36 hours in Lucerne & Mount Pilatus

Lucerne (Luzern) is a popular town in Switzerland, and for good reason. It sits on a beautiful lake, is halfway between the Bernese-Oberland and Zurich, and is a great starting point for family-friendly adventures on the way to Mount Pilatus. We spent 2 nights in this area after we left the Bernese Oberland.

*Toddler in front of the iconic Kapellbrücke (Chapel Bridge)*

How to get to Lucerne

Lucerne, like most places in Switzerland, is easily accessible by train. While traveling through Switzerland, we usually booked the night before through the SBB website or APP. The central train station takes you right to the middle of town, on the edge of Lake Lucerne. From here, you can take a bus or switch trains for other locations; the town is also very easy to walk, and the train station is quite close to the ferry terminals.

Where to stay near Lucerne with points

We chose to stay just outside the city at the Holiday Inn in Kriens. We chose this for a few reasons:

1. We stayed for free using our IHG points. (We used our sign-up bonus from this card.)

2. The hotel included a free buffet breakfast and coffee.

3. The hotel was close to Mount Pilatus, which is where we wanted to spend most of our time.

4. The hotel provided us with a tourist transit pass which gave us access to the busses and trains in the area. (It is only 1 train stop, 5 minutes, from the main station/ bahnhof.)

Kid-friendly adventures on Mount Pilatus

We chose to stay near Lucerne so that we could spend one day exploring Mount Pilatus. To visit Pilatus, we took a bus from Kriens to the gondola station. From there, we traveled up the mountain to Fräkmüntegg station.

Stop #1: The Pilatus Rope Park was a great space to start the morning’s adventure.

Our daughter, who had just turned 4, was a little small for the ropes course, but she was able to enjoy it nonetheless. Since little kids cannot partake in the entire ropes course, they are also cheaper. It was only 12 CHF for 1 hour.

There are options that allow an entire family to visit for 3 hours, and picnic tables are on the property, too, for snacking after everyone is worn out from climbing.

Stop #2: Fräkigaudi is the longest summer toboggan run in Switzerland.

For a family-friendly thrill, check out the toboggan just up the hill from the gondola station and the ropes course. This is an affordable and fun way to experience the mountain and take in views of the lake on the way down.

The toboggan line moves fairly quickly, but in the height of summer, be prepared for a 30-45 minute wait. You cannot bring anything with you on the ride, so there are lockers available before you get in line to ride.

There were 3 of us, so we needed two toboggans- a single and a double. Our 4-year-old was comfortable sitting in front and I was able to brake easily with her in my lap.

View of the toboggan run and Lake Lucerne

From Fräkmüntegg you could continue your journey up the mountain to the top of Pilatus, and then return to Lucerne via the cog railway. However, on the day we visited, the clouds crept in, and we lost the view, plus had just spent a few days at high elevation, and we wanted to be able to explore a bit more of Lucerne on our own timeline, so we skipped this popular attraction.

Boat Ride on Lake Lucerne

Ferry Terminal in Lucerne (*Luzern Bahnhofquai)*

One of the greatest parts about Lucerne is the ability to hop off the train and pop into the ferry terminal and then cross the lake to another town or just enjoy the breeze from the boat. As usual, we found ourselves playing the day by ear, trying to see if our kiddo needed a nap. When we realized she was going to make it through the day, we stopped by the terminal, purchased a ticket for the next boat, and spent the late afternoon on the water. We found that a 1-hour round trip was perfect for our family, but there are other options available, including taking a boat that leads you to the cogwheel train that climbs Mount Pilatus.