Mt Rigi and Lucerne Day Trip from Zurich With Boat Ride
Description
On this full-day alpine excursion, escape Zurich and spend a glorious day in the Lake Lucerne area, exploring Mount Rigi, known as the ‘Queen of the Mountains,’ and the picturesque lakeside town of Lucerne. This tour is mostly made up of free time and self-guided activities – your guide will be with you from Zurich to Weggis, at the foot of the mountain, and then you’re free to explore the mountain and Lucerne at your leisure. Ride an aerial cable car and a cogwheel train, take in stunning views over the Swiss Alps and enjoy a boat ride on Lake Lucerne – it’s a full day of gorgeous scenery and mountain delights.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Departure place is at the Sihlquai Bus Station. Your full-day tour from Zurich to Mount Rigi and Lake Lucerne starts with a panoramic drive and then takes you to Weggis, a charming summer resort town on the shore of Lake Lucerne.
Your tour guide will drop you off in Weggis, where the self-guided part of your day trip begins. Board the aerial cable car to Rigi Kaltbad where you change to Europe's first ever mountain railway up to the summit Rigi-Kulm (1800m).
Your itinerary on Mount Rigi is flexible – you can spend 1 to 2.5 hours exploring at your own pace, using the itinerary sheets and timetables your guide will give you. The unsurpassed views from the top of this majestic mountain to the midland with its deep blue lakes and the snowcapped mountain range will overwhelm you! A variety of well-prepared hiking trails invite for a walk and cozy alpine restaurants offer a decent selection of typical, hearty meals all accompanied by the amazing alpine panorama.
In the afternoon, descent by cogwheel train to Vitznau and board the public boat for a lovely one-hour cruise on the picturesque Lake of the Four Cantons towards Lucerne.
Enjoy the remaining free time exploring the medieval streets of the Old Town before meeting your tour guide for the coach journey back to Zurich. See the famous Chapel Bridge, the Jesuit Church, and the Town Hall. Further recommendations are a visit to the Swiss Museum of Transport, the biggest museum in Switzerland or for art lovers the Rosengart Museum with works of the famous artists Picasso and Paul Klee (entry fees may apply).
Meet your tour guide at the meeting point in Lucerne for the coach journey back to Zurich in the evening.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- 16.-27.11.2026 | 01.03.-02.04.2027: the round-trip up and down Mt Rigi will be by cogwheel train due to cable car maintenance.
- The tour is accompanied from Zurich to Weggis and from Lucerne to Zurich. For the individual stay in Mt Rigi and Lucerne, tickets and a written itinerary are provided.
Reviews(308)
Rolf and our other tour guide were awesome! We enjoyed seeing the beautiful views of the Alps.
The trip was enjoyable. It was not a tour as you are left on your own for the whole day. The boat cruise was too crowded and we were left standing for most of the 1 hour journey to Lucerne despite being first at the queue as other people pushed in and run into the boat. Mount Rigi was scenic at the top of the mountain. Lucerne is a very pretty city.
It was a very enjoyable and fun excursion; we left from Zurich by bus and the journey to Lucerne (about 1 hour) was super pleasant thanks to the guides Adolfo and Rob, who were very friendly the whole way, sharing very interesting things about Switzerland. What I liked the most was that I learned a lot about the country in a very fun way, and not as boring as other tours. I really liked it and the service was incredible! Lucerne is a beautiful city; it is definitely worth spending a day there. Exceptional guides :)
Definitely recommend this tour, easy enough to do solo, and the tour guide was very informative. You get given a little itinerary book which helps you keep on track!
That is not guided expert for the bus ride, the directions were unclear, the address for the end of trip meeting place was incorrect and that all of it could easily have been scheduled and done without paying a service and that if you get liar trying to find the meeting place for the return the phone number won’t be answered.
It is everything advertised. I recommend spending time o Kulm, but rather stay their the full 2 hours, time down to a lower station and take the train from there. Multiple opportunities to get food on the walk.
Weather was awful with near zero visibility and cold driving rain at the top and only a small (24 seat) restaurant for shelter for 60-80 people because the main hotel restaurant is closed on Mondays. This tour should not be offered on Mondays until mid June due to likelihood of bad weather.
Dear Wanderer, Thank you very much for joining our partially guided tour to Mount Rigi and for taking the time to share your feedback with us. We are sorry to read that you were disappointed due to the weather conditions. Please note that our tours operate every day, as some guests still wish to join even in less favorable weather, and we understand that not everyone has the same preferences. We also offer a very flexible cancellation policy, which allows guests to cancel free of charge up to 24 hours prior to departure. This provides ample time to check the weather forecast and decide whether to join the tour. We regret if this was not taken into account. Despite the challenging conditions, we hope you were able to enjoy at least some parts of the tour, and we would be delighted to welcome you on another tour in the future, hopefully with better weather conditions. Best regards, Clara from Best of Switzerland Tours
Wonderful experience. Cable car , boat and train all in one day. The views from the top are fantastic. Highly recommend esp for families
This is the perfect activity for people that don’t like being herded around on group tours. You have the entire day to fit in the activities around what you want to do. Instructions were clear, guide was informative and we had the best day.
This experience was wonderful and over the top! We loved our time at the top of Mt. Rigi in the snow. The boat ride was absolutely beautiful. Our tour operator was very helpful in directing us. It is quite a walk from downtown Lucerne to catch the bus at the end of the day (we had to call for exact directions) so plan your time accordingly. This tour is highly recommended.
