Penned down our trip details for some family and friends, so putting it up on KV as well. Better late than never :-).
Paris
Stay: 2.5 days
• Eiffel Tower both during day and night (walk through the Champ-de-Mars park that takes you across – many street artists perform at the other end, we laughed a lot.)
• Louvre Museum
• Notre Dame
• Arc De Triumph
• Stroll around both left and right bank of Seine River at night. It’s very festive. Walk to the famous Love-Lock bridges.
• Eat at L’As Du Fallafel, its worth a wait in the line. (There are Boutiques on streets around this place if you want to go around)
• On the last day of our trip we had scrumptious Indian Food @ Gare du Nord – Krishna Bhavan & Sarvana Bhavan (both were amazing).
• Traveled locally using the Paris Metro Trains.
Switzerland
Stay: 5 days
•We pre-ordered the 4 day Swiss pass
•Stayed 2 days in Interlaken and 3 days in Lauterbrunnen. Loved our stay, it’s the most beautiful and mesmerizing place to live at. We didn’t want to live in cities like Zurich, Geneva etc. We stayed in hostels @ both these places, as both I and Dhaval had read a lot about them. It felt like my story book dreams turned into reality. Rooms were very clean with amazing views and very friendly people. Added advantage was having kitchen in hostels. Hostels also have private rooms if you want to try.
Balmer’s Herberge – In Interlaken (Included Breakfast)
Valley Hostel – In Lauterbrunnen Valley
View from our room in Lauterbrunnen.
•Interlaken – We rented bikes (bicycles) from Interlaken and went around Lake Brienz for around 4~5 hours. The other option is to take boat cruise in either Lake Brienz or Lake Thun. We chose Brienz as it is more beautiful to see around.
•Jungfraujoch – Make sure you go on a clear day, so don’t buy tickets ahead of time. We got 25% off these tickets as we had the Swiss Pass. Start early (around 6.30 ~ 7AM) to beat the crowd. The train ride is quite enchanting. Saw the Sphinx, walked through the tunnel towards the snow, ice museum. And yes, there is a Bollywood cafe up there( Indians can’t leave out top of Europe too.)
•Murren – Lift from Lauterbrunnen to Grutschalp followed by train to Murren. Murren in a car free town and very beautiful. We just walked through the entire town and stopped by a cafe.
•Trummelbach Falls– Walked to Schilthornbahn@ Murren and took a lift to Stechelberg followed by bus to Trummelbach. This bus ride was very beautiful as we were in the valley surrounded by mountains and numerous waterfalls. Spent 1.5 hrs at Trummelbach falls.
•Lucerne – Took the Interlaken-Lucerne Express Train. This was the most wonderful journey passing through crystal clear lakes, innumerable waterfalls, jingling cowbells in fields and spectacular views of the Swiss Alps.
At Lucerne: Kapellbrucke-Chapel Bridge, Lion Monument, Old town (Churches, Museums, eating and Souvenir shopping). We skipped Mount Pilatus.
Our train ride to Lucerne
•Zurich – Stroll around Bahnhofstrasse and Old town, Church of our Lady, Take PolyBahn (Apparently a Historic Ride) to Swiss Federal Polytechnic Institute to see the city and Limmat River from top. People go to Rhine river and falls from Zurich.
•DDLJ and Shahrukh fans should look to visit Sannen from Zurich to see the church and bridge. We didn’t go, but I had researched. Though,we did find Yash Chopra’s signature on one of the trains to Jungfraujoch.
Bollywood Rocks!
•Geneva – Saint Pierre Cathedral, Jet d’Eau at Lake Geneva, Visit the UN office (no tours on weekends), old town Geneva, Floral clock @ Jardin Anglais, Basilica of Our Lady Notre Dame. They had a street food and fun festival around the lake during our visit.
And I can go on and on about Switzerland. So let me stop and leave the rest for you to explore.
Pointers:
• Swiss Trains were never late, so make sure you plan to reach at least 10 minutes ahead of time.
• We used to stop by Co-Op store every morning for local groceries, as the store closes early before we get back from sightseeing.
• Don’t miss trying the Swiss Cheese Fondue and Swiss Chocolates.
• Travel very light, it doubles the amount of fun as we walk a lot.
Awesome Priyanka…….Thanks for this lovely article.
Awesome article. Lovely pics. Thanks for your time in sharing the details.
Nice article….pics look awesome…..
Great article. Many KVites are still to visit Switzerland. I am sure its on everybody’s ” must visit” list.
Very well written article, Priyanka !
Nice article Priyanka… thanks for the info.
Very nicely written. Thanks Priyanka!
You are very welcome everyone. Enjoy traveling this summer!
Priyanka thanks for your very detailed itinerary. We loved the hostel in Lauterbrunnen that you suggested.
Adding some more tips below about my Paris trip for future travelers 🙂
Paris
Stay –
Stayed at Hotel Saint Jacques
Things to see –
Notre Dame Cathedral
Louvre – Get tickets online in advance to avoid line. The lines are terribly long. Got tickets from Ebay since they were cheaper. http://www.louvre.fr/en/advance-tickets
Love lock bridge – 2 mins walk from Louvre
Orsay Museum – Didnt have time to see but heard its more modern than Louvre
Arc De Triumph – you can go to the top by lift or stairs, but not worth it. View is better just looking at it.
Seine River cruize
Eiffel Tower – Go at sunset time to get both views. Again buy tickets in advance to avoid long long lines http://www.toureiffel.paris/en/preparing-your-visit/buying-your-tickets.html
Champs Elysees – Big brand street, just walk around
Laduree – famous macaroons shop on Champs Elysees
Sacre Coeur – Very beautiful church . A lot of shops on the way to reach the church so good place to do souvenir shopping.
Chateau De Versailles – this is a good 1.5 hour train ride away. Do it only if you have one full day. I did not have enough time.
Galleries Lafayette – shopping mall like Macys. Very very glittery – worth going just for viewing
Palais Garnier – Its an opera house. Did not find lines here for tickers. Very good architecture, worth going.
Fragonard Perfume Museum – Its a short 15 min free tour explaining how perfumes are made after which you can buy their perfumes. It was ok, go if you have time. Its walking distance from Opera.
Food –
Le Palais de Raja Maharaja (Indian) (Close to Eiffel Tower)
21 rue d’Ouessant
75015 Paris
Maoz (Falafel) (Cheap under 7 euro)
36 rue St-André des Arts
75006 Paris
Little Breizh (Crepe)
11 rue Grégoire de Tours
75006 Paris
Pointers –
South bank is better to stay in – more hotels , more restaurants, metro friendly
I did not use hop on hop off bus just walked around everywhere or took the train . Train is very convenient and cheap
Saint Germain area is a good place to hang around in evening, sit in a coffee shop and look at people
Sunday everything is closed apart from restaurants
Beware of pick pockets or people posing as Metro employees
If you shop worth 150 $ you get tax refund for it. The shopping has to be done in one shop so a mall is better . You can get the tax refund money at the airport after showing reciept
French brands are few dollars cheaper there – Chanel, Dior, YSL
Glad you liked it @Switzerland.
Your Paris review gives me a reason to go back again 🙂