Salzburg to switzerland?

Question

I would like to take a scenic train ride from salzburg to switzerland - what would you recommend and how long would it take? What is the best destination in Switz - Lucerne?

Answer 1

I definitely recommend taking the train. The Swiss public transport system is one of the best in the world. http://www.sbb.ch/en/ is an excellent website where you can search train times. (I've taken the Vienna <-> Zurich night train a few times, and that took me about 10 hours each way. Although this isn't so scenic at night.) A quick search shows that Salzburg - Zurich - Lucerne is about 7 hours.

If you plan it carefully you can even stop off for short city tours.

Zurich or Bern are good places to go if you like european cities. You could even try the french speaking side, such as Geneva and Lausanne. As for scenery, there are plenty of lakes and mountains. I think the best thing to do is a find a decent guide book from the bookstore and choose one that you like most!

Answer 2

Take the train from Salzburg to Innsbruck rather than routes west that  go through Munich. You probably then have to go to Switzerland via Zurich, but Innsbruck-Zurich and lots of Zurich - Lucerne should be scenic.  Most of Switzerland is spectacular - just avoid the most direct route between Zurich and Geneva as much of the terrain tends to be more like rolling hills.

How long depends on what connections you select and exactly where you want to go in Switzerland.  However, you should be able to make it in one long day - - if that is what you want.

Travelocity has a rail travel link - go to www.travelocity.com, click on Cars/Rail, then click on Search Rail.