Things to do in Lucerne

Things to do

1. The Chapel Bridge

   The oldest covered wooden bridge in Europe, its paintings under the roof and its water tower. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Culture and historyMonument1 hrFreebest in the morning

2. Mount Pilatus

   The steepest cogwheel railway in the world on the way up, the cable car on the way down. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Nature and sceneryViewpoint6 hr≈ €75takes the whole day

3. The Lion Monument

   A dying lion carved into the cliff for the Swiss Guards who fell at the Tuileries in 1792. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Culture and historyArtwork30 minFreebest in the morning

4. The Swiss Museum of Transport

   Locomotives, planes, cable cars and a planetarium: the most visited museum in Switzerland. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Culture and historyMuseum4 hr≈ €35best in the afternoon

5. Lake Lucerne by paddle steamer

   Paddle steamers from 1900 between the mountains, to Vitznau and the Rigi. On Wikipedia (in French)

   RelaxationViewpoint3 hr≈ €45best in the afternoon

When to go

The most pleasant months in Lucerne: from May to September, taking weather and crowds into account.

More ideas for those months: where to go in May, where to go in June, where to go in July, where to go in August, where to go in September.

Averages measured over recent years: mean temperatures and number of rainy days, month by month.

What budget on the ground?

Per person and per day, including accommodation, meals, local transport and visits — excluding the round trip. An estimate calculated the same way as in the app, from the local cost of living.

Budget

€115

Mid-range

€215

Comfort

€400

Getting there from Paris: the carbon footprint

Per person, round trip, in kilograms of CO₂ equivalent — manufacturing, energy and, for flights, contrails included.

Train

40 kg

Bus

46 kg

Plane

220 kg

By train rather than by plane: 180 kg less CO₂e per person (6 times less).

Factors from ADEME (Impact CO₂); outside France, rail uses the European average published by the European Environment Agency.

Book on the ground

Tours and tickets

• Go City Multi-attraction passes for big cities
• Klook Tours, tickets and excursions
• Tiqets Museums and monuments, skip-the-line tickets
• WeGoTrip Self-paced audio tours

Internet on site (eSIM)

• Airalo Data eSIM, by country or region
• Drimsim SIM card that works in almost every country
• Saily Data eSIM
• Yesim Data eSIM

From the airport

• GetTransfer Drivers make an offer for your ride
• Intui Private transfers at a fixed price
• Kiwitaxi Booked transfers, from taxi to minibus
• Welcome Pickups Driver waiting on arrival, price fixed in advance

Rent a car

• Auto Europe Rental comparison
• EconomyBookings Rental comparison
• GetRentacar Cars from rental companies and private owners
• Localrent Local rental companies, often no credit card needed

Partner links: if you book through them, Tripora may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you and without changing the order of these lists, which is alphabetical.

Good to know: Switzerland

Plugs

Type C, J, 230 V

Emergencies

112, 117 (police), 144 (ambulance), 118 (fire)

Driving

On the right

Near Lucerne

• Zurich Switzerland, 40 km
• Interlaken and the Bernese Oberland Switzerland, 53 km
• Basel Switzerland, 78 km
• Zermatt Switzerland, 120 km
• Lugano Switzerland, 130 km
• Montreux and the Vaud Riviera Switzerland, 130 km

Elsewhere in Switzerland

• Basel
• Geneva
• Interlaken and the Bernese Oberland
• Lugano
• Montreux and the Vaud Riviera
• St. Moritz and the Engadin
• Zermatt
• Zurich