Montreux, Zermatt, St. Moritz and Lugano in 12 Days

Vineyards to glaciers to palm trees, with the Glacier Express in the middle

12 days4 stops

Original illustration

At a glance

A west-to-south loop through Switzerland on its best panoramic trains. Start with two nights among the Lavaux vineyards on Lake Geneva, climb to Zermatt for the Matterhorn, ride the Glacier Express to St. Moritz, then take the Bernina line toward Italy and finish with three slow nights in Lugano. Fly into Geneva and out of Milan or Zurich. Best from June to September.

By the Honeymoon Huts editors · How we research

This 12 day honeymoon crosses Switzerland from the French-speaking west to the Italian-speaking south, using four bases and the two most famous scenic railways in the Alps. You fly into Geneva (GVA), start among the vineyard terraces of Lavaux above Lake Geneva, then head up to Zermatt for the Matterhorn. From there the Glacier Express carries you east to St. Moritz in the Engadine. The Bernina line then drops you toward Italy for a final three nights in Lugano.

It is a route for couples who enjoy the journey. The Glacier Express day is long and slow by design, with lunch at your seat and the windows doing the entertaining. The rest of the trip balances it out: short transfers, three nights in each mountain stop and a finale built for swimming, grotto dinners and doing very little. Fly home from Milan Malpensa (MXP) or Zurich (ZRH).

The route

Best months: June to September, with early October lovely in the Engadine
Trip length: 12 days
Budget: About $450–1,100 a night for two in mid-range to luxury hotels, plus panoramic train seat reservations (approximate)

Day by day

Days 1–2: Montreux and Lavaux

From Geneva Airport, direct trains follow the lake to Montreux in about an hour and a quarter. Check in to a lake-facing room, because a view of the water and the French Alps is the point here. Walk the promenade to Chillon Castle, about 45 minutes along the shore. Look for Byron's name carved into a pillar in the dungeon.

On day 2, walk the Lavaux vineyard terraces from Cully to St-Saphorin via Epesses and Rivaz. It takes a few hours at an easy pace, with village cellars along the way. The train brings you back. Start in the morning, since the terraces get hot. Plan a long lunch in the middle with a glass of Chasselas from the slope you just walked.

The romantic moment is sunset on the lakeside promenade near Chillon with a bottle from the cellars. Partners who prefer a view from above can ride the cogwheel train to Rochers-de-Naye at 6,699 feet first.

Days 3–5: Zermatt

The train from Montreux to Zermatt takes about two and a half hours, changing at Visp for the narrow-gauge line up the valley. Private cars are banned in the village, so electric taxis and hotel shuttles meet you at the station.

Use your first clear morning for the Gornergrat Bahn, which climbs to 10,135 feet in about 33 minutes. Get off on the way down at Rotenboden and walk to the Riffelsee for the Matterhorn reflected in still water. On another day, ride to Matterhorn Glacier Paradise at 12,739 feet, the highest lift station in Europe. Walk through its ice palace.

Keep one day slow. Walk the Five Lakes trail from Blauherd or hike up to Findeln for a long terrace lunch with Valais wine, while a less sporty partner rides the lift up to meet you. Zermatt is the natural splurge stop: book a Matterhorn-view room, or a night at Riffelalp Resort 2222m to have the stars to yourselves after the day visitors leave.

Days 6–8: St. Moritz and the Engadine

Day 6 belongs to the Glacier Express, about eight hours from Zermatt to St. Moritz in panoramic cars with lunch served at your seat. The route crosses the Oberalp Pass at more than 6,600 feet and the Landwasser Viaduct on the Albula line. Reserve seats well ahead for summer.

The Engadine sits around 6,000 feet in a high, sunny valley of lakes and larch forest. Base yourselves in St. Moritz for restaurants and glamour or in Sils Maria or Pontresina for quiet. On day 7, take a horse-drawn carriage into the car-free Fex Valley above Sils for lunch, then walk back through the meadows.

Save day 8 for the romantic moment: the funicular up Muottas Muragl late in the afternoon, where the terrace looks straight down the chain of Upper Engadine lakes as the light goes gold and then blue. Stay for dinner at the top. In early October, the larches between Sils and Silvaplana turn bright yellow.

Days 9–12: Lugano

Ride the Bernina Express from St. Moritz to Tirano in Italy, about two and a half hours past glaciers and down the circular viaduct at Brusio. In the warmer months a connecting Bernina Express bus continues to Lugano, past Lake Como. Out of season, the train back through Chur and the Gotthard Base Tunnel takes roughly four to five hours.

Lugano is the slow stretch, three nights in a lakeside town with palm trees and Italian rhythm. Walk the Olive Trail from Castagnola to the car-free village of Gandria and take the boat back. Spend an afternoon at a lido with loungers and a swim off the dock. Ride the funicular up Monte Brè at sundown to watch the lights come on around the bay.

Book at least one dinner at a grotto, a rustic restaurant with granite tables under chestnut trees. Order polenta with a jug of Ticino Merlot. On day 12, Milan Malpensa is about an hour or a bit more by road or rail. Zurich Airport is about two and a half hours by train.

Getting Between Stops

Geneva Airport to Montreux is about an hour and a quarter by direct train. Montreux to Zermatt takes about two and a half hours via Visp. The Glacier Express from Zermatt to St. Moritz runs about eight hours. Seat reservations carry an extra fee on top of your ticket or pass. It pauses for a few weeks in late autumn, so check dates. The Bernina Express to Tirano takes about two and a half hours, then the seasonal bus or a longer train journey brings you to Lugano.

A Swiss Travel Pass covers the main trains, including the Glacier Express and Bernina Express themselves, though not their seat reservations. It also gives discounts on most mountain lifts. With this much rail travel it usually pays for itself, but compare prices before you buy. Send big suitcases ahead with the Swiss luggage service if you want to travel light on the panoramic days.

Where to Stay

On Lake Geneva, the Hôtel des Trois Couronnes in Vevey sits on the water with a spa and views of the Alps. The Fairmont Le Montreux Palace faces the lake in Montreux. For a hilltop retreat over the vineyards, look at Le Mirador Resort and Spa on Mont-Pèlerin.

In Zermatt, Mont Cervin Palace is the classic grand hotel on the main street, The Omnia sits on a rock ledge above town and Riffelalp Resort 2222m stands above the tree line on the Gornergrat railway.

In the Engadine, Badrutt's Palace Hotel is the turreted landmark above Lake St. Moritz. The Hotel Waldhaus Sils suits couples who want a quieter, family-run classic.

In Lugano, the Grand Hotel Villa Castagnola sits in a subtropical park with its own lido, a short walk from the Olive Trail. Ask about the Ticino Ticket at check-in for free regional transport.

When to Go

June to September is the best window. All the lifts run, the Bernina Express bus operates, Lake Lugano is warm enough to swim from June and the Lavaux terraces are green. August is the busiest and priciest month.

September is the favorite of many couples, with harvest beginning in Lavaux, crisp air in Zermatt and fewer people on the trails. Early October adds gold larches in the Engadine, though some Zermatt and St. Moritz hotels start closing for the season.

Avoid early July if you want quiet in Montreux, since the Jazz Festival fills the town. Avoid May and November entirely for this route: many hotels in Zermatt and the Engadine close, including most of the grand ones in St. Moritz. The Glacier Express also takes its seasonal break. Winter works for Zermatt and St. Moritz but makes Lugano a quiet, gray finale.

Budget and Booking

Expect roughly $450–1,100 a night for two in good mid-range to luxury hotels, with Zermatt and St. Moritz at the top of that range and Montreux and Lugano a little gentler. The grand hotels in St. Moritz and Zermatt cost well beyond it at peak times. All prices are approximate.

Book in this order: Zermatt and Engadine hotels first, then Glacier Express seats as soon as reservations open for your dates, then the rest. Glacier Express places sell out in summer. The window seats on the side facing the best views go first.

Mountain lifts add roughly $100–200 a day for two on summit days, less with a pass discount. Budget extra for wine tastings in Lavaux, which often run by appointment. Set some aside for one long Engadine dinner, since St. Moritz has some of the most expensive restaurants in the Alps.

Comfort and Practical Tips

Zermatt sits at about 5,300 feet and the Engadine at around 6,000, so this route keeps you high for six nights. Drink water, go easy on alcohol the first evening and walk slowly at the top stations. Talk to your doctor before the trip if either of you has heart or breathing concerns.

Pack layers and sunglasses even in summer, since the high stations can be below freezing. In Lugano you will want swimwear, sandals and sunscreen. Wear proper walking shoes in Lavaux, where the vineyard paths are paved but steep.

Dress codes are relaxed by day. Grand-hotel dining rooms in St. Moritz expect smart evening wear for both of you, so bring one jacket and one dressier outfit each. Carry some Swiss francs for Lugano grottos, several of which take cash only. Small vineyard cellars may prefer cash too.

Make It Shorter or Longer

With ten days, cut Montreux and fly into Zurich, starting in Zermatt. The rest of the route stays the same. You still get both panoramic trains.

With 14 days, add a fourth night in Zermatt and a fourth in Lugano. Extra mountain nights mean better odds of a clear Matterhorn morning. Extra lake nights mean a full day trip to Lake Maggiore, Ascona and the Brissago Islands, or a swim in the Verzasca Valley.

With 16 days, start in Lucerne for three nights before Montreux. The GoldenPass Express links the Jungfrau Region and Interlaken to Montreux through Gstaad, so you can add the Bernese Oberland on the way.

Keep the Glacier Express on a day with nothing else planned. Arriving in St. Moritz at dinner time after eight hours on a train is plenty for one honeymoon day.

FAQ

Planning this trip

Is the Glacier Express worth it on a honeymoon?

For couples who enjoy trains, yes. It takes about eight hours from Zermatt to St. Moritz, with panoramic windows, lunch at your seat and the Oberalp Pass and Landwasser Viaduct along the way. If a full day on a train sounds too long, ride only the Albula section between Chur and St. Moritz, which has many of the best views.

Can we do this route in reverse?

Yes. Fly into Milan Malpensa, start slow in Lugano, then ride the Bernina Express north to St. Moritz, the Glacier Express to Zermatt and finish in Montreux before flying home from Geneva. Ending in the vineyards works well, though you lose the warm lake finale that makes the original order feel like a reward.

Do we need a car anywhere on this trip?

No. Zermatt is car-free, the Engadine has frequent trains and buses and Lugano works on foot, boats and funiculars. A car helps only for the Verzasca Valley. Buses from Locarno run there often in summer. Driving the Alpine passes yourself would also mean missing the panoramic trains that make this route special.

Which is better for a honeymoon, Zermatt or St. Moritz?

This itinerary gives you both. They feel different. Zermatt is about one mountain and car-free village evenings. St. Moritz and the Engadine are about light, lakes and grand hotels, with calmer villages such as Sils Maria nearby. If you must cut one, keep Zermatt for first-timers and the Engadine for couples who prefer space.

How much should we budget for this itinerary?

Plan on roughly $450–1,100 a night for two in good hotels, plus panoramic train reservations, mountain lifts and meals. A comfortable 12 days for two often lands somewhere around $9,000–16,000 before flights, depending on hotels and season. These are approximate ranges; St. Moritz and Zermatt in peak season push the top end higher.

Stops on this route

Switzerland

Lugano

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