Switzerland enchants visitors with its stunning Alpine peaks, pristine lakes, and charming medieval towns. From world-class skiing to scenic train journeys and gourmet chocolate, this mountainous nation offers unparalleled natural beauty and Swiss precision in hospitality.
Top day trips
Handpicked excursions within easy reach.
Interlaken and Schilthorn
Interlaken sits on the strip of land between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz and functions mainly as the gateway to the peaks around it, most notably the Schilthorn above Murren. The town itself is a low-key base of hotels and outfitters rather than a sightseeing destination, but the cable car journey up to the Schilthorn's summit at Piz Gloria delivers a panorama of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau that few other viewpoints in the region match. A day here is really a day of vertical travel: train, then cable car in stages, then a summit platform.
Highlights: Paragliding over Lauterbrunnen Valley · Cable car to Schilthorn at 2970m · Boat trip on Lake Thun or Lake Brienz · Truemmelbach Falls
Zurich
Zurich is Switzerland's largest city and its financial centre, built along the Limmat river where it flows out of Lake Zurich. The old town on both banks mixes guild houses, church towers and narrow lanes with a genuinely functioning modern city rather than a preserved museum piece, and the lake itself is walkable and swimmable in season. A day trip here suits someone who wants city walking, shopping and museums rather than mountain scenery.
Highlights: Kunsthaus Zurich art museum · Bahnhofstrasse shopping · Old Town Altstadt and Grossmuenster · Lake Zurich promenade
Gruyeres and Cheese Dairy
Gruyeres is a small fortified hilltop town in canton Fribourg, the origin of the cheese that carries its name, and it can genuinely be seen on foot in a few hours. The medieval castle at the top of the town and the working cheese dairy at the bottom (La Maison du Gruyere, in the village of Pringy just below the hill) make a natural pairing: one visit for the town's history, one for how the product is actually made. It is a compact, single-street destination rather than a place with much depth beyond that.
Highlights: Medieval Gruyeres Castle · La Maison du Gruyere cheese factory tour and tasting · HR Giger Museum · Fondue lunch in the village
Lucerne
Lucerne sits at the point where the Reuss river leaves Lake Lucerne, and its old town of painted facades and covered wooden bridges is compact enough to see well in a single day while still leaving time for the lake itself. It works as either a pure city walk or a base for a mountain excursion up Pilatus or Rigi, both reachable from the lakefront. The core of the old town is small, so the day's pacing depends on whether a mountain trip is added.
Highlights: Chapel Bridge and Water Tower · Lion Monument · Swiss Museum of Transport · Lake Lucerne boat cruise
Basel and the Rhine
Basel sits where Switzerland, France and Germany meet, and the Rhine running through its centre is as much a part of the city experience as the old town above its banks. The Munster cathedral and the narrow lanes of the old town sit on one side of the river, with a summer tradition of locals swimming or floating down the Rhine in the current itself. It reads as a border city shaped by three countries rather than a purely Swiss old town, and its art museums give it a different character from Zurich or Lucerne.
Highlights: Fondation Beyeler modern art museum · Rhine swimming with locals in summer · Basel Minster and Old Town · Museum fur Gegenwartskunst
Trips by distance
How far you can go in a day.
Getting there
Transport options for day trips.
- Tours
- Organized tours from Zurich/Bern from CHF 80-150 including transport, guide, and entry
- Private
- Car hire from CHF 60-90/day — ideal for Graubünden and rural routes not well served by rail
- Public
- Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) serve all major destinations. Swiss Travel Pass covers most routes.
- Rental
- Car rental from CHF 60/day. Highway vignette (CHF 40 annual) required for motorways.
Multi-day tours from Switzerland
If you have longer than a day, these are organised multi-day trips that start here.
Browse multi-day tours from SwitzerlandWe may earn a commission from bookings made through this link.
Day trip tips
Make the most of your excursions.
Start mountain day trips early — cable cars can be queued from 9AM in peak season
Book Jungfraujoch and Matterhorn Glacier Paradise tickets online to guarantee entry and save time
Swiss Travel Pass valid for most intercity trains — factor this into budgeting if planning 3+ day trips