The trip
Overview
Switzerland in summer is the antidote to a UAE August: twenty-something degrees, green valleys, lakes cold enough to gasp at, and a railway network so scenic that the transport is the sightseeing. This eight-night route runs Lucerne to the Bernese Oberland to Zermatt entirely by train — including panoramic legs on the routes that made Swiss rail famous — with no car hire, no motorway and no luggage heavier than the platform trolley can carry.
Each base earns its nights. Lucerne pairs a medieval lakefront with paddle-steamer cruises and the Pilatus cogwheel railway, the world's steepest. The Oberland delivers the big set pieces — the Jungfrau railway boring through the Eiger to Europe's highest station, the Lauterbrunnen valley's seventy-two waterfalls, Grindelwald's cliff walk. Zermatt, car-free and Matterhorn-obsessed, closes the show with the Gornergrat railway's five-glacier panorama.
Families thrive here — trains, cable cars, toboggan runs and swimmable lakes are a child's itinerary already — and couples get the same scenery with fondue and wine at the end of it. Direct flights from Dubai to Zurich and Geneva bracket the route neatly.
Highlights
- ✦Lake Lucerne by paddle steamer and Mount Pilatus by cogwheel railway
- ✦The Jungfraujoch — Europe's highest railway station, inside the Eiger
- ✦Lauterbrunnen valley and the Trümmelbach falls thundering inside the mountain
- ✦Panoramic rail legs with reserved seats and the luggage sent ahead
- ✦Gornergrat railway at dawn for the Matterhorn across five glaciers
- ✦Fondue, lake swims and alpine playgrounds between the set pieces
Who it suits
- ●UAE families fleeing July and August for green valleys and cold lakes
- ●Couples who want scenery without a steering wheel
- ●Rail enthusiasts — three of the Alps' great lines in one route
Why this journey works
- ✓Escaping 45-degree Gulf heat for 22-degree alpine summer is reason enough
- ✓Trains replace transfers: every journey between bases is itself an excursion
- ✓Luggage forwarding and a rail pass strip the logistics to nothing
- ✓Direct Dubai flights to Zurich out and Geneva home keep the route one-directional
Day by day
Days 1–3
Lucerne — the lakefront overture
Direct flight from Dubai to Zurich, then under an hour by train to Lucerne — the Swiss transition happens fast. Three nights on or near the lake. Walk the Chapel Bridge and the old town's painted squares, cruise the lake by paddle steamer to Vitznau, and take the golden round trip up Pilatus: boat out, the world's steepest cogwheel up, dragon-ride cable car down. Children rate the Swiss Museum of Transport among Europe's best rainy-day insurance.
Days 4–6
The Bernese Oberland — the big mountains
A scenic rail leg over the Brünig Pass and along two lakes lands you in Interlaken, Wengen or Grindelwald for three nights. The Jungfraujoch day is the headline — through the Eiger by tunnel to 3,454 metres of glacier and snow in midsummer — but the valley days match it: Lauterbrunnen's waterfall wall, the Trümmelbach falls roaring inside the rock, Grindelwald's First cliff walk and its toboggan and zip-line descents. Evenings are rösti, fondue and alpenglow.
Days 7–8
Zermatt — the Matterhorn at close range
Ride the connecting valley railways to car-free Zermatt, electric taxis humming where engines are banned. Two nights beneath the most recognisable mountain in the Alps. Take the Gornergrat railway early, when the Matterhorn stands clearest above the glacier field, and ride the lift network towards the Klein Matterhorn for year-round snow. The village itself — old larch barns two lanes from designer windows — deserves a slow afternoon and a proper last dinner.
Day 9
Down the valley and home
Train down the Mattertal and through the Rhône valley to Geneva — a final two-lake, one-vineyard journey — and the direct flight back to Dubai, landing the same evening.
When to go
June to September is the green season this route is built for — hiking trails open, lake boats at full schedule, mountain railways running long hours; July and August coincide with UAE school holidays and book earliest. September brings golden light and thinner crowds. The same route runs in winter as a snow holiday, but summit days always depend on mountain weather, whatever the month.
Planning around seasons, regions and style? Read the full Switzerland destination guide →
What’s included
- ✓Return flights from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Zurich, returning from Geneva
- ✓Swiss rail pass covering trains, lake boats and many mountain railways
- ✓Eight nights' accommodation as described
- ✓Daily breakfast
- ✓Reserved seats on the panoramic legs and station luggage forwarding
- ✓PCT travel consultant support before and during travel
Not included
- —Travel insurance
- —Full-fare supplements on summit railways such as the Jungfraujoch
- —Meals not stated
- —Personal spending
Ways to extend it
- +Add the Glacier Express panoramic leg towards St Moritz
- +Finish with two nights on Lake Geneva at Montreux
- +Include a Grindelwald First adventure-pass day for teenagers
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