Switzerland

June 13, 2025 - June 22, 2025

Switzerland has been on our family’s travel bucket list for a while now, we’re finally making it happen! Eight days really isn’t enough to explore Switzerland, but we’ll make the most of it. The Jungfrau region will be our main focus on this trip, with a short stop in Lucerne. Let the adventure begin!

Day 1 - Zurich & Lucerne

Day 2 - Stoos Ridge Hike

Day 3 - Lauterbrunnen

Day 4 - Wuliaojiang Hike & Nanya Night Market

Day 5 - Ximending Shopping & Massage

Day 6 - Drive to Hualian

Day 7 - Taroko National Park

Day 8 - Drive from Hualian to Taitung

Day 9 - Explore Taitung, Drive to Kenting

Day 10 - Explore Kenting

Day 11 - Kaohsiung

Day 12 - Alishan Day 1

Day 13 - Alisha National Forest & Sunset

Voyagers tips:

Itinerary: There is so much to see in Jungfrau region, we barely fit all the must-dos into five and a half days. If we could extend our trip, we would’ve loved to stay in Lucerne for two more days and take day trips there, as well as visiting the famous Matterhorn area. But Jungfrau is definitely an amazing place, you can easily spend a full week here, which would’ve been perfect for exploring its full glory.

Transportation: Public transportation is the way to go in Switzerland, especially in the Jungfrau region where many towns are not accessible by car. The SBB Mobile app makes it a breeze to buy any ticket on your phone once you get used to the layout. The Half Fare card is well worth it, it provides 50% discount for all other tickets. It’s best to just buy the one-month physical card at the airport’s train service office; the SBB website only sold the cards valid for one year, which is more expensive, and the ID-validation process was cumbersome. Be sure to get the Family Card for kids 15 and under to travel for free with adults. Some regional travel passes may be worth it if you stay longer, we found a helpful youtube video by “Aplins in the Alps” on all train passes, check it out!

Internet/Phone: We upgraded our Verizon mobile plans for the month, which includes 15gb of high speed internet internationally. We found this to be more convenient than getting a new SIM card and sharing internet through hotspots.

Day 1 - Zurich and Lucerne

LAX - Zurich - Lucerne

Old Town Lucerne

We took an evening flight from LAX to Zurich, then took a train to Lucerne. Had a nice walk around Old Town Lucerne, then crashed in bed for the night.

LAX - Zurich - Lucerne

We took a 7:35pm flight on Swiss Air from LAX to Zurich airport, then took a train to Lucerne.

Voyagers tips: Swiss Air was quite nice. Upon arrival, walk across the street to the train station and buy the one-month half fare card and train tickets to Lucerne. Once you get the half fare card, all future tickets can be purchased on SBB Mobile app.

Having the train ticket does not guarantee you for getting on the train, as many airport travelers will fill up the entrance area with their luggage and block the entry, even when there are plenty of seats left on the train. Find a cart with less people and just be aggressive in getting on the train, as they’re not supposed to have luggage blocking the entry way. We almost missed our train before Megan found a cart for us to squeeze in!

Back to top ->

Zurich Old Town

Old town Lucerne is a short walk away from the train station and is very charming and beautiful. The Chapel Bridge is the center piece, with many restaurants lined up by River Reuss. The Old Town Squares and Spreuer Bridge made for a nice stroll. We stayed at Hotel Alpina, which had a perfect location just a few minutes walk away from the train station and from Old Town, with a Coop supermarket nearby.

Voyagers tips: Tap water in Switzerland is safe to drink, and there are many water fountains around town to fill up your bottles. Check out lucernwater.ch to find a drinkable water fountain near you.

Back to top ->

Day 2 - Stoos Ridge Hike

Travel to Stoos Ridge

Stoos Ridge Trail

Meeting with an old Friend

Travel to Stoos Ridge

Stoos Ridge hike is beautiful and iconic, but it takes some effort to get there. We took the train to Arth-Goldau station, then took the bus to Stoosbahn funicular station. All directions suggest B501 bus, but the B502 driver hooked us up and took us to Stoosbahn also. The world’s steepest funicular (110-degrees!) takes you up the mountain, then about a 1km hike takes you to the chair lift to Klingenstock to start your ridge walk towards Fronalpstock. Be patient, it’s worth the effort!

Back to top ->

Stoos Ridge Trail

This is a beautiful trail! The trail starts at Klingenstock and ends at Fronalpstock. The entire trail is roughly 4.5km (2.8 miles), with the final stretch being the steepest part. The beautiful scenery on both sides of the trail are just out of this world!

After the hike, we took the cable car and funicular back down to Stoosbahn station, then took the B501 bus back to Arth-Goldau, and train back to Lucerne.

Voyagers Tips: We got to the trail relatively early and reached Fronalpstock by around 12:40pm, and was surprised to hear that the last cable car down from Fronalpstock was at 1pm. It was likely due to the expected thunderstorm which didn’t come until much later. If weather condition is in question, be sure to check their timetable!

Back to top ->

Meeting up with a dear old friend

Igor is one of Ivan’s closest friend from college, a brilliant mind with a kind heart, Ivan always knew he was destined for great things. He traveled all the way from Geneva to meet us for dinner, it was so wonderful to see him again and catch up on old times. We enjoyed some nice Italian food near the train station. Good times!

Back to top ->

Day 3 - Lauterbrunnen

Panoramic Express to Interlaken

Lauterbrunnen

Wengen - Hotel Silberhorn

We said goodbye to Lucerne and hopped on the Panoramic Express train to Interlaken, then took a regional train to Lauterbrunnen and explored the area before heading up to Wengen for our hotel.

Panoramic Express

We took a China Airlines flight from Ontario airport to TPE, enjoyed the lounge at Ontario with our Priority Pass membership.

Once arriving at TPE airport, be sure to pick up local SIM cards or wifi router. If traveling with one or two people, it’s best to get the SIM card for your phone. Since we have five people, we got a SIM card for a local phone number (very useful for reservations and travel apps) and another one to put in our wifi router that provides wifi access for everyone else. There are a couple of stands at the airport for this, and the prices are very reasonable. A must-have in Taiwan.

There are a few ways to get to Taipei or other cities. Buses leave straight from the terminal and come frequently, very convenient. You can also take the metro to the nearby HSR (high speed rail) station to get to major cities including Taipei. Lastly, you can prebook private airport drivers, but this requires advanced planning and some referrals. Taxis are quite cheap in Taiwan compared to most countries, but it can add up for long distances.

Since we were meeting up with friends, we got a private driver and met up with our friends in Taipei with another driver, and headed off to our day of adventure!

Back to top ->

Yehliu Geopark 野柳地質公園

Yehliu is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Taiwan and lives up to the hype! Other than the famous Queens Head statue, the rocks here form various interesting shapes by ocean waves throughout the years, it takes just a bit of imagination to see interesting figures! Better yet, ask one of the many helpful workers there for some tips, many of them are happy to show you interesting views and angles now shown in the brochure! We had a worker that enthusiastically showed us hidden treasures and camera angles and even took pictures for us! There is also a nice food shopping street upon exit with tons of snacks. Just make sure you compare prices before buying anything!

Back to top ->

Jiufen Old Street 九份老街

This is an extremely popular, i.e. crowded, indoor food area. There is more food than you have appetite for, and it’s longer than you may imagine, so be patient and walk to the end then you can turn around and hit the ones you really want to hit. If you have a big crowd and want to eat at a sit-down food stall, be ready to wait for a table! Alternatively, go for the food you can eat on the go. We patiently waited for seating for the 10 of us! Save room for desert! The taro desert balls are popular here but we didn’t get to try them.

Parking around here is extremely limited. This is where the private drivers are great, they’ll take you close to it and take care of parking while you roam.

Back to top ->

Shifen 十分

There are two popular destinations at Shifen: Waterfall and Sky Lanterns. We started running out of time to do both and opted to do the sky lantern. It was such an unique experience! You find a shop, pick the number of colors you want in a lantern (the more color, the higher the price), they set up a stand for you to write anything you want (usually your wishes) on the lantern with Caligraphy brush pens, and they will help you launch it into the sky!

There are also tons of street vendors and food vendors here so be sure to walk around and try some snacks before leaving!

Back to top ->

Day 4 - Murren, Allmendhubel & Gimmelwald

Allmendhubel

Murren

Walk to Gimmelwald

We took the trains to Murren then the cable car up to Allmendhubel to enjoy the playground and nice views. After returning to Murren, we had a picnic with hot food from Coop, then walked down to Gimmelwald. The scenery was beautiful everywhere we went!

Allmendhubel

The brief funicular ride up from Murren drops you off right by the fun playground, which was enjoyed by kids and adults alike. After having some fun at the playground, we walked up the hill to enjoy the view, then walked along the short Flower Trail, taking lots of pictures along the way.

Back to top ->

Murren

Murren is a beautiful car-free town as well as a base for adrenaline-rushing activities like the Murren Via Ferrata and paragliding. There is a nice grassy area for picnicking, and the Coop supermarket here has some selections of hot food, which is a nice change from all the sandwiches. It’s nice to stroll around and enjoy the cute flower-adorned wooden houses before walking the trail down to Gimmelwald.

Back to top ->

Trail to Gimmelwald

The trail from Murren to Gimmelwald is a popular one, and for good reason. As we got close to Gimmelwald, we came across a tiny unmanned shop where we dropped some coins in the cash box for a delicious brownie that got big thumbs up by our girls. Walk a bit further down, and you’ll see popular Pension Gimmelwald serving the award-winning Schwarz Monch dark beer! The Honesty Shop next door is a fun detour as well.

Back to top ->

Day 5 - Grindelwald First, Balchapsee & Pfingstegg

Grindelwald First

Bachalpsee

Pfingstegg

Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen are the two main valleys in the Jungfrau region. Grindelwald First is an extremely popular — and crowded — attraction on the Grindelwald side. From the town of Grindelwald, there is a cable car that takes you three stations up, through Bort and Schreckfeld, to the final stop of Grindelwald First. There are five main activities available at Grindelwald First:

1. Cliff walk - A suspended cliff-side walkway and swinging bridge perched over the valley.

2. Glider - An eagle-flight experience for up to four passengers where you’re strapped facing down on a zip line between First and Schreckfeld.

3. Flyer - A single-seat zip-line flying down to the Schreckfeld.

4. Mountain Cart - A pedal-less three-wheeled cart that allows you to coast down from Schreckfeld to Bort.

5. Trottibike - A footboard scooter ride from Bort to Grindelwald, winding through meadows and farmhouses. Likely no wait.

6. Hike to Bachalpsee - A beautiful out-and-back hike to the stunning alpine Bachalpsee lake, takes about 2 hours.

Glider, Flyer and Mountain Cart all have extremely long wait time if you don’t show up before they open, and aren’t worth the wait in our opinion. From our hotel at Wengen, which is on the Lauterbrunnen side, it takes over an hour to get to Grindelwald First. We got an early start and arrived at Grindelwald First at around 9:30, but the lines to these popular activities was already extremely long. As planned, we enjoyed the cliff walk, hiked to Bachalpsee, then took the cable car down to Bort, then hopped on trottibikes to ride down to Grindelwald, where we enjoyed lunch before heading over to Pfingstegg for some toboggan and fly-line fun.

Grindelwald First - Cliff Walk

The cliff walk is a 300m-long suspended metal walkway along the cliffside that feels surprisingly safe and sturdy while providing spectacular views. The line can move slowly given the crowd, but the experience is well worth it.

Back to top ->

Hike to Balchapsee

The hike to Bachalpsee is a popular hike from Grindelwald First. The trail is wide and flat, and the hike is fairly easy once you get over the initial ascent. Each way takes about a hour, although once you get to the lake, you’ll want to just sit, relax and enjoy the view, and let the time pass you by.

Voyagers tip: Bring some sandwiches and snacks with you, as this is the perfect picnic spot.

Back to top ->

Trottibike

While the flyer, glider and mountain cart all have crazy long waits, trottibike almost never have a wait. The starting point is the Bort station, so you first take the cable car down two stations, get off at Bort, then rent the trottibike to ride back to the town of Grindelwald. It is so much fun! Megan decided to skip it and rode the cable car all the way down to town, while Ivan and the girls had a blast riding them!

Back to top ->

Hike to Balchapsee

description of hike