Lake Lucerne by steamer
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Itineraries

With so many boats traveling around Lake Lucerne, it's easy to put together your own itinerary. Here are just a few examples based on the summer timetable:

Lucerne-Flüelen (Lake Uri)

Catch the 9 a.m. paddlewheel steamer from Lucerne, which has a restaurant on board. Enjoy a leisurely breakfast, then step out on deck to enjoy the scenery during the 2 hr. 50 min. journey to Flüelen on Lake Uri (a.k.a. the Urnersee, which is the wildest and most remote arm of the Vierwaldstättersee).

In Flüelen, you can catch a train back to Lucerne (the trip will take about an hour), get off the boat and return on a later steamer, or stay aboard for the noon sailing and reach Lucerne at 3 p.m.

Another option is to continue on from Flüelen by train. Zürich, Lugano, and the east-west route from Lausanne to Chur and points beyond are all easy to reach from Flüelen.

To plan your boat and train trip, consult Volume 1 of the Swiss Official Timetable or use the Swiss Federal Railways online timetable. With the latter, for example, you might enter Luzern Bahnhofquai in the "Depart from" blank, Lugano in the "Destination" blank, and Flüelen for "Via the route." The online timetable would then generate a list of boat and train connections for the date and approximate time of your planned journey.

NOTE: The SGV offers a "Wilhelm Tell Express" tour during summer. The package includes first-class passage aboard an antique paddlewheeler from Lucerne to Flüelen, lunch in the ship's restaurant, and a first-class train ticket to Lugano. A guide accompanies passengers throughout the journey, and the tour caters mostly to older, well-heeled tourists who don't feel comfortable traveling on their own.

Lucerne-Alpnachstad (Lake Alpnach)

Alpnachstad is at the bottom of the Alpnacher See, a small extension of the Vierwaldstättersee below Lucerne. The one-way trip lasts anywhere from about 1 hr 10 minutes to 1 hr 45 minutes, with the longer sailings making an extra zigzag to Hergiswil before entering Lake Alpnach. Sailings are frequent in summer; the 9:15 am, 11:25 am, 1 pm, and 3:20 pm sailings use paddwheel steamers, with other departures being aboard newer motor vessels. Most ships have restaurants, and snacks are available on the remaining boats.

From Alpnachstad, you can return to Lucerne by train or boat. Alpnachstad is a jumping-off point for the Pilatus Kulm mountain excursion, and Interlaken is less than two hours away by train.

Short trips and excursions

Look at a map of the Vierwaldstättersee, pick out a town, and buy a roundtrip boat ticket. It's just as easy as planning a local bus trip back home.

Alternatively, you can combine a short one-way trip with another excursion or journey.

For example, the lakeside resort of Vitznau is about an hour from Lucerne by steamer. At Vitznau, take the cogwheel railway to the mountain peak of Rigi Kulm, then descend via a different route to Arth-Goldau for mainline railway connections to Lucerne, Schwyz, Zürich, Lugano, and Italy.

Again, the best way to plan your journey is with Volume 1 of the Swiss Official Timetable or the Swiss Federal Railways online timetable.

Related articles and Web links

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