Some of the best things to do in Switzerland that people come home still talking about are a fairly short list: the first sight of the Matterhorn rising over Zermatt, the walk down Lauterbrunnen valley with waterfalls coming off both walls, three slow hours on the Glacier Express, a boat crossing Lake Lucerne in the late afternoon, and the platform at Jungfraujoch where the Aletsch Glacier runs away from you for twenty kilometres. Get those five in the plan, and the rest of the trip tends to arrange itself around them.
Where first-timers go wrong is by spreading out too much. The trip from Interlaken to Jungfraujoch and back takes a full day, not just a morning. Cost catches people out too, since one cable car can cost more than a night's stay, which is why most Switzerland tour packages work off two or three fixed bases instead of moving every day. This list covers 25 practical things to do, grouped so nearby places sit together, with what each one costs, how long it takes, and whether your Swiss Travel Pass covers it.
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Jungfraujoch tops almost every list of things to do in Switzerland, and it is also the one people most often get wrong. At 3,454 meters, it is the highest railway station in Europe, and on a clear day you look straight down the Aletsch Glacier. On a bad day you pay CHF 240 to walk around inside a cloud.
Go straight to the Sphinx Observatory at 3,571 metres before the lift queue builds after 11am. From there the Aletsch runs away from you for 20 kilometres. The Ice Palace and the snow plateau fill the rest of it comfortably in two hours.
Where: Bernese Oberland, above Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen
Getting there: Train from Interlaken Ost via Grindelwald and the Eiger Express, about 2 hours each way
Time needed: Full day, with 2 to 3 hours at the top
Cost: Approx. CHF 240 return from Interlaken (₹22,000). Early Good Morning tickets are cheaper
Open: Daily, first train up around 8am
Worth knowing: Check the Jungfrau Railways webcam the morning you go. Tickets are dated, whether weather up there turns in an hour, and there is no refund for clouds.
Best for: first-timers, couples, anyone who wants one big Alpine day without hiking for it
One of the most magical places to visit in Switzerland, Lauterbrunnen is a flat green valley floor with sheer grey walls on both sides and water falling off the top of them. There are 72 waterfalls, though you will realistically notice six, and the village gets busy between 11am and 4pm. Staubbach Falls drops just under 300 metres beside the village, a ten-minute walk away. The better half of the day is the flat walk to Stechelberg, about 90 minutes past farms and a dozen more waterfalls with almost nobody on it. Then take the cable car up to Mürren, a car-free village on a shelf in the cliff facing the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau. Most day-trippers skip it.
Where:Bernese Oberland, 20 minutes from Interlaken
Getting there: Direct train from Interlaken Ost, 20 minutes
Time needed: Half day for the village, full day with Mürren
Cost: Free. Train approx. CHF 8 one-way
Worth knowing: Do not drive here. Parking is limited and expensive, and the train from Interlaken is 20 minutes on your pass.
Best for: couples, photographers, families, anyone wanting Alpine scenery without a climb
Ten glacier waterfalls stacked inside a mountain, reached by a lift bored through the rock. It is loud, cold and wet, and it is the only place in Europe where you can stand inside a mountain and watch meltwater from the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau punch its way out
At full flow the falls carry around 20,000 litres a second, and you feel that in your chest more than you see it.
Where: Lauterbrunnen valley, 3 km from the village
Getting there: Postbus from Lauterbrunnen station, about 10 minutes
Time needed: 1 to 1.5 hours
Cost: Approx. CHF 14 adults (₹1,300)
Worth knowing: Cameras fog instantly in the chambers. Give the lens a minute to adjust at each level or every photo comes out milky.
Best for: families, anyone in Lauterbrunnen with a spare afternoon
First is where the Jungfrau region stops being scenery and starts being something you do. A cliff walkway bolted to the rock face, a zipline, mountain carts, and behind all of it the Bachalpsee, which is the lake in every second photo of Switzerland you have ever seen. It’s easily one of the most memorable Switzerland activities for adventure seekers.
The First Cliff Walk is free once you are up and takes fifteen minutes. The Bachalpsee hike is the real reason to come: about an hour each way on a wide, gentle path, ending at a still lake that mirrors the Schreckhorn and Wetterhorn on a calm morning. Go early, because wind ruins the reflection by mid-morning.
Where: Above Grindelwald, 2,168 m
Getting there: Gondola from Grindelwald village, 25 minutes
Time needed: Half to full day
Cost: Approx. CHF 68 return (₹6,300); adventure activities extra
Worth knowing: The First Flyer, Glider, and Mountain Cart are sold as a combo. If you only pick one, take the Mountain Cart down to Schreckfeld. It lasts longer than the zipline for less money.
Best for: adventure activities in Switzerland, families with teenagers, hikers
The Bond mountain and, quietly, the better view. At 2,970 metres the revolving restaurant looks straight across at the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau rather than standing among them, which means you actually see the three peaks properly instead of being on top of one, making it truly one of the best adventure activities in Switzerland.
Where: Above Mürren, Bernese Oberland
Getting there: Cable car from Stechelberg via Gimmelwald, Mürren and Birg, about 45 minutes
Time needed: Half day
Cost Approx. CHF 108 return from Stechelberg (₹10,000)
Worth knowing: At half the price of Jungfraujoch with a clearer view of all three peaks, this is the swap to make if the budget is tight. Jungfraujoch wins on glaciers; Schilthorn wins on panoramas.
Best for: couples, budget-conscious travellers, film fans
Interlaken sits on a strip of land between two lakes and exists mostly as a launchpad. Almost every big name in the Bernese Oberland is within an hour, and the town itself is where you land after a long day on a mountain.
Take the funicular up Harder Kulm at sunset for the viewing platform that juts out over the valley with both lakes below. The area is also the paragliding capital of the country, with tandem flights from around CHF 200.
Where: Between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz
Getting there: Direct trains from Zurich (2 hrs), Bern (50 min), Lucerne (2 hrs)
Time needed: Use as a base for 3 to 4 nights
Worth knowing: Two stations, Ost and West. Trains to Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald leave from Ost. People miss trains over the schedule constantly.
Best for: first-time visitors, adventure travellers, anyone who wants one base instead of five
A turquoise lake held in by cliffs on three sides, sitting above Kandersteg in a corner of the country most itineraries skip. It is UNESCO-listed, and the colour in July genuinely looks like the photographs.
The walk from the gondola to the shore is gentle and takes twenty minutes. Rowing boats are available by the hour; the water sits at about 18°C in August, and there is a summer toboggan run beside the top station that most adults enjoy more than they expect. In deep winter, the lake freezes hard enough for skating.
Where: Above Kandersteg, Bernese Oberland
Getting there: Train to Kandersteg, then gondola and a 20-minute walk
Time needed: Half day
Cost: Gondola approx. CHF 32 return (₹3,000). Lake is free
Worth knowing: Skip the gondola and hike up from Kandersteg in about 90 minutes if you want the lake before the crowds. It is a steady forest climb.
Best for: couples, hikers, anyone tired of queues
Almost every mountain in the Alps has other mountains around it. The Matterhorn stands alone, which is why the shape is on the chocolate box. At 4,478 metres it dominates Zermatt so completely that you stop noticing anything else.
The Gornergrat cogwheel railway is the classic viewpoint, climbing to 3,089 metres with the peak in the window the whole way. Sit on the right side going up. Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, at 3,883 metres is the highest cable car station in Europe and holds snow all year. For the reflection shot, walk twenty minutes from Rotenboden station down to the Riffelsee on a still morning.
Where: Zermatt, Valais
Getting there: Train to Täsch, then shuttle. Zermatt is car-free
Time needed: 2 nights minimum
Cost: Village free. Gornergrat railway: approx. CHF 132 return (₹12,200)
Worth knowing: The mountain makes its own cloud by late morning. The first train up at sunrise is the difference between seeing it and not.
Best for: couples, photographers, best things to do in Switzerland shortlists
Titlis is the easiest big mountain to reach in Switzerland, which is both its appeal and its problem. From Lucerne you are at 3,238 metres and standing on a year-round glacier inside two hours, and so is everybody else.
The final stage is the Rotair, a cable car that rotates through 360 degrees as it crosses the glacier. At the top there is the Cliff Walk, Europe's highest suspension bridge at 3,041 metres, a glacier cave cut into the ice; and the Ice Flyer chairlift out over the crevasses.
Where: Above Engelberg, Central Switzerland
Getting there: Train from Lucerne to Engelberg (1 hr), then cable cars
Time needed: Full day from Lucerne
Cost: Approx. CHF 96 return from Engelberg (₹8,800)
Worth knowing: Go on a weekday and take the first cable car. By 11am in peak season, the queues at the mid-station can cost you an hour.
Best for: families, first-timers, anyone travelling in summer who wants snow
Pilatus is worth visiting more for the journey than for the summit. The Golden Round Trip puts you on a lake steamer, then the steepest cogwheel railway in the world, then a cable car down the other side, and you end up back in Lucerne having gone in a full circle.
Where: Above Lucerne, 2,132 m
Getting there: Boat from Lucerne to Alpnachstad, cogwheel up, cable car down to Kriens
Time needed: Full day
Cost: Golden Round Trip approx. CHF 112 (₹10,300)
Worth knowing: Run it clockwise, boat first. The afternoon light is better for the cable car descent and the morning boat is quieter.
Best for: families, first-time visitors, anyone based in Lucerne
If you only have one city day, make it this one. Lucerne is small enough to walk from one end to the other in an hour, sits on a lake surrounded by mountains, and has the oldest wooden covered bridge in Europe running across it.
Chapel Bridge dates to the 14th century and still carries painted panels under its roof, rebuilt after a fire in 1993. The Lion Monument, a dying lion carved into a rock face, is five minutes away and takes as long to see as it sounds. Climb the Musegg Wall towers for free. Then take a steamer out onto the lake, which is where Lucerne actually earns its reputation.
Where: Central Switzerland
Getting there: Direct trains from Zurich (45 min), Interlaken (2 hrs)
Time needed: 1 to 2 days
Cost: Free to walk. Lake cruises from approx. CHF 25
Worth knowing: The Swiss Travel Pass fully covers the lake boats, including the old paddle steamers.
Best for: couples, families, first-time visitors, one-day city stops
Eight hours, 291 bridges, 91 tunnels, and an average speed slow enough that it markets itself as the slowest express train in the world. It runs from Zermatt to St. Moritz through a country you cannot reach any other way.
Where: Zermatt to St. Moritz, or reverse
Getting there: Starts at either end
Time needed: 8 hours, one full day
Cost: Fare approx. CHF 152 plus mandatory seat reservation CHF 39–49
Worth knowing: Eight hours is a long sit. Many travellers do the Chur to St. Moritz half, which holds most of the best scenery in under two hours.
Best for: couples, older travellers, anyone who wants a mountain day without walking
The Bernina line is a UNESCO World Heritage site and the highest rail crossing in the Alps without a rack, meaning the train climbs to 2,253 metres on adhesion alone. It ends in Tirano, in Italy, where the temperature is usually ten degrees warmer.
The run over the Bernina Pass takes you past the Morteratsch glacier and Lago Bianco, a milky white lake right at the top. On the Italian descent, the train loops through the Brusio circular viaduct, a spiral bridge the train crosses over itself on. In four hours you go from glaciers to palm trees.
Where: Chur or St. Moritz to Tirano, Italy
Getting there: Rail from Zurich to Chur, 1.5 hours
Time needed: 4 hours one way
Cost: Fare approx. CHF 66 plus reservation CHF 24–32
Worth knowing: Sit on the right heading south. Then take the bus on to Lugano, also covered on your pass, and come back through the Gotthard for a full loop.
Best for: rail enthusiasts, couples, anyone linking Switzerland with Italy
Montreux to Interlaken, from lake to mountains, without changing trains. That last part is newer than it sounds. Until 2022 the two rail gauges did not match, and everyone changed at Zweisimmen. Now the carriages change gauge mid-journey while you stay seated.
The route climbs out of the vineyards above Lake Geneva, crosses the Pays-d'Enhaut past Gstaad, then drops into the Simmental and along Lake Thun into Interlaken. Prestige class seats sit raised at the front of the train with a driver's-eye view down the track, which is worth the upgrade once.
Where: Montreux to Interlaken Ost
Time needed: 3 hours 15 minutes
Cost: Approx. CHF 74 second class, reservation from CHF 20
Worth knowing: This is the best way to link the French-speaking lakes with the Bernese Oberland, and it saves you a day of backtracking through Bern.
Best for: couples, slow travelers, and itineraries covering both halves of the country
Of all the Switzerland activities on this list, the cruise is the one that costs the least effort and delivers the most. Lake steamers cross the country's big lakes all day, and on the Swiss Travel Pass almost every one of them is free.
Lake Lucerne is the pick if you do just one, with mountains all around and restored paddle steamers from the early 1900s still in service. Lake Brienz is the most vividly coloured, a hard turquoise from glacial silt. Lake Geneva boats run between Montreux, Lausanne, and Vevey and double as transport rather than a tour.
Where: Lake Lucerne, Lake Geneva, Lake Thun, Lake Brienz
Getting there: Piers sit beside the main stations
Time needed: 1 to 4 hours
Cost: From approx. CHF 25 to 60
Worth knowing: Take a one-way boat and return by train. Same view, half the time, and you see the shoreline from both angles.
Best for: things to do in Switzerland for couples, families, rest days
Zurich is where most people land and the one place they tend to write off. The Zurich Old Town on either side of the Limmat is genuinely good for half a day, and it is free, which in this country matters. Niederdorf on the east bank is the lane-and-courtyard half, best in the evening. Across the water, Fraumünster holds five stained glass windows by Marc Chagall that are worth the small entry on their own. Climb the Grossmünster tower for the rooftop view, walk Bahnhofstrasse without buying anything, and finish at the lake where the city swims in summer.
Where: Zurich city centre
Getting there: 10 minutes by train from the airport
Time needed: Half day
Cost: Free. Fraumünster entry approx. CHF 5
Worth knowing: If you land in the morning and your onward train is in the afternoon, this fills the gap perfectly. Left luggage at Zurich HB is cheap.
Best for: arrival and departure days, city travellers
Bern is the capital, which surprises people who assume it is Zurich, and its medieval centre is a UNESCO site with six kilometres of covered arcades. It rains often in Switzerland, and here you can shop and walk the whole town without getting wet.
The Zytglogge clock tower runs a mechanical figure show four minutes before every hour, which is short and a little underwhelming, so stand there at five to rather than build your day around it. The Aare loops around the old town in a green-blue arc, and the Bear Park on the far bank sits right on the river. Einstein wrote his 1905 papers in a flat on Kramgasse, now a small museum.
Where: Bern, central Switzerland
Getting there: Under an hour from Zurich, Interlaken or Lucerne
Time needed: Half to full day
Cost: Free. Zytglogge tower tour: approx. CHF 20
Worth knowing: The best view is from the Rose Garden above the Bear Park. Ten-minute uphill walk, no entry fee, and it takes in the whole old town bend.
Best for: things to do in Switzerland for tourists on a rainy day, history-minded travellers
If you want to see Switzerland’s rawer side, head to Rhine Falls, Europe’s largest waterfall. Get close to the rushing water by boat, walk to the viewpoints or simply watch the falls thunder through the gorge. It’s one of the things to do in Switzerland that feels genuinely spectacular in person.
Where: Near Schaffhausen, northern Switzerland
Getting there: Train from Zurich to Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall, about 50 minutes
Time needed: Half day
Cost: Free from the north bank. Viewing platforms approx. CHF 5, boat CHF 12–20
Worth knowing: Easy half-day from Zurich, which makes it the best option if you have a spare morning at the start or end of the trip.
Best for: families, day trips from Zurich
Appenzell is the Switzerland that predates tourism. Painted house fronts, hand-lettered shop signs, cows with bells that are genuinely working animals, and a canton that still votes by show of hands in the town square every April.
The draw beyond the village is Ebenalp and the walk down to Berggasthaus Aescher, a guesthouse built flat against a cliff overhang. It is a short, steep twenty minutes from the cable car through a cave. Further on, Seealpsee sits in a bowl of rock and is the quietest, good lake in the country.
Where: Northeast Switzerland, near St. Gallen
Getting there: Train from Zurich via St. Gallen, about 2 hours
Time needed: Full day, better with a night
Cost: Village free. Ebenalp cable car approx. CHF 35 return
Worth knowing: Aescher gets full at lunch. Go at 10am or after 3pm and you will have the terrace.
Best for: repeat visitors, travellers avoiding the crowds, cheese lovers
Twenty-three kilometres of ice, the longest glacier in the Alps, and a UNESCO World Heritage site. You have seen a slice of it from Jungfraujoch. Seeing the whole glacier curve down the valley is a completely different experience.
Eggishorn, at 2,869 metres gives the widest view, with the ice sweeping away below in a long grey curve. Bettmerhorn is slightly lower and has a marked trail along the lateral moraine, which is a straightforward walk with the glacier beside you the whole way. Moosfluh from Riederalp is the least busy of the three.
Where: Valais, above Fiesch and Riederalp
Getting there: Cable car from Fiesch to Eggishorn, or Betten to Bettmerhorn
Time needed: Half to full day
Cost: Cable cars approx. CHF 30–60 round trip
Worth knowing: Most people never come here because it sits off the Interlaken–Zermatt tourist line, even though it is on the same railway. If you want a big Alpine sight without crowds, this is it.
Best for: hikers, photographers, second-time visitors
Switzerland has exactly one national park, founded in 1914 and the oldest in the Alps. It runs on strict rules: stay on the marked trails, no fires, no camping, no dogs, and no picking anything. That severity is why the wildlife is still there.
Twenty-one marked routes cross the park, most of them day walks. Red deer, chamois, ibex and marmots are common, and bearded vultures were reintroduced here and now breed in the valley. The visitor centre at Zernez is worth thirty minutes first because it tells you which trails have had recent sightings.
Where: Lower Engadine, near Zernez
Getting there: Train to Zernez from Chur is about 2 hours
Time needed: Full day
Cost: Free entry. Visitor centre approx. CHF 7
Worth knowing: Bring binoculars. This is a wildlife park, not a viewpoint park, and without them, you will see grey shapes on a hillside.
Best for: hikers, wildlife watchers, travellers with time in the east
If you want to get away from Switzerland’s better-known mountain spots, make your way to Creux du Van. This enormous limestone amphitheatre rises above the Val-de-Travers and rewards you with dramatic cliff-edge views that feel almost unreal. It’s one of the things to do in Switzerland when you want a quieter, wilder side of the country.
Where: Canton Neuchâtel, Jura region
Getting there: Train to Noiraigue, then hike
Time needed: 4 to 5 hours round trip
Cost: Free
Worth knowing: No barrier along most of the rim. It is safe if you pay attention and a bad idea in fog or with small children running around.
Best for: hikers, travellers based in Geneva or Neuchâtel
Switzerland has around 65,000 kilometres of marked trails, all signed in yellow with walking times rather than distances. You do not need to be a mountaineer. Cable cars do the climbing, and you walk the best part along the top.
Four to start with. The Eiger Trail from Eigergletscher to Alpiglen runs directly under the North Face, about two and a half hours downhill. The Five Lakes Walk above Zermatt catches the Matterhorn reflected in two of them. Bachalpsee at Grindelwald First is the gentlest. The Hardergrat above Interlaken is a long exposed ridge and only for experienced walkers.
Where: Everywhere above 1,000 m
Getting there: Trails start at most cable car stations
Time needed: 2 hours to a full day
Cost Free, plus lift fares
Worth knowing: Yellow signs give walking time, not distance. A sign saying 1h 20 means 1h 20 at a steady local pace, and that estimate is usually accurate.
Best for: things to do in Swiss Alps itineraries, active travellers, solo trips
The largest lake in western Europe, shared with France, and an entirely different mood from the Alpine half of the country. Vineyards on the slopes, palm trees on the promenade, and French spoken everywhere, which makes it one of the best Switzerland attractions.
Geneva at the western tip has the Jet d'Eau, a 140-metre water jet visible from most of the city. Lausanne is the better base, built on a hill with a Gothic cathedral and a steep old town. Vevey and Montreux run along the northern shore, and the boats between them are more pleasant than the train.
Where: Southwest Switzerland
Getting there: Geneva and Lausanne both on main rail lines
Time needed: 2 to 3 days for the region
Cost: Free. Boats from approx. CHF 25
Worth knowing: This side gets noticeably warmer and drier than the Bernese Oberland. When the mountains are under clouds for three days, this is where you go.
Best for: couples, wine drinkers, travellers arriving via Geneva airport
A 13th-century castle built on a rock in the lake with the mountains behind it and the most visited historic Switzerland attractions. The setting does most of the work, but the inside holds up.
Forty-odd rooms are open, including the underground vaults cut into the rock where a monk named Bonivard was chained for four years in the 1500s. Byron wrote *The Prisoner of Chillon* about it in 1816 and carved his name on a pillar, which is still there behind glass. The great halls upstairs have painted ceilings and windows straight onto the water.
Where Veytaux, near Montreux
Getting there: Bus 201 from Montreux, 15 minutes, or a 45-minute lakeside walk
Time needed: 2 hours
Cost: Approx. CHF 15 (₹1,400)
Worth knowing: Walk from Montreux along the lake path rather than taking the bus. It is 45 flat minutes past gardens and sculpture, and it is the better approach.
Best for: couples, families, history travellers