Basel, Zurich, or Lucerne in December?

[KathyK13]

I am taking an Avalon Rhine river Christmas cruise ending in Basel in December with my sister and two friends.  We will spend an extra day or two at the end of the cruise and I'm looking for advice on which city to visit.  None of us have been to this part of Switzerland.  Besides the Christmas markets what are the attractions of these cities in December?  I'm leaning towards Lucerne as I've read how beautiful it is, but what is it like in December?  I'm hoping CC members who have been to these places in December to share their thoughts!

Thanks!

[sharkster77]

We were in Lucerne post-cruise in mid-October and found the city extremely walkable.  Center city along the river and nearby is beautiful.  The views of the Alps across the lake were stunning.  I have heard Zurich described as a banking and business center.  Others who have been to Basel can comment on it.

[acwmom]

All three have walkable "old town" areas. The train ride from Basel to either is about 2 hours, IIRC. Which airport will you be departing from? Zurich is also about a 2 hour train ride from Lucerne. I have been to Lucerne 3 times, and love it. It is much smaller, and more quaint, and as Sharkster77 said, easily walkable. 

 

Robin

[Roz]

I vote for Lucerne.  Beautiful old town area on a lake.  Be sure to walk through the covered bridge to the church.

[caripoo]

Depends where you are flying from.....If you are flying from Zurich, I would stay there and maximize your time.....you will spend 1/2 day each way to get to Lucern and back, and if you only have 2 days.......There is lots to do in Zurich...they are on a beautiful lake with snow covered mountains ......

[sharkster77]

Basel to Lucerne by train is about one hour.  Lucerne to Zurich by train is also about one hour.  We disembarked in  Basel, Viking got us a cab to the Basel SBB station (15-ish minutes), spent 2 days in Lucerne, then rode train to Zurich Flughaven station, which is under the airport terminal.  Even sent our large bags ahead from Basel to Zurich airport.  Pick up was easy, and saved us having to lug all our luggage to Lucerne.

[djh1959]

I have been to all three cities, Lucerne and Zurich in very early January and Basel in very late October.  While we did enjoy Basel, we only had one day and that was plenty.  Admittedly there are lots of museums, but we didn't really want that, just a simple walking tour of the old town which was great, but only took about two hours.

 

We had an overnight in Zurich and there was plenty do to, the lake, the Rhinefalls, lots of churches, shopping and general old town walking about.

 

In Lucerne we stayed for four nights and never ran out of things to do, although we did do two day trips to mountains.

 

You probably need to decide exactly what you want to do for your couple of days.  Just be aware that all three cities are quite expensive by European standards.

[Bailey Swedishfish]

We just did Viking's Zurich to Paris and spent time in all three cities. Zurich is a lot bigger than Lucerne and is on Lake Zurich. There's two nice Christmas markets there, one in the Hauptbahnhoff (train station) and has a lot of fun shopping and dining. The other is down in the old town near the lake and was very nice--altho it rained our first night, we went the second and had fun.  Since we'd been to Zurich before, on our second day there, we hopped a train and rode the 40 minutes or so (very scenic) to Lucerne and we spent the day walking around, having lunch in a tiny pub and just enjoying the scenery.  On our last day in Zurich, we checked out and took the Viking bus to Basel and did the walking tour and spent time wandering the city.  I love all three and each has a different feel and vibe. Mt. Pilatus and the other snow-capped mountains are visible and add a lot of mountain charm to Lucerne.  Zurich is much more metropolitan and business-related and modern. Basel has a lovely old town and interesting Christmas market. Lucerne is a lake-side mountain town.  I agree with the others that Switzerland is very expensive--be prepared.

[KathyK13]

Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions.  Right now I'm leaning toward Zurich, with possibly a day trip to Lucerne.  First I'll have to find out how many extra days we can add to our trip.  I do know how expensive Switzerland can be 😲.  

[BAYA]

My Paris to the Swiss Alps cruise on Viking Idi begins in Zurich on 12/2/2020. The day we arrive we're on our own. Viking provides a highlights tour on Dec. 3rd. I am hoping some of you who've been in Zurich can recommend a private guide. I used a private guide for two half-days in Lisbon last August prior to a cruise and it was a great way to maximize our sightseeing time. Thanks.

 

Edited January 13, 2020 by BAYA
Forgot to include we're 2 nights in Zurich.