Season 2025: June 15 - October 20

As a sole proprietor with a capacity of one tour per day, I can be fully booked far in advance.

Mt. Pilatus tour from Zurich (golden roundtrip)

First, we take the train from Zurich's main station to Lucerne.

There we board a boat, which will take us on a one hour cruise to the base station of the Mt. Pilatus cog railway.

After the cruise, it's time for the next highlight, a ride on the world's steepest cog railway. The scenic half-hour journey will bring us to the peak, Pilatus Kulm, located at 2132 meters (6995 ft) above sea level.

We will reach the peak station of Mount Pilatus around noon. Enjoy as much time up here as you want. We just need to catch the last gondola down at 4 PM.

Plenty of time to soak up the views, take a hike up to one of the 360° viewing and photo points, walk on the dragon trail and learn about the associated myths.

For lunch (not included) there is a restaurant and a cafe which serves snacks.

On our way down we take the "Dragon ride" cableway to Fräkmüntegg. If you like and time and weather allows, we can stop here for a run on the Fräkigaudi summer toboggan run. The ride costs 8 Francs per adult, and is not included in the tour price (optional activity).

Afterward, we change to the smaller panorama gondolas, which will bring us to Kriens.

From Kriens, it's just a short bus ride back to Lucerne.

There, I will take you on an approximately one-hour walking tour to the city's best spots and landmarks (optional).

If you desire, you can also have dinner in Lucerne (not included) before we return to Zurich, where we arrive between 6 - 9:30 PM.

Inclusions

- All required train tickets in first class for you and the guide

- Mt. Pilatus aerial cableway & cogwheel tickets for you and the guide (price includes entry fees)

- First-class tickets for the cruise (upper deck)

- Mt. Pilatus special offer: reserve one alternative tour date free of charge, choose a few days before departure the day with the best weather

- Meeting at any centrally located Hotels, Apartment, or Airbnb

- Return to any centrally located Hotel, Apartment, or Airbnb after the tour

- Fee for the private guide, who will stay at your disposal throughout the tour

- Car-free tour by train, mountain railway, and aerial cable car as per the tour description

- Photography by the guide (with your own camera or smartphone)

- A booklet with comprehensive information about Switzerland (one per party, for groups of four persons or larger are two printed copies included)

- Use of a mobile hotspot with unlimited data (Speed: 4G)

What is not included in the tour price?

- Your meals and drinks

- Any personal expenses

- Optional activities

- Travel insurance (participation at your own risk)

This itinerary is only an example. The schedule can vary due to various factors such as the season, the day of the week, construction work, service, and schedule changes.

The exact departure and return time depends on the pick-up/drop-off location.

Customization possibilities:

You can spontaneously extend or shorten the visit to the Mt. Pilatus peak. The aerial cable car runs approx. every 15-minutes. Last ride at 5 p.m.

You can spontaneously shorten or extend your time in Lucerne, including free time for dinner, if desired (meals are not included in the tour price)

Please regard that your lunch is not included in the tour price.

During lunch hours:

à la carte restaurant Pilatus Kulm (at the peak) * +

This restaurant serves various Swiss dishes. The restaurant consists of three dining rooms and a sun terrace.

Click here to see the restaurant menu

Click here to read the restaurants' reviews on TripAdvisor

Bellevue - self-service restaurant at the Mt. Pilatus peak *

This restaurant serves a range of hot and cold dishes, including comfort food and local dishes.

An online menu is not available for this restuarant.

Outside of regular lunch hours:

We can have a late lunch after descending from Mt. Pilatus. There is a wide range of restaurants available in Lucerne.

Quick lunch:

There are convenience shops, bakeries, and sandwich outlets along our travel route, where you can grab a bite, either before or after the visit to the Mt. Pilatus peak.

* This option may not be available at all times. If you want to eat at this restaurant please let me know at the time of booking, so that I can check availability for our tour date.

+ For restaurants marked with a plus (+), reservations are recommended. I'm happy to reserve a table for you.

Disclaimer

Restaurant menus, prices, and options are subject to change.

The restaurant menu is hosted on the visyt.app

The activity level medium: walk through Lucerne at your discretion, walk at the peak at your discretion, 10-minute walk from the aerial cablecar station

I can meet you at any centrally located hotel in Zurich.

Click here to see a map of the pick-up area

If you're staying outside of the pick-up area, I can meet you at the central train station of Zurich.

Weather forecast

Once a reliable weather forecast is available (usually one to three days before departure), I will send you a link to the forecast.

If there is bad weather forecasted, I will include my recommendations for our tour day.

I use the weather forecasts provided by the Federal Office of Meteorology and SRF (Swiss Radio and Television).

With the link below, you can check the weather forecast at any time by yourself. The forecast is available for the next five days.

Backup schedule: reserve an extra day free of charge

Mt. Pilatus tour: Depending on availability, I can add an extra day to your booking so we can switch the tour date if bad weather occurs. A few days before departure, we'll decide on which of the two days to run the tour based on the weather forecast.

Operability

This tour can run in any weather condition except during a storm. During a storm, aerial cableways have to halt operations for safety reasons. If there is a storm with gale-force winds in the forecast, I need to cancel the tour. On rare occasions, there may be a cancellation due to landslides, avalanches, and other natural forces or the risk thereof. I will fully refund the deposit in this case.

Your options in case of bad weather

Standard rate

With the standard rate I can unfortunately not offer an alternative in case of bad weather.

If not having perfect weather is a dealbreaker, you can cancel by forfeiting the deposit.

Swiss Travel Pass & Swiss Half Fare Card holders

You can choose a different tour/mountain peak in an area with better weather (if available, the price of the newly selected tour will apply).

We can do the tour as planned despite the weather.

I also have a few full-day train tours. For example, the Glacier Express route on local trains tour. These tours are ideal on rainy days as we are for most of the day inside and not exposed to the weather, and as on rainy days the views are usually better at lower altitudes. Further, this tour has a lower tour price as it doesn't require any expensive mountain railway tickets.

If not having perfect weather is a dealbreaker, you can cancel by forfeiting the deposit.