4 days in Switzerland – The best travel itinerary

Hello, hello!! I am back with yet another travel itinerary. Only this time it’s on a destination so magical that I never thought could have existed. Yep, I am talking about Switzerland. With its beautiful old towns, absolutely stunning nature, world-famous chocolates and a deep history, this country is well suited for all types of travelers. This mountainous country is, undoubtedly, one of Europe’s most beautiful countries and I feel so lucky to have gotten a chance to visit it.

My husband and I visited Switzerland in the first week of July and fell absolutely in love with it. Although we were only there for four days, I think it was enough time to experience the most beautiful parts of this country. So, here I’ll share our 4-day itinerary for Switzerland to help you get the most out of your trip. Prepare to fall in love with this beautiful country and enjoy your 4 days here!

Before I jump into the full 4-day itinerary, here are some important tips to ensure you have a smooth trip.

How many days are enough in Switzerland?

Switzerland may be a small country by area but it’s power-packed with nearly everything you can think of and will need for that perfect vacation. It has the most beautiful sceneries you’ll ever come across. So much so that you might think you’re in a whole different world. And, that’s why I don’t really think anything less than a week is enough to explore the beauty of this country. You need at least 10-15 days to really absorb everything in. However, this doesn’t mean you cannot explore in less than a week. We spent only 4 days in Switzerland and that was more than enough to cover all the top tourist spots. So, if you can only afford 4 days in Switzerland I think that should be enough with careful planning. 

How to get around?

The best way to explore this country is by car. Well, of course it has great rail connectivity which is perfect for traveling from one city to another. But if you really want to explore each city at your own pace and take everything in, you need a car. We rented our car from Europcar and picked it up from Geneva Downtown. Here’s the address of our rental car pickup location.

What is the most accepted currency in Switzerland?

The most accepted currency is Swiss Franc. So, I suggest carrying a good amount of cash with you in Swiss Francs. However, they also accept credit cards with a small fee so you should be fine using your card if you don’t want to carry too much cash around.

Euros are widely accepted too but the exchange rates are too high. And, everything in Switzerland like food and shopping is expensive so you’d be better off paying in cash and that’ll save you good enough money. Since we had a couple of excursions planned as well, we carried around 500 Swiss Francs but I suggest carrying more if you can.

What is the best time to visit?

From what I have heard and seen, Switzerland is an amazing vacation spot all time of the year. However, we planned for summer because we had a lot of outdoor activities planned. Also, during summer months the days are longer which means you can squeeze more activities into your itinerary. So, the best summer months to visit are July and August.

Do you need travel insurance?

Yes, travel insurance is mandatory for all tourists visiting the Schengen region. In fact, you will need to get one as part of your visa application process when applying for the Schengen visa. I have written a separate blog that covers a section on Schengen travel visa so read here for more details.

Do you need to make any advance reservations?

If you’re going in summer months, chances are that you’ll find a lot of crowd so every place you go to will have a good amount of wait. So, if you want to skip the lines I suggest making advance reservations for all the restaurants that you have on your itinerary. Most of the restaurants we visited allowed online reservations so we made sure we booked our tables wherever we could.

An important purchase you’ll need to make before you go is the Jungfrau Travel Pass which includes free entry to many top tourist spots in Switzerland such as Lake Brienz Cruise, Grindelwald-First, Harder Kulm, Jungfraujoch etc. And since we had all of these places on our itinerary, we decided to buy this pass well ahead of our trip. Here’s a list of what all is included in this pass and other important details. Keep in mind, though, that it doesn’t include the transportation to these places like the train to Top of Europe so you will need to make an additional purchase for that. The pass will cost $613 (USD) for two people.

An important note – This is a very packed itinerary because we wanted to explore as many cities as possible in the 4 days in Switzerland. But, if you’d like to keep it lighter and take it at your own pace, you can always cut a few things out or move things around.

DAY 1 – GENEVA

8:00 AM – Train from Paris to Geneva

We started our trip with Geneva and reached the city by taking an early morning train from Paris. We took an 8:00 AM train to Paris and it was a 3-hour ride. Our train experience was great and the ride was quite scenic. There’s also a cafe on the train so you can grab coffee and breakfast once you’re on the train. Here’s the link to booking your train ride. It cost us around $118 (USD) for two people.

11:30 AM – Reach Geneva and check in to the hotel

We reached the Geneva station in about 3 hours and headed straight to check into our hotel and drop our bags. Our hotel was pretty close to the train station and we had a good experience staying here. We stayed at the Bernina Hotel Geneva and I would completely recommend it if you’re looking to spend time in Geneva. And it cost us around $236 (USD) for one night.

12:30 PM – Head out to explore Old Town

Geneva is a global hub for diplomacy and banking, and is quite a beautiful city to explore. You can start by exploring the Old Town. Old Town has a very beautiful charm to it and you can just walk around here to feel the vibe. Its narrow streets, historical buildings and beautiful squares will really give you a very European vibe. 

Some places I recommend exploring in Old Town are, 

• Musée Barbier-Mueller
• Tavel House
• International Museum of the Reformation
• St Pierre Cathedral
• Secret passage
• Place Bourg-de-Four
• Promenade de la Treille 
• Reformation Wall – Paul Landowski. 

Here’s an easy google map to follow.

2:00 PM – Lunch at Gives A Fork – MQ

I came across this restaurant while researching for my trip and it has great reviews on google. And it surely didn’t disappoint us. Their food and service is great so do give it a try. Reservations are recommended so make sure to book your table before you go.

3:00 PM – Explore other famous tourist spots

After lunch, we head out again to explore more spots in and around the city. Here’s a few very famous and nice spots that should be on your list,

• Lighthouse of the Eaux-Vives
• Flower Clock
• The broken Chair – Palace of Nations
• The United Nations Office

5:00 PM – Walk along the Geneva Lakefront

The Geneva Lakefront offers stunning views of Lake Geneva and the surrounding mountains. It’s here that you can see one of the most famous landmarks in Geneva i.e. the Jet d’Eau fountain. This fountain shoots water 140 meters into the air and you absolutely cannot miss it.

After walking across the lakefront, you can then also head to try some swiss chocolates. There’s plenty of shops and restaurants where you can try some of the best chocolates and cheese.

8:00 PM – Dinner at Masala Indian House

This restaurant was very close to our hotel so on our way back, we decided to stop here for dinner. This place also has pretty good ratings and reviews on google so we really wanted to give it a try. Reservations are recommended here as well because it’s usually super crowded in the evenings so make sure you book your table.

DAY 2 – INTERLAKEN

This was the day I was the most excited about because this city is naturally so beautiful. I had seen a lot of pictures on social media when planning my trip and I was completely awe-struck. So, I was really looking forward to visiting it and when I did, it left me spellbound.

8:00 AM – Drive from Geneva to Interlaken

This scenic drive from Geneva to Interlaken is around 2 hours so we checked out from our hotel and made our way early in the morning. On the way, we picked up breakfast as we didn’t want to waste too much time at a sit-down place. Once we reached Interlaken, there were a couple of public parking spots and here’s the address of the garage where we parked our car – Bärenparking Interlaken AG, Rosenstrasse 29, 3800 Interlaken, Switzerland.

11:00 AM – Head to Harder Kulm

Interlaken gets its name because it is well situated between the two famous lakes – Lake Brienz and Lake Thun. They say it’s one of the best villages in Switzerland. Our first stop here was Top of Harder Kulm, which was a perfect way for us to see Interlaken from above. There are two ways to get here – you can either hike up or take a funicular. The funicular is covered in the Jungfrau Travel Pass that I’ve mentioned above and this is the option we took. 

The elevation at the top is 1,322 meters and the views were breathtaking as you can see in the pictures below. So, I’d really recommend adding this to your itinerary. Also, don’t forget to carry a jacket as the weather at the top can get a bit chilly and windy. The viewing platform is always very crowded and makes for great pictures. It’s open from mid-April to the end of November and here’s more details.

12:30 PM – Lunch at Sapori

After finishing our first stop, we headed to lunch at Sapori. This restaurant also has a great ambience and their food was delicious. I’d recommend making an advance reservation here as well. They also have a vegetarian menu so you have plenty of options to choose from.

2:00 PM – Head to Lake Brienz Cruise

Ah! Here comes the most awaited part of this trip – Cruise on Lake Brienz. Lake Brienz is a stunning turquoise blue lake that is surrounded by snow-capped mountains. It is a great way to enjoy the calm of the water, view the mountains from up close and stop at the beautiful villages on the way. The cruise is also covered in the Jungfrau Travel Pass and you can read more details on the cruise here. Also, below is a picture of the cruise’s schedule.

This was an unforgettable experience for me. The entire landscape around was so beautiful and picturesque that I just lost myself in it. The cruise’s first stop was the Grandhotel Giessbach and we got off here. From the lake’s shore we took a funicular, which is Europe’s oldest funicular railway transporting people from the shore to the hotel. Once at the hotel, we then walked up to the Giessbach falls. It is a short 10-15 minutes walk to get to the first point from where you can easily see the falls. However, if you want to get closer to the falls, you can continue the hike up for another 10-15 minutes.

After spending some good time admiring the beauty of the falls, we then decided to sit down at the hotel and soak in the beautiful view. We ordered some light bites here and spent a while before making our way back to the shore. This was the only stop we made on our cruise because we didn’t have much time to stop at other places. However, if you have time, the other stop I’d recommend getting off at is Iseltwald village. It’s a charming village with a beautiful vibe.

5:00 PM – Stroll around the Interlaken town and grab dinner

After coming back from the cruise, we decided to spend some time just strolling around the cute town of Interlaken. Two spots I’d recommend checking out here are Höhematte Park and Marktplatz Interlaken. There’s also a Yash Chopra statue here for all the Bollywood lovers. And for all the chocolate lovers, you can try taking a ‘Make your own chocolate’ experience.

Alternate itinerary for a day in Interlaken – If you’re a die-hard fan of the iconic Bollywood movie Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, then you can follow this google map link from Geneva to Interlaken because it stops at all the various locations where this movie was shot. All the points are marked on this map. We didn’t take this route because we really wanted to cover the other places that I’ve mentioned above. And if we did this DDLJ route, we wouldn’t have had enough time to cover Harder Kulm and the cruise which was our priority. But if you have more time to spend in Interlaken, I suggest taking this route.

8:00 PM – Head to Grindelwald and check into the hotel

Because we had an early morning the next day, we decided to check into our Grindelwald hotel a night before to get settled. Our hotel in Grindelwald was absolutely beautiful and we really enjoyed our time there. We stayed at the Hotel Gletschergarten and it cost us around $600 (USD) for two nights.

DAY 3 – GRINDELWALD

9:00 AM – Coffee at EigerBean The Coffee Roastery

We started our day 3 with an amazing coffee at the EigerBean The Coffee Roastery before starting another amazing day in this land of paradise.

10:00 AM – Train to Jungfraujoch: Top of Europe

We then made our way to Jungfraujoch, also known as the Top of Europe because its the highest railway station in Europe. It’s a viewing point in the Bernese Alps, at an altitude of 3,454 meters. From up here, you get amazing views of the Alps, along with access to breathtaking glaciers. To get here, you first need to take a cable car which is covered in the Jungfrau Travel Pass and then have to ride a cogwheel train all the way up. The train is not covered in the pass and will cost around $22 for two people. The Jungfrau Railway is the highest railway in the world and offers a very scenic ride. Here’s the link to book your seats.

Once at the top, there’s a lot of activities you can do depending on your time and interest. Some of the things we did were,

• Sphinx observatory – We enjoyed the 360° views from here, both from the terrace and from the comfort of a building with panoramic windows. From the terrace, we could see the glaciers up close and it was breathtaking.
• Alpine sensation – This is a moving walkway connecting the Sphinx observatory to the Ice Palace.
• Ice Palace – It has many beautiful ice sculptures to admire so worth a visit.
• Go out in the snow and enjoy the view of Grosser Aletsch glacier and the surrounding mountains.
• Lindt chocolate factory – We picked up a lot of different chocolates from here.
• Lunch – We also found a great Indian restaurant here where we stopped for lunch. If you like Indian food, this is worth a visit.

Because it’s very cold up here, it’s important to dress right for this trip. Some of the things you should carry or wear are – Winter jacket, snow boots, waterproof gloves, winter cap, thermal leggings or warm pants, extra pair of socks, sunglasses and sunscreen.

Another important tip – If you have the Jungfrau Travel Pass, you will get a 10% discount at the Top of Europe and Grindelwald-First shops. Since we bought chocolates and a few souvenirs, it worked out well for us.

For me, this was one of the best experiences and something that I’ll always cherish. The breathtaking scenery of the Alps was priceless and this is one of the best ways to experience the Alps from so close. So, I’d highly recommend adding this to your itinerary.

2:00 PM – Head to Grindelwald-First

Grindelwald-First is also one of the most popular places to visit in the Jungfrau Region and for a good reason. It takes you up to Mt. First from where you can experience more breathtaking views of the Swiss Alps. To reach up here, we took a Gondola from the First Station and the gondola was covered in our travel pass. The gondola ride was about 25 minutes and it was one of the most amazing rides. It was so scenic and the panoramic views of the mountains were just out of this world. I’d suggest keeping your camera ready the whole time! 

There are two stops before the final stop for Grindelwald-First which is where we got off. Once you’re up here, there’s a lot to see and do. The one thing we did that I will totally recommend is the First Cliff Walk By Tissot. This is a very narrow metal footbridge that clings to the side of the cliff stretching all the way out to an extraordinary viewpoint. It was a bit scary walking on the bridge since I have a fear of heights but what the bridge led up to was absolutely amazing. So, it was totally worth it.

Once you’ve crossed the bridge, it opens up to an observatory deck and if you keep walking past it, there’s a lot of viewpoints to soak in the best views of the mountains. There’s also a restaurant if you want to sit down and grab a bite. It’s worth spending a good amount of time here before heading back.

Another great hike to add into your list is the Lake Bachalpsee hike which starts from the point where you get off from the gondola. The hike takes about 1-2 hours and leads up to a beautiful lake so if you the time, it’s definitely worth a stop. We had to miss this as we didn’t have enough time. Another fun activity that I’d recommend is taking the Trottibike or mountain cart on your way back. It can be a little scary riding down the hill so be very sure before signing up for it but it’s a fun activity to try. We really wanted to do it but unfortunately it was sold out when we went so we couldn’t get it.

And again, it goes without saying that you should dress in layers here as well. Grindelwald-First wasn’t as cold and in fact during the day, it became hotter as it got more sunny. But the weather is always unpredictable and it could get windy in no time so be prepared.

5:00 PM – Explore Grindelwald town

The town of Grindelwald is charming and almost all hotels here are adorned with lots of flowers, making it a very beautiful sight for the eyes. The town itself has a very cute and laid back vibe. It offers amazing views of the mountains and also has shops and places to eat. We spent a good time just walking around the town and dining at some local bars.

DAY 4 – LUCERNE AND ZURICH

Our last day in Switzerland was as fun filled and packed as the previous days. Since we planned to cover two cities on this day, we were on a tight schedule. We planned the first half of the day for Lucerne and the second half for Zurich.

9:00 AM – Coffee at Velo Cafe

On our drive from Grindelwald to Lucerne, we stopped at this famous cafe called Velo Cafe. The cafe has pretty amazing ratings and their coffee was amazing. If you’re a coffee lover like me, you should definitely give this place a try. They are typically very busy in the mornings and they take email reservations so book your table before you go.

10:00 AM – Head to Lucerne

Since Lucerne is only about 45 minutes drive from Zurich, it made sense to make a stop here before heading to Zurich. Lucerne is a very picturesque city and has such a historical feel to it. Its located on the shores of Lake Lucerne and surrounded by the Swiss Alps. Its known for its beautiful old town, which is adorned by colorful buildings, historical landmarks and colorful streets. 

A few places I’d recommend visiting when in Lucerne are,

• Chapel Bridge – The highlight of my trip to Lucerne was the Chapel bridge. It’s a covered wooden bridge which is very old and overlooks the water, making it a beautiful sight.
• Spreuerbrücke
• Hirschen Pl
• Weinmarkt
• Kramgasse
• Lion Monument
• Rathaus Stadt Luzern
• Musegg Wall

Here’s a link to the google map that’s easy to follow for all the above spots. 

2:00 PM – Lunch at Phanat Thai Restaurant

We stopped for lunch at a Thai restaurant called Phanat Thai and the food here was amazing. We didn’t make an advance reservation and we just walked in and were able to get a table.

4:00 PM – Explore Zurich 

We left from Lucerne around 3:00 PM and after an almost hour long drive, we reached Zurich. Its the largest city in Switzerland and gave me a very metro city vibe. Its a popular city among tourists because it has something for everyone. It not only has great outdoor activities, but also dining, nightlife and shopping. We were there on a Sunday and there was a summer festival going on. The streets were lined with vendors selling food and drinks, and there was also a DJ. It was such a fun vibe so if you end up going in summer, you may be able to catch one of these festivals.

Here’s a few things I’d recommend doing in Zurich,

• Fraumünster Church
• Chocolate shops like Confiserie Sprüngli or Teuscher 
• Augustinergasse
• Bahnhofstrasse
• Old Town (Altstadt)
• Niederdorf
• Grossmünster
• Zürich Opera House
• Walk along Zurich lake

Here’s a link to the google map that’s easy to follow for all the above spots. 

7:00 PM – Dinner at Tibits

We ended our last day in Switzerland with a scrumptious dinner at Tibits which is well known for its vegetarian and vegan food.

And that’s all as far as the Switzerland itinerary goes. If you follow this, I am sure you’ll be on to a smooth trip so I hope you find this useful. Until next time my friends!