Visiting Lucerne : city, lake and mountains

Dernière mise à jour de cet article le 1 September 2024

We spent a weekend to visit Lucerne, Switzerland. Lucerne is a well-known tourist destination (not necessarily for me, I admit). The good thing was that I had no preconceived ideas about this beautiful city.

So what’s on offer in Lucerne? What to do in German-speaking Switzerland?

A look back at a magnificent weekend in Lucerne, full of surprises and wonderful discoveries.

Where is Lucerne?

Switzerland’s seventh-largest city, with 82,000 inhabitants, lies at the foot of the Swiss Alps, on the shores of Lake Lucerne and the River Reuss. Lucerne is located in central Switzerland. It is the capital of the canton of Lucerne.

Lucerne is located in German-speaking Switzerland, which means you’re likely to hear Swiss German spoken. But don’t worry, if you don’t speak this beautiful language, the Swiss speak English very well. By the way, if you want to know more about Switzerland, I invite you to read this article with 101 things to know.

How to get to Lucerne

We arrived in Lucerne by train. It takes 40 minutes from Zurich and 3 hours from Geneva. If you’re in the canton of Vaud, Lausanne is 2 hours 20 minutes by train from Lucerne.

In any case, it’s always a pleasure to take the train in Switzerland. Clean trains and, above all, on time, it’s always a relaxing experience.

However, prices are high, especially if you don’t have a half-fare card.

I suggest you start your visit to Lucerne with its charming historic center.

To discover Lucerne’s historic center, we opted for the Foxtrail treasure hunt. You have to find clues and solve riddles to find the fox.

So, we’re not going to lie, we weren’t at our best. We wasted a lot of time finding some of the clues, but we’re fans!

Visit Lucerne and its historical center

We began our visit to Lucerne with its historic center. You can discover it by strolling and getting lost in its narrow streets. You’ll be able to admire many buildings with beautifully painted facades.

You can also visit the Jesuit church.

Then we continue our discovery with a must-see on a visit to Lucerne.

Visit the Lucerne Chapel Bridge

Indeed, when you arrive in Lucerne city center, you won’t want to miss the Lucerne Chapel Bridge (Kapellbrücke), or simply the Lucerne Bridge.

The Lucerne Chapel Bridge is the emblem of Lucerne and, like the Matterhorn, a symbol of Switzerland. In fact, it’s one of Switzerland’s most photographed monuments.

It was built in 1332, making it the oldest covered bridge in Europe. The 204-meter-long bridge crosses the Reuss river.

Inside the bridge, in the framework, you’ll find triangular panels telling the story of Switzerland and Lucerne.

In 1993, it was almost completely destroyed by fire. In the face of such devastation for the people of Lucerne and Switzerland, the building was quickly rebuilt to its original appearance.

However, the impressive Wasserturm ( water tower ) survived the fire. This 34-meter-high, octagonal tower was built before the Chapelle bridge. It served a variety of functions, including housing archives and valuables, a prison and a torture chamber.

We also enjoyed a superb moment with a Swiss group playing the Alpine horn. Emotions guaranteed!

A must when visiting Lucerne!

Discover the Spreuerbrücke (Ivory Bridge)

We continue our tour of Lucerne with another covered wooden bridge, the Spreuerbrücke ( Ivory Bridge ). It also crosses the Reuss, but is less touristy than its big brother.

It was built in 1408. Inside, you’ll find panels by Kaspar Meglinger on the (very cheerful) theme of the dance of the dead.

Needle dam

On the Reuss, you can see the Reusswehr, or needle dam. This system was built between 1859 and 1869 to manually regulate the water level of Lake Lucerne. It is still used today by removing or adding wooden planks called needles.

What to visit outside Lucerne city center

After this tour of the historic center, we headed off to discover a new face of Lucerne.

Visit Lucerne with a walk on the ramparts

We wanted to get a panoramic view of Lucerne and its surroundings. That’s why we climbed up to the Musegg ramparts.

These historic fortifications include several towers, some of which are accessible.

So we made the short trip from the Schimerturm to the Wachturm.

It’s not long, but it’s a very pleasant and original way to visit Lucerne.

Visit Lucerne and Castle Gütsch

Gütsch means hill in Swiss German. On this hill you’ll find a forest and a Belle Epoque-style castle (hotel restaurant).

We took the Gütschbahn funicular to reach Gütsch Castle.

The view over Lucerne is magnificent. Perhaps the best view of all!

Don’t forget to take your souvenir photo!

The Lion of Lucerne

The Lion of Lucerne (Löwendenkmal) is a very moving memorial. It depicts a dying lion.

This huge sculpture, carved out of the rock, commemorates the death of Swiss mercenaries in the service of French King Louis XVI, at the hands of revolutionaries during the capture of the Tuileries in 1792.

It’s about 5 minutes from downtown Lucerne. Well worth a visit.

Visit Lucerne and its museums

We’re not big museum-goers. However, next to the lion is the Glacier Garden.

Glacier Garden

Curiosity prompted us to visit the Glacier Garden (Gletschergarten).

This is a surprising place, with the remains of Lucerne covered by glaciers 20,000 years ago.

We enter a rocky cavity. Then we follow a path that explains the formation of sandstone in Lucerne.

Afterwards, we visit an alpine park with explanations of the rocks, fauna and flora. Once you’ve reached the summit, you’ll have a magnificent view of Lucerne and the Alps.

You can even climb Switzerland’s oldest wooden watchtower. At 11 metres high, it is a listed historic monument.

Then, don’t forget to lose yourself in the labyrinth of mirrors, which was built in 1896 for the Swiss National Exhibition in Geneva. Funnily enough, it was modelled on the Alhambra Palace in Granada.

Finally, you can visit a strange house known as the “Amrein Curiosity Cabinet”. Here you’ll find objects that once belonged to the family who founded the Glacier Garden.

Even if the price is high (15 CHF), we recommend this visit as it is surprising, confusing and interesting.

The Swiss Museum of Transport

The Swiss Museum of Transport is very well known in Lucerne and even in Switzerland. We didn’t visit it, but it looks like it’s well worth a visit.

If you’ve visited it, let me know in the comments what you thought of it.

What to do around Lucerne

Lucerne lies on the shores of Lake Lucerne. As a result, taking a stroll along the lake is very pleasant, especially when the weather is sunny.

We also love boat trips. We do them whenever we’re in a lakeside city. So the opportunity was just too good in Lucerne, and we took a boat trip on Lake Lucerne.

Weggis

This boat trip on the lake took us to the village of Weggis, which is the starting point for our trip to the Rigi. However, as we ran out of time, we were unable to take this excursion.

We enjoyed this very pleasant and peaceful little village. A relaxing moment out of time.

Visit Lucerne and climb to the top of the Pilatus

Pilatus, or Mount Pilatus, is a Swiss peak at an altitude of 2,100 metres.

How do I get to the Pilatus?

There are a number of solutions combining several means of transport to reach the summit of Pilatus. We opted for a boat trip, followed by a cogwheel train and a return trip by cable car and bus. Put like that, it sounds complicated, but not at all.

Take the boat from Lucerne to Alpnachstad

So we took the boat from Lucerne to Alpnachstad.

Take a cogwheel train to Pilatus Kulm

We then took a cogwheel train from Alpnachstad to Pilatus Kulm. This cog railway is the steepest in Europe. In fact, to reach Mount Pilatus, the gradients reach 50%, through rock faces, meadows and forest.

The 40-minute ride is an absolutely incredible experience. It’s splendid and magical. I love taking the train, and this one will always be the most impressive!

Once we reached the summit, we were overwhelmed by the view of the Alps and lakes, even if the weather wasn’t as clear as we’d hoped.

Don’t forget to stop off at the Hotel Bellevue restaurant to enjoy the view…but watch out for crows. They can be your best enemy!

Take the cable car to Fräkmüntegg station

To get back to Lucerne, we took a cable car to the Fräkmüntegg station. Then two more to Kriens.

We finished our journey by bus back to Lucerne.

All in all, it was a great trip. To get to Mount Pilatus, we took a boat, a cogwheel train, a cable car, gondolas and a train. What’s more, Swiss precision meant that the boats were on time, as were the trains, and the organization was perfect. We loved it!

You can also book a guided excursion to Mount Pilatus from Lucerne.

Where to stay on a weekend in Lucerne?

Lucerne is a tourist city and therefore very expensive (as is Switzerland in general). So are the accommodations. For example, we booked the IBIS hotel, which is a little out of the city center but within walking distance.

It wasn’t the best hotel we’ve stayed in, but for Lucerne it was very good.

Address: Friedenstrasse 8, 6004 Luzern

What’s more, if you spend a night in a hotel in Lucerne, you’ll receive a guest card. This allows you to use Lucerne’s public transport system free of charge, and gives you discounts on certain activities and museums.

Where to eat in Lucerne

There are many restaurants along the Reuss. In fact, they’re all the rage when the weather’s nice, whether for a drink on the terrace or a bite to eat.

However, I really recommend looking at the prices on the maps before settling in. Switzerland is an expensive destination, but I found the prices in Lucerne very high indeed.

We can recommend three restaurants that we loved:

Restaurant Schiff

What are Switzerland’s specialities? Fondue, of course! And there are no seasons for fondue – you can eat it even in summer! In fact, it was great to eat fondue on a terrace in the middle of August.

Address: Unter der Egg 8, 6004 Luzern.

Nix’s

The second restaurant is also located on the banks of the Reuss, but close to the Pont de l’Ivraie. We had a flamenkuche, which was very good. You can choose your own ingredients.

Address: Reusssteg 9, 6003 Luzern

Old Swiss House

Finally, the last restaurant is the Old Swiss House. Here you’ll eat the best schnitzel of your life! That’s right! What’s more, the schnitzel is prepared in front of you.

So it was the best schnitzel but also the most expensive (59 CHF!). It was overpriced (we hadn’t looked at the prices before settling in!) but well worth it.

Why visit Lucerne for a weekend?

A visit to Lucerne is ideal for a romantic weekend in Switzerland. I really enjoyed the atmosphere in Lucerne, especially in the medieval city center and along the Reuss River. For more information, visit the Lucerne Tourist Office website.

The city, lakes and mountains combo is absolutely perfect for a wonderful weekend.

Other destinations in German-speaking Switzerland

• Discover St. Gallen
• Rhine Falls in Switzerland
• What to do in Schaffhausen
• To Solothurn
• What to see in Zurich
• Explore Saint Moritz
• Going to Appenzell
• What to do in the Emmental?
• Exploring the Schilthorn and Piz Gloria
• How do I get to the Jungfrau?

If you’re looking for beautiful destinations in Switzerland, I invite you to read the article on the most beautiful places in Switzerland written by travel bloggers.