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If you are visiting Lucerne, then a trip to Mount Pilatus is a must! Composed of many peaks, its tallest, Tomlishorn, stands at 6,982 feet (2,128 m). The views from the top are absolutely gorgeous and exactly what you would picture when you think of mountains in Switzerland! Make a day trip out of this, have lunch at the top and take the world’s steepest cogwheel train to go up or down! Here is my Visitor’s Guide to Mount Pilatus!Lucerne Resources & Recommendations
- Accommodations– Compare prices on Agoda | Booking.com
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- Allianz Global Travel Insurance
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- Lonely Planet Switzerland Travel Guide– the best destination (and my favorite) guidebooks out there! You can also preorder the new 2018 version here.
The Way Up
We actually did what’s called the Golden Tour and it consists of visiting Mount Pilatus round-trip from Lucerne by taking a boat, cogwheel railway, gondola and cable car! We did it in the reverse by taking the gondola and cable cars up and descending via cogwheel railway. Because we had the Swiss Travel Pass from Rail Europe, we got our tickets half price!
We started by taking the bus from Lucerne to the town of Kriens.
From there, it’s just a short walk to get on the panorama gondola.
The views looking back on Kriens were beautiful!
Between Kriens and the top of Mount Pilatus is Fräkmüntegg. It takes around 30 minutes to get to this point. This is where you change from the gondola to the cable car to finish your ascent.
The stop at Fräkmüntegg offers rides on Switzerland’s longest summer toboggan! At 4,429 feet long (1350 m), it has several speedy curves and tunnels called “dragon caves”.
At the end, no worries about hiking back to the top. There’s a lift that pulls you back up! We had so much fun and I highly recommend it!
The cable car takes you the rest of the way up to the top of Mount Pilatus!
At The Top
Once you’re at the top there’s plenty to explore!
Take in the views…
from all sides…
because they are breathtaking
and stop for a moment to realize you are in the Swiss Alps!!!
Don’t forget those perspective photos
Also, keep your eyes open for wildlife. We got to see a family of Ibex (also called Capricorn) and the baby decided to pose. To see them this high up is rare according to a native who frequents the summit. She said this is the first time she’s seen them in 17 years!
Cows are more commonly spotted. While they may not be as exciting as Ibex, a cool thing about them is that they all wear true cowbells! Yes, you can hear them…loud and clear! 🙂
See that little zig-zag trail? For all the adventurers out there, you can hike to the top!
Time For Lunch
After you take in all the sites and get those amazing photos, have lunch outside the Hotel Pilatus-Kulm and continue to relax with stunning panoramic views!
The menu offers a good variety and includes Swiss cuisine; however, for me, it was a hamburger kind of day 😉
Can’t leave out dessert!
The Way Down
When you’re ready to leave, your return trip starts with the world’s steepest cogwheel train. Starting in the afternoon, there can be long lines for the cog train. There was a mass exodus when we left so we were told it would be about an hour and a half wait! Thank goodness it moved faster than this, but we did have a pretty decent wait.
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Going down!
There were gorgeous views on our way…
as well as a few tunnels
From the cogwheel train, you transfer to a ferry (also covered by the Swiss Travel Pass from Rail Europe) in Alpnachstad and sail on a very picturesque journey back to Lucerne. Out on the open water sailing on Lake Lucerne…I love being on a boat so I can’t think of a better way to spend my afternoon!
This was probably my most favorite view while sailing. Does it not remind you of a postcard especially with the Swiss flag on the mountain?
But I couldn’t ignore this white castle either!
We even passed our hotel coming back into Luzern! If you are looking for the best place to stay, check out Palace Luzern!
TIPS
- Don’t forget your jacket. Even in the summer!
- The cogwheel train is closed during the winter from mid-November to mid-May
- A Swiss Travel Pass will get you 50% off cable car tickets
- Keep in mind there could be a long line for the cogwheel train
- You don’t have to make reservations in advance
- Have fun!
PIN IT!
I can’t recommend the Golden Trip to Mount Pilatus enough! It’s definitely a highlight of Lucerne and leaves lasting memories! Be sure to check out where to eat and the best things to do in Lucerne!
If you do this trip, I would love to hear how it went!
‘Til next time…
Trimm Travels,
Hello! I had a quick question, I’m in a really light manual chair and pretty adventurous. I went to Machu Picchu last year, so from what you saw, do you think this adventure could maybe accomadate my wheelchair?
Hi Juliet! I think that it could! I can’t swear by it and I would recommend emailing the company to be sure, but in thinking about the golden circle, I’m pretty sure I saw a wheelchair folded on the gondola. I think you could get it on the cogwheel, but I’m not sure about storage (that would be a definite question). The boat shouldn’t be a problem. Moving around at the top of the mountain might be a but trickier as there are different levels (the very top, the restaurant on the other end, etc) that are steps. I did Machu Picchu in May and consider it to be much more difficult than Mt Pilatus!!! I think it would boil down to storage of the wheelchair on the cogwheel train and what their rules and regulations are. Hope that helps!
Hi Heather
I absolutely love following your travel blogs and have picked up a few tips. For the trip to Mt. Pilatus you mentioned that the cogwheel train doesn’t operate from mid November to mid May. I’ll be traveling in the first week of May so if the cogwheel is not operational what is the alternative we can use?
Hi Dilnaz! Thank you, I appreciate that! I’m so glad it’s been helpful-that’s my primary goal! As for the cogwheel train, correct. It doesn’t operate from mid-November to mid-May (ish). They are a bit ambiguous as to what day the start of the season is in May. It *might* be (depending on when during that first week of May you’re planning to do this activity) that it’s open. I would think emailing them would be worth it to see if this can be determined ahead of time. The only other alternative that I’m aware of is to take the gondolas up and back and do a boat tour of Lake Lucerne on its own as these operate all year long and are pretty inexpensive. Hope that helps! 🙂 Thank you so much again for reading!
I loved reading your blog about Lucerne. My husband and I will be visiting Lucerne over easter weekend and were wondering about the Golden Tour you took to Mountt Pilatus. You mentioned that you were able to book roundtrip tickets for half-price as you had a Swiss Travel Pass, we’d like to do the same. How did that work w/ showing proof of your travel pass, did you purchase tickets the morning that you planned to go to Mount Pilatus (and where, if so), or, did you book through a specific travel agent, website (e.g., GetYourGuide, Viator, etc.)? Thanks in advance for your help!
Hi Diana! First, thank you for reading and I’m so glad that it’s helpful to you. You will love Lucerne! Correct, we were able to purchase tickets half-price using our Swiss Travel Pass. We did not book ahead of time. We purchased our tickets as we went. We actually did the trip in reverse from what’s most popular so we went up the gondola, back down my the cogwheel train and back to Lucerne via the boat. When we purchased our tickets at the gondola side, we showed them our Swiss Travel Pass. We didn’t use or need the assistance of a travel agent/group/website. It was really pretty easy! One thing I did want to point out. You mentioned you are traveling over Easter weekend which is April 1st this year. The cogwheel train is closed in the winter and doesn’t open back up until beginning to mid-May so keep that in mind. Everything else (if I remember correctly) operates year-round. Hope you have a great time and thanks so much again for reading! 🙂
Loved this informative & picture-filled recount! How long would say the full trip for the golden tour?
Hi! If I remember correctly, we left first thing in the morning and got back around mid-afternoon. It will depend on how you do the tour and what the lines are like so that could vary, but that’s a roundabout timeframe. So glad you like the post, thanks for reading! 🙂
Hi Heather, a friend and myself will be going to Lucerne mid May this year. We were going to do a tour to Mount Pilates. Would you suggest doing the trip on our own rather than a guided tour?
Hi Joan, Well in full disclosure, I haven’t compared the two because we did it on our own and didn’t do a guided tour. So, I can’t say which is better having not done one. But, what I can say is that it is very easy to do it on your own which then allows for you to control your time and how you would like to do the trip itself (which way you want to go, how you want to go up and come down)…however, do check the the cogwheel because if I remember correctly, it opens in mid-May so will depend on its actual opening date and your trip dates. Hope that helps and thank you for reading! 🙂
Bonjour j’ai grandement apprécié les détails et les photos pour se rendre au mont Pilatus. Je prévois visiter la Suisse en mai 2020. Est-ce que c’est avantageux d’acheter un Suisse Travelling Pass de Rail Europe si nous restons 2 semaines en Suisse. Je demeure au Québec
Hélène-Bonjour! Oui!!! Sorry, I don’t speak French but yes it is very advantageous to get the Swiss Travel Pass if you are going to spend two weeks in Switzerland. We were there 16 days and used it for SO much! Hope that helps and I love Québec! Thanks for reading! 🙂