Inspiration for your own tailor-made trip
Switzerland – Italy – Zurich – Lucerne – Wengen – Montreux – Zermatt – St. Moritz – Milan
100% customisable for you
Rise and shine – your epic Alpine adventure starts today. Head to the airport, whizz through security and settle into the lounge before boarding your one-hour-and-40-minute flight to Zurich. When you arrive, check in for one night at a charming hotel in the city centre.
Then, enjoy a lovely lunch before meeting a friendly local for a private tour of the city. Let curiosity lead the way as you decide what to see and do. If you’re a history buff, head to the old town. For pretty panoramas, stroll along the banks of the Sihl and Limmat rivers or scale the hill in Lindenhof. To shop ‘til you drop, set your sights on Bahnhofstrasse. After which, you can unwind in the Baroque gardens of Rechberg Park.
Before dinner this evening, use your Swiss Travel pass to hop on an old steamboat and glide across Lake Zurich – a suitably scenic end to your first day in the Swiss Alps.
Tuck into a buttery gipfeli (Swiss croissant) this morning and enjoy one last stroll around the city before grabbing your bags and embarking on your first train ride of the trip: from Zurich to Lucerne. The journey only takes 50 minutes, but it offers some seriously scenic views across this little sliver of Switzerland.
When you pull into the station later, settle in for two nights at a cosy hotel in the heart of Lucerne. The rest of the day is yours to spend relaxing and exploring in the lead up to dinner.
Wake up bright and early this morning to enjoy another delicious breakfast before hitting the streets of Lucerne. From its pristinely-preserved (and vowel-heavy) Spreuerbrucke footbridge to the Swiss Museum of Transport and its impressive IMAX cinema screen, this Alpine charmer has a lot to offer. So, let’s start at the top.
Bundle into a cable car or cogwheel train to climb the Rigi Massif, charmingly known as the ‘Queen of the Mountains’. At the summit, you can see Lake Zug to the north and the Rossberg peak to the east. Cameras at the ready...
Having refuelled after your ascent with a lovely lunch, return to the city this afternoon for another steamboat cruise – this time on Lake Lucerne. Sandwiched between fjord-like bays, steep cliffs, and snow-capped peaks, the landscape looks like it was plucked straight from a postcard.
Bid Lucerne a fond farewell this morning as you board the Interlaken Express to ride the rails to Interlaken, where you’ll switch track (literally) to continue to Wengen. The whole journey takes around two-and-a-half hours, ideal for dipping back into your holiday read.
When you arrive, check in for two nights in another Alpine hotel before dropping your bags and scoping out your suave new digs. Accessible only by train, Wengen is deep in the mountains, with the 4,158ft-high Jungfrau peak as its backdrop. If you’re raring to go, hit those step counts by venturing out on the signposted trails in the surrounding Lauterbrunnen Valley.
Indulge in classic European fare for dinner tonight with bubbling cheese fondue, salty prosciutto ham and garlic-flecked olives. Then, hit the hay to rest up for the adventures of tomorrow.
Another day, another scenic summit. Fuel up on a courage-building breakfast this morning before heading to the base of Mount Schilthorn, a 9,744ft peak in the Bernese Alps.
Here, the steepest cable car in the world operates, tracing its 30-minute route in four stages to Piz Gloria, the world's first revolving restaurant, which completes a rotation every 55 minutes, thanks to solar energy. Film buffs will also likely recognise it from the Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
If scaling to an altitude of 6,900ft along over four miles of cables has you wanting more, there’s also the Skyline Walk (an observation deck which juts out over the vertical abyss). Even more – well – thrilling is the Thrill Walk, which features a crawl-through tunnel and a glass-bottomed floor.
Return to your hotel this afternoon to enjoy some well-earned R&R before turning your attention towards dinner – sure to be another mouth-watering occasion.
Make your way back to the station this morning to catch the 35-minute train to Interlaken, before connecting onto the three-hour-and-15-minute GoldenPass Line to Montreux, on Lake Geneva.
Today’s travels take you through colourful countryside and more splendid mountain scenery. Between games of cards and book-reading stints, don’t forget to look out the window (and keep your cameras poised).
When you arrive in Montreux, settle in for two nights and spend the rest of the day soaking in your new surroundings. Then, as evening nears, contact our trusty Concierge for some stellar restaurant recommendations.
To say there’s plenty to see and do on Lake Geneva is something of an understatement. Your options today are numerous, so don’t be shy about going back for seconds at breakfast to prepare for an action-packed day.
Start, of course, in Montreux with a lakeside stroll to see the medley of statues lining the shore, including the marble Empress Elizabeth and the bronze Freddie Mercury.
Then, hop on a boat to explore more of the towns dotted around the lake. In an hour and a half, you can reach Lausanne, home to the Gothic Cathedral, the Olympic Museum and the Typewriter Museum.
Elsewhere, Veytaux (to the south) and Clarens (to the north) can be reached by five-minute train rides. And if you don’t mind parting from the shores of Lake Geneva, you could also catch a 30-minute train to Martigny. Here, you’ll find the Foundation Pierre Gianadda sculpture park and the Automobile Museum.
Swap lakeside living for the mountain resort of Zermatt today. After fuelling up on a hearty breakfast (think artisan breads, sugar-dusted pastries and steaming cups of coffee), make your way to the station to catch a three-hour train into the heart of the Alps.
Your home for the next two nights is a charming hotel in Zermatt. Here, you’re never too far from views of the Matterhorn, a jagged, tooth-shaped mountain that rises 14,690ft into the sky.
Enjoy some downtime in your new surroundings this afternoon before savouring a traditional meal and returning to your room to sink into a stack of plush pillows.
You know what they say: good things come in threes. Enjoy a third mountain ascent today as you tackle the 10,136ft-high Gornergrat by cogwheel train. Not just any cogwheel train, we should add, but the world’s first. Safe to say, there’s no shortage of forerunners on this trip.
Once you reach the top, you’ll have one of the best views of the Matterhorn in the area. The summit panorama also includes the 15,203ft-tall Dufourspitze (the highest mountain in Switzerland), and the second largest glacier in the Alps: the seven-mile-long Gorner Glacier.
For those curious about the largest glacier in the Alps, it’s the 14-mile-long Aletsch Glacier, which you can visit by taking ski lifts from the nearby village of Betten. And if the panoramic viewpoint from the Bettmerhorn peak doesn’t quite scratch the spot, you can draw even closer to the glacier with a hike to Lake Marjelen.
Enjoy one last breakfast overlooking the mighty Matterhorn this morning before packing your bags and journeying on to St. Moritz. You’ll travel on the Glacier Express, a journey which takes eight hours, so most of the day will be spent on board. But don’t worry; this is one landscape you won’t want to breeze past.
Between oohing and aahing at the views that glide by outside your window, tuck into a lovely lunch on the train this afternoon. Likely to feature on the menu are cheese platters, full-bodied wines and picture-perfect cakes (yum).
Once you step off the train this evening, head to your next home away from home and settle in for an overnight stay in the heart of St. Moritz. If you want to head into the surrounding mountains for dinner this evening, simply wield your Swiss Travel Pass and delve in.
Bid St. Moritz (and Switzerland) farewell today as you board the Bernina Express. The first leg of the trip takes you to Tirano and lasts around two-and-a-half-hours. Once here, it’s another two-and-a-half-hour journey to Milan, making the whole trip a five-hour affair. Time to dip into our destination-specific playlist.
When you pull into the station in Milan, meet your private driver to transfer to your hotel in the centre of the city. Then, check in for the final night of your trip. Calls for a drink, don’t you think?
This afternoon is free for you to do as you please. If you’re pining for some sumptuous R&R, hit the streets on a shopping spree, or if you fancy something more lowkey, simply enjoy the facilities at your hotel.
For dinner tonight, end on a high note by asking our Concierge to help you reserve a spot in the swankiest restaurant in the city. Prepare to be wowed...
Sadly, the time has come to head back home. Enjoy a quintessentially Italian breakfast at your hotel this morning before being privately transferred to the airport to catch your two-hour flight back to the UK.
While you’re in the air, eke out as much enjoyment as possible by scrolling back through your photos from the trip – bonus points if you can put together an album to show to family and friends before you land.
Everything in this itinerary is entirely customisable, down to the smallest details. Here are some more suggestions of what could be included
Each of our trips is entirely tailor-made with originality, quality and cultural immersion in mind. Our team of destination specialists will craft itineraries based on your tastes, using their first-hand knowledge and the help of our in-country team of Concierges and guides. All trips are accompanied by a wide range of additional services, including a 24-hour helpline, the Original Travel app, fast-track airport services and much more.
Enquire now
Each of our trips is entirely tailor-made with originality, quality and cultural immersion in mind. Our team of destination specialists will craft itineraries based on your tastes, using their first-hand knowledge and the help of our in-country team of Concierges and guides. All trips are accompanied by a wide range of additional services, including a 24-hour helpline, the Original Travel app, fast-track airport services and much more.
Enquire now
Our team of destination experts will get to know you and your unique requirements for your holiday
We work with you to build an ultra-personalised holiday itinerary with your choice of accommodation, experiences and activities
All of our holidays include little extras designed to make a big difference to your trip, from checking you in for your flights to our network of local Concierges
