Switzerland

Pet Travel & Boarding [email protected] January 11, 2025 0 Comments

Switzerland | FIDO Friendly

Issue 88

• Travel
• by Susan Sims

Dogs are welcome on most trains and cable cars.

By Susan Sims, Publisher

A trip of a lifetime was gifted to me by my son Scott and we both were excited to explore Switzerland this October. In speaking with friends who had the good fortune to travel to Switzerland, the fall months of September and October were optimum for weather and least crowded.

We landed in Zurich and rented a car to Lauterbrunnen, our home base for the week. Lauterbrunnen is central to the many activities planned where trains and cable cars would be our mode of transportation. Our rental home backed up to a meadow and had views of the various waterfalls Lauterbrunnen is famous for.

As we arrived early on our first day, we visited the famous Trümmelbach waterfalls first, which was a short drive from our home. With its ten glacial water falls inside the mountain, made accessible by tunnel lift, the Trümmelbach waterfalls are truly unique in Europe. Trümmelbach alone drains the enormous glacial walls of the Eiger (3970m), Mönch (4099m) and Jungfrau (4158m) with up to a spectacular 20,000 litres of water per second. This stems from a catchment area of 24 square kilometres of which approximately half is covered with snow and ice. UNESCO world natural heritage. There is an elevator that takes you up four levels as the walk is quite steep. From there you can meander up and down to view the magnificent falls.

Next Day Overnight to Zermatt

Four trains deposited us in Zermatt for our Matterhorn excursion. Hotel Albatross was our one-night stay with views of the Matterhorn from our rooms.

The most popular way to see the Matterhorn in Zermatt is to take the train up to the Gornergrat Bhan. Getting an early start is key as to get the best views with various walking paths and photo ops along the way.

An avid YouTube watcher and planner of the trip, I found an amazing restaurant, just a 30-minute walk down the mountain. Chez Vrony is exactly the type of restaurant you would like to see in the middle of the Swiss Alps. We sat outdoors with the Matterhorn view and had the best fondue ever. The steep hike back up, not so much fun, but we made it!