Lucerne in one day – by foot!

Although Lucerne is a well known and popular city, it is still quite small and gathers most of touristic attractions nearby. It is totally possible to make a day trip without using any kind of transportation. When you book an apartment from Hitrental Apartments you get a visitor card, which allows you to use public transportation for free in the city, as well as other benefits!

Today we will guide you through a simple itinerary through Lucerne and present you many attractions. The main station is a perfect spot to start a day trip, as it is the arrival point of anyone traveling from outside Lucerne. Not far from there you already find the famous Chapel Bridge, considered the oldest covered bridged of Europe.

If you walk a bit further you will find the Jesuit Church, the first large baroque church built in Switzerland.

If you haven’t crossed the Chapel Bridge yet, now it is the time to travel a little bit through the history of Lucerne. The roof of the bridge’s pathway has paintings of Lucerne’s rich history, and once you reach the end you encounter the Old Town of Lucerne. This part if full of stores and restaurants inside the scenic and charming antique buildings. It is in this area that HITrental has its favorite buildings the Zur Metzgern Apartments and the Chapel Bridge Apartments with a view to the Reuss River.

After exploring the old town, its time for slight walk up. But dont worry, the walk can be pleasant and takes about 10 minutes. The Musegg Wall has 9 towers as part of Lucerne’s historic fortifications. Some towers are open to the public and definitely worth a visit!

Walk until Museggstrasse and then along the street until you’re 2 streets away from the next visit, the Bourbaki Panorama, a European cultural monument designed in a circular panoramic painting. Price: CHF 15 for adults – 20% discount with the visitor card.

Just another short walk upwards, you find the Lion Memorial, a stunning rock sculpted monument located in a calm park.

Right next to the memorial you will find the Glacier Garden and where you will spend most of the time, we believe. The Gletschergarten (in german) is a local history museum with ice age glacier exhibits. You will be surprised by the diversity of things that this place has to offer. Price: CHF 22 for adults – 20% discount with the visitor card.

When you finish your visit at the Gletchergarten, you can walk downwards and meet the lake, where you can spend the rest of the day time. The promenade is a perfect location for an easy walk along the shore of the Lake Lucerne. Or if you still have time, jump on a boat for a short ride. Please note that the last departure for a short round trip is at 4.12 PM and lasts 2.5 hours.

This itinerary is a very brief one, so you can make everything by foot and in one day. If you have more time, consider a visit to the Swiss Transport Museum (10% discount with a visitor card). But be aware that you should take a bus (10 minute ride for free with visitor card), as walking would take you about 30 minutes.

From the city you can see the Mount Pilatus and this will definitely make you wish to travel a little further. So in case you have more than one day in Lucerne, we strongly suggest you to make the trip to Mt. Pilatus. There are different ways to visit the mountain, the cheapest and the fastest way is taking a bus to Kriens and then a cable car to Pilatus. But the best one is the Golden Round Trip where you take a boat, a cogwheel train and a cable car. You can show your visitor card for discounted rates.

Whenever your day trip is over you can grab dinner in one of the many restaurants around Lucerne or keep the budget and prepare your dinner comfortably in our apartments. All of the apartments offer fully equipped kitchen with all the utensils necessary to cook.

We hope that our suggestions are useful and if you post your vacation pictures on social media, don’t forget to tag us.