it would be a great place to live. Switzerland is stunning. You could do lots of day trips or 3-4 days in other parts.

Exactly. I did live there. 2-3 days is plenty for tourism. Hotels provide guests with free Geneva Transport Cards, valid for buses, trams, and boats which comprise the public transport network. Geneva and Zurich both are typically entry/exit points for tourists visiting the Alpine regions, most conveniently by train from and to either city. A good approach is to fly in to one, and leave from the other. Zurich is very much a city of business, with not a lot of tourist appeal, 2 days there tops would probably be more than enough.

Not boring. Calm. Beautiful.

Geneva is fun for 2 days. It is small but very nice and there is enough to see for a weekend. It seems like it would be a great place to live. Switzerland is stunning. You could do lots of day trips or 3-4 days in other parts.

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Thanks PPs! I have Multiple Sclerosis so I try to stay in major cities for medical care needs if they unexpectedly pop up and I’m a bit unsure of the terrain in those mountainous regions. How’s the terrain for someone with balance struggles?

There are some beautiful easy walks/hikes (like the floor of the Lautenbrunner valley, or Grutschalp to Murren, or the Panorama trail from Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg) but most of them are not actually paved.

You might want to ask at a forum that focuses on the Bernese Overland or this page actually gives a nice picture of what you might expect for these easier walks. https://www.maennlichen.ch/en/summer/experiences/panorama-trail.html

Op here. Thanks PPs! I have Multiple Sclerosis so I try to stay in major cities for medical care needs if they unexpectedly pop up and I’m a bit unsure of the terrain in those mountainous regions. How’s the terrain for someone with balance struggles?

I think it’s hard to entertain a 7yo AND a 15yo. Interests are just so different.
Having said that we were in Switzerland in April for 3 days and loved it. Could have spent longer there.
My kid is mad on soccer so loved the FIFA museum in Zurich.

My 10 y/o’s idea of fun on vacation is hitting an arcade. You are doing this primarily for you and to get them at least some experience traveling and with another culture.

Geneva is nice but dull. Zurich a bit better for art museums but not great with kids. Get out of the cities.

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't spend a week in either city. Spend your time in the mountains or around Lac Lucerne.

Just spent a week in skiing in Zermatt this winter and definitely not bored. Poorer, but not bored.

I agree with this. We spent 4 nights in Lucerne and I could have easily done longer because there were several days trips I wanted to take. It's hard to overstate how easy the train system, and the bus system, are to navigate. Traveling is very easy and Lucerne is in a good spot. I'd recommend an Airbnb because my teens/tween liked shopping the farmers market and trying the different cheeses and breads.

Anonymous wrote:There are some cities I just wouldn't take our kids to - incl Florence, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Budapest or Geneva. They just aren't into art on that deep of a level or have anything interesting to do or see in the others. I LOVE them but my 14 and 12 year olds prefer Rome, Tokyo, Venice. It's simply a matter of sophistication I suppose and my kids are just not going to be into 5 days of scenery no matter how beautiful. Mine need stuff to do and more engagement over culture and museums. Know your audience maybe your family will love!

Snort

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't spend a week in either city. Spend your time in the mountains or around Lac Lucerne.

Just spent a week in skiing in Zermatt this winter and definitely not bored. Poorer, but not bored.

+1. I think it would be boring to spend a week in either place. At most, I’d spend a few days in the city and combine it with a mountain or lake area. Zurich and Lake Lucerne or even Interlaken would be very manageable. So would Geneva/Luzerne and Zermatt. The trains in Switzerland are very easy to navigate.

Venice is an eyesore. Ugh.