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Saturday 29 June 2019

7 Days in Switzerland Itinerary - Day 3: Thun







Refer to below links for more Switzerland April Spring trip blogs:

1. Executive Summary: Executive Summary Blog
2. Day 2 (Grindelwald): Day 2 (Grindelwald) Blog
3. Day 2 (Interlaken): Day 2 (Interlaken) Blog
4. Day 3 (Bern): Day 3 (Bern) Blog
5. Day 4 (Jungfraujoch): Day4 (Jungfraujoch) Blog
6. Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen): Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen) Blog
7. Day 5 (Zermatt): Day 5 (Zermatt) Blog
8. Day 6 (Lucerne): Day 6 (Lucerne) Blog
9. Day 6 (Lungern): Day 6 (Lungern) Blog
10. Day 7 (Bern): Day 7 (Bern) Blog




Itinerary Summary:

Day 3: Thun
💜 Brunch (Adrianos bar & cafe @ Bern) : Refer Day 3 (Bern) Blog
💜 Sightseeing (Thun town & castle @ Thun) : Refer blog below
💜 Dinner (Kornhauskeller @ Bern) : Refer Day 3 (Bern) Blog

Rise and shine! (We woke up and it was approaching noon, really rise and shine 😅 , jetlag came after 1 day..) We decided to have a leisure plan today, just went to tour around a small quaint town called Thun. We kicked off our day by tasting coffee and chocolate drink in one of the Bern cafe, called Adrianos  bar & cafe. This cafe has been in tripadvisor no.1 (as of Apr. 2019) as the best coffee in Bern town. Thus, we dropped by there and had a taste on Swiss coffee. Hmm, personally we felt the taste was average to us, the coffee and chocolate bean smell were not very strong to our liking. However, in term of presentation, it was good as it had a latte heart art on top of it. We loved the slow pace in traveling too where we could enjoy the coffee time during traveling and laze around doing nothing in a foreign country! After that, we sat train and headed to Thun for a relaxing fun day. Oh ya, we can't wait for dinner tonight as we were celebrating honeymoon/anniversary dinner in Switzerland! We had a sweet romantic surprise from the boss of the restaurant too! 😍



Thun Town

Average Time Spent: 4 hours

Highlights: Old town, castle, street photography, lake cruise

Suits: Nature lovers, town explorer, street photographer, sightseeing


Personal Star Rating: ★★★ (Worth to Visit)


Description & Tips:

👉A medieval old town overlooking beautiful Swiss alps, boasts a crystal clear Lake Thun, historic building of Thun castle, and much more. It is worth to explore the surrounding by foots as you walk pass by the river view with cruise ship, see the famous old town by the river, hike to the famous Thun castle, or just randomly photoshooting around the streets without hordes of tourists in your background!

👉 What to do in Thun town? Scroll down to see more.

TIPS 1: Watching surfers surfing on the dam

- As we walked to the lovely Thun town from train station, we spotted few muscular guys drenched wet, with their hands holding a big piece of surfing board. We wonder where would be the surfing spot? Do we have ocean here to surf?
- We saw a crowds overlooking a dam, and soon we spotted surfers on the dam. Usually there is only one or a maximum of two surfers here as the dam is not very big in space. However, don't judge the book by it's cover, the wave is really big here! Surfer needs to balance the body against the huge wave, guess this is one of the activity that you can challenge before go to the real surfing on big ocean! We can easily kill time here just by looking at the surfer trying to balance the body, fall down, climb up and balance against the wave! There is a string attached to the surfer from the wooden bridge, so everything is safe here.


Spotted few surfing on the dam, this is always a famous activity to be done
by the locals when the weather is hot, we spotted this in other Swiss town too!

TIPS 2: Enrol a relaxing cruise in Lake Thun
- We thought to do this initially, but missed the last boat. For those who interested, may sit the cruise to Spiez (another town nearby Thun), and also to Interlaken! You may walk around Thun town, cruise to Spiez and have a leisure stroll in the small town, cruise/train to Interlaken from Spiez to enjoy the sunset in Harder Kulm mountain or just grab dinner in Interlaken town and ends your day by shopping in Interlaken town. Refer Day 1 blog to learn more about things to do in Interlaken.
- Heads up to those Swiss Travel Pass holder, the lake cruise is FOC! Cruising for more than an hour on the peaceful crystal clear lake, passing by those green valleys, overlooking those snow-capped mountains, seeing Switzerland from a different view, all are free with this Swiss Travel Pass, so make use of it! We did a lake excursion on Lake Lucerne, refer Day 4 blog to learn more!


Look at the crystal clear lake water...

TIPS 3: Leisure walk to explore the medieval old town of Thun
- Strolled Thun town to our heart content before hiking up to Thun Castle. Unique buildings nestled nearby the edge of the river grab most people attention. Many restaurants along the river are the nice choices to head for lunch/dinner, imagine dining with the river view, it certainly lives up to the hype and Instagram worthy.


Swiss alps mountain can be seen clearly
everywhere in Switzerland on a sunny day
Old town of Thun by the river

TIPS 4: Head to the famous Thun castle
- The most favorite thing to do in Thun town for us was to visit the Thun castle. The view when you looked out from the top of observatory was certainly breathtaking!
- On the way to Thun castle, there were thousands of opportunities to kill your camera memory card space. Without tons of tourists flocked in Thun town, we had photos mostly all to ourselves. No need worry to queue or feel shameful to retake unsatisfied photos just because everyone was waiting for the photo spot. We personally felt Thun is a nice town for pre wedding photoshoot, because it has beautiful alleys and staircases, apart from the castle view, flowers, river view and etcetera, see photos below!
- Thun castle is again FOC for Swiss Travel Pass holder! Usually you will need to pay CHF10 to visit the castle's observatory. Just head to the office counter and show the Swiss Travel Pass, they will give you an entrance card with a barcode for you to scan through the entrance gate to the castle. Be prepared to climb narrow spiral staircases (always appear in movie and story book right? well, this is a castle of course!) for the observatory.
- Make sure to visit the observatory in Thun castle, to get the bird eye view of Thun city with the crystal clear lake and beautiful scenery of Swiss alps as the backdrop! The breathtaking view from the observatory will certainly make the climb worthwhile!


Staircases on the way to Thun castle. Result of street photography in
Thun town came out amazing too!
Photos on a sunny day can be pretty good too!
Feels like some medieval town in France? We are in Switzerland actually!
So Switzerland is not only about snow-capped mountains and green valleys!
The entrance of Thun castle
Thun castle
Climb up flights of staircases to reach this breathtaking view of Thun with Swiss alps as background. Just like painting!
Another view of Thun town from observatory
Another view of Thun town from observatory
Princess waiting for the prince? Take whatever poses you want in Thun castle
Got some red leaves too in Spring

Thun wanderlust ends here! Interested to venture more of Switzerland? Refer to the links for other posts! Please share with me if you have any comments or inquiries. Follow me in Facebook and Instagram to get updated on new blog posts and photos too! Xoxo 💗


(Notes: My website contains some affiliate links and advertisement which are not scam, they are safe to click and at no cost to you, it gives me a little bit of commission for me to keep on maintaining the website. Your support is my biggest motivation!)














Refer to below links for more Switzerland April Spring trip blogs:

1. Executive Summary: Executive Summary Blog
2. Day 2 (Grindelwald): Day 2 (Grindelwald) Blog
3. Day 2 (Interlaken): Day 2 (Interlaken) Blog
4. Day 3 (Bern): Day 3 (Bern) Blog
5. Day 4 (Jungfraujoch): Day4 (Jungfraujoch) Blog
6. Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen): Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen) Blog
7. Day 5 (Zermatt): Day 5 (Zermatt) Blog
8. Day 6 (Lucerne): Day 6 (Lucerne) Blog
9. Day 6 (Lungern): Day 6 (Lungern) Blog
10. Day 7 (Bern): Day 7 (Bern) Blog






⭐Follow me below:
Instagram: melon_journey
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MelonJourneyBlog/





💗 Author: Ng Mei Lian/ Adrian Yeoh Aun Hong
👉 Date: 20/4/2019

Thursday 20 June 2019

7 Days in Switzerland Itinerary - Day 2: Grindelwald






Refer to below links for more Switzerland April Spring trip blogs:

1. Executive Summary: Executive Summary Blog
2. Day 2 (Interlaken): Day 2 (Interlaken) Blog
3. Day 3 (Thun): Day 3 (Thun) Blog 
4. Day 3 (Bern): Day 3 (Bern) Blog
5. Day 4 (Jungfraujoch): Day 4 (Jungfraujoch) Blog
6. Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen): Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen) Blog
7. Day 5 (Zermatt): Day 5 (Zermatt) Blog
8. Day 6 (Lucerne): Day 6 (Lucerne) Blog
9. Day 6 (Lungern): Day 6 (Lungern) Blog
10. Day 7 (Bern): Day 7 (Bern) Blog




Itinerary Summary:

Day 1: Flight on board
Day 2: Grindelwald & Interlaken
💜 Sightseeing (Grindelwald town & First mountain @ Grindelwald) : Refer below blog
💜 Lunch (Bebbis restaurant @ Grindelwald ) : Refer below blog
💜 Sightseeing (Interlaken town @ Interlaken) : Refer Interlaken (Day 2) Blog

We were warmly welcomed by my friendliest friend in Switzerland! Had a lovely Swiss dinner specially prepared for us, chocolate and wine to end the day. Words can't express how much our gratitude to my friend and her boyfriend, they are too good to be true! We were able to save hell a lot of accommodation cost because of this sweet couple as well, big big big thanks for making our honeymoon holidays became so perfect and memorable! You know who you are 😘

We purchased 8 days Swiss Travel Pass through Klook, this pass helps us save money and hassle free when traveling in Switzerland, because you can use it anywhere by traveling the long hour train journey, buses, scenic train rides, museums admission, boat excursions and etcetera, all inclusive! It is so easy to use, just hop on the trains and buses, and show the pass ticket when being checked. One good thing that I truly like about Swiss train is you can enjoy your foods and drinks freely inside! Foods are so heavenly when it matches with the beautiful train ride scenery. You can buy the pass by using the link HERE, which warrants you $4.90 as soon as you sign up! Voila, let's start our journey in Switzerland. First stop - Grindelwald!

You can buy the pass by using the link HERE, which warrants you $4.90 as soon as you sign up! Search for Swiss Travel Pass and there you go!
使用链接HERE登记Klook户口 ,还有$4.90回扣哦!然后再去选了自己适用的Swiss Travel Pass!
Very nice experience booking with Klook for 8 Days Swiss Travel Pass! Not only we got ourselves 2 passes which enable us to hop on hop off trams and buses easily, enjoyed lake excursion for free, we even got ourselves discounted price for the famous Top of Europe Jungfraujoch mountain excursion! Klook has been so considerate and gave us complimentary travel adaptor, travel kits, pen and recycle bag too!
我们买了Klook 8 Days Swiss Travel Pass ,超便利的Pass让我们随意的上下火车巴士,免费湖上邮轮,和好多的折扣登山如门票!Klook 还超贴心的给了我们免费的旅行用品哦!

Grindelwald Town

Average Time Spent: 4 hours

Highlights: Snow-capped mountain, green valley, small dotted houses, scenic view, fairy tale village

Suits: Nature lovers, sports lover, adrenaline rush

Personal Star Rating: ★★★★★ (Must Go)

Description & Tips:
👉 So called fairy tale village when research online, with the breathtaking view of swiss alps snow-capped mountains and small cute houses spreading through the green valley, a feast to your eyes indeed! 😍.

Switzerland bird eye view
天空俯望瑞士
The most beautiful train ride
最美的火车之旅就在瑞士吧

👉 Planned to try a cafe in grindelwald which is rated as no.1 in Tripadvisor (as of Apr 2019), called C und M cafe bar and restaurant. However, sad thing was the cafe closed for business due to easter week holidays. Good thing was that the outdoor restaurant space were free for us to take photos! The view were beautiful and serene. Suddenly we felt that it was not a bad thing that the restaurant has been closed for business that day too! Usually the outdoor tables were easily full. Look positively everyday! 😄


In the heart of the town
走在村里的心脏
Planned to head for lunch here, but closed on the day due to Easter holidays,
so.. we just took photos freely instead
想来这里吃午餐,却休假了,
那就。。拍照呗。。。
Beautiful view
这树好高,雪山好美

👉 
We walked for awhile and at the end just settled down in Bebbis restaurant. We ordered western foods that day, the potato fries were especially crispy and delicious! We sat outdoor as we would like to get close to nature. There were crowds of tourists and locals as well to eat or just for beers. If western food is not the one for you, for sure you can order swiss food, it is available in the restaurant as well.


TIPS: Aim for restaurant that has the beautiful view of green valley and snow-capped mountain (can only enjoy this view in Switzerland and especially Grindelwald right!), so there we went! 


Western lunch in Swiss village
在瑞士村庄吃了西餐,还不错喔,尤其是薯条

Mesmerizing view, just a short walk beside the restaurant
太壮观


👉 Leisure walk in the town after the fulfilling lunch. Went to the famous instagram spot called 'dreamy hill' which overlooked the breathtaking scenery of green valley dotted with small cute houses with the backdrop of majestic snow-capped mountains. This was truly my favorite spot in Grindelwald, or maybe Switzerland!


Leisure walk around Grindelwald town
随便逛逛小镇
Lights that penetrate through the clouds and shine the way down to the earth
天上仿佛下来了一片曙光
The famous 'Dreamy hill' at the background
背后就是鼎鼎大名的‘梦幻山坡’


Grindelwald First Mountain (Altitude: 2167m)

Operating Dates: Refer Link for updated information

Opening Hours Gondola Cableway: 8am - 6pm (last descend at 6.30pm), Refer Link for updated information

Average Time Spent: 2 hours

Highlights: Snow-capped mountain, green valley, scenic view, mountain excursion, hiking, adventure, snow fun

Suits: Nature lovers, sports lover, adrenaline rush

Personal Star Rating: ★★★★★ (Must Go)

Travel Time: 

a) Grindelwald train station → First mountain cable car station: 5min (bus)/10-15min (walk)
b) First mountain cable car station → First mountain: 25 min (cable car)

Description & Tips:
👉 From train station, it was about 10-15 minutes walk to First mountain cable car station. 

TIPS: Use Swiss Travel Pass which covers the bus ride. Just head to the small bus station beside to board the bus to First mountain cable car station. Convenient, easy and time saving!

👉 Bought entrance tickets at the station office to start our journey to First mountain. Remember to inform the sales person in the counter what's your chosen preference mode of transportation for the return journey. There is only cable car option to go up the mountain. However, when coming down, you have several interesting options, see tips below! 

TIPS: Use Swiss Travel Pass to entitle for discounted entrance ticket. Our return journey by using Swiss Travel Pass costed CHF30 per pax.


TIPS: From Grindelwald, there is a total of 3 stops to reach which is as below.

[Grindelwald → Bort  Shreckfeld → First]

TIPS: Only cable car option to go up First mountain. 



Cable car on the way up to First mountain
缆车攻顶
Scenary changed as the cable car ascended to the top of First mountain
窗外景色从绿变白
Excited in the cable car when see the white white snow world surrounding me
心情无比的兴奋啊

TIPS: Several interesting methods to come down to Grindelwald from First as below.

a) First flyer  
- Zip wire to slide down from First to Shreckfeld
- Up to a maximum of 4 people for the attraction
- Slide down freely like a bird in the air, along the 800 meter long steel cable


a) First Flyer (Adapted from https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/grindelwaldfirst/)

b) Mountain kart 
- Mountain track kart ride downhill from Shreckfeld to Bort
- Go kart and sled (sledging on wheel) concept incorporated here
- Only 1 person per kart for the attraction
- Sledge on wheel along 3 kilometer road


b) First Mountain Kart (Adapted from https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/grindelwaldfirst/)


c) Trottibike scooter
- Scoot downhilll from Bort to Grindelwald
- Scooter and bicycle concept incorporated here
- Large tyre, brake and suspension make it easy to use and travel around, stop at any place that you want and enjoy the beauty of nature before scooting downhill again


c) First Trottibike Scooter (Adapted from https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/grindelwaldfirst/)


d) First Glider
- The ultimate fun challenging activity on top of First mountain
- Up to a maximum of 4 people for the attraction
- Passengers seat together and soar like an eagle
- Glider is pulled backward at 72km/h speed and in a moment you will find yourself soaring down and moving forward in speed at 83km/h along the 800 meter long route


d) First Glider (Adapted from https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/grindelwaldfirst/)

TIPS: Interested to know more activities that can do in First mountain? Refer Link!

TIPS: Note some of the activities are weather dependent and may not in full operation. Just check with the sales person and choose your package, pay for the tickets and enjoy the rides! 

👉 What can we expect to see in First mountain? The most famous one is the First cliff walk, it is a walkway that is winding it's way around the mountain and end at Bergrestaurant (the only restaurant on top of First mountain). The walkway is not a long one, you may need about 5-1o minutes to complete the whole course. And best thing is, it is free!

TIPS: Once you reach Bergrestaurant, there is a hangover bridge that is extended out with a transparent glass panel at the end of it for tourists to stand on and feel the adrenaline rush by looking down at 2167m elevation tall. However, do take note that there is a long long queue, tourists always flock for beautiful scenery and instagrammable spot right.


First Cliff Walk (Adapated from NewinZurich)
Just to act cool.. Not that cold if not windy, it was 6 celsius on the day!
纯属装逼.. 其实真的不冷的,因为没风,那天是6度哦!

First cliif walk behind
身后是绕着山崖走的步行道
Spotted love locks here too!
这里也有爱情锁哦!
Starting point of the trail
步行道的起点
First cliff walk
绕着山崖走的步行道 
First cliff walk
绕着山崖走的步行道 
Flocks of birds flying beside
旁边有成群飞鸟哦
First cliff walk
绕着山崖走的步行道
Breathtaking view
这景色。。好美。。。

👉 Another famous excursion to try out when you are at the top of First mountain is hiking trail in Lake Bachalpsee. It is about 5.9km return journey from First to Lake Bachalpsee, it may take about an hour for a one way journey. The trail is considered under easy level category and you will be accompanied by breathtaking views of greenary, flowers, animals etcetera. 

TIPS: Take note this hiking trail is closed during winter and sometimes spring, depends on whether the trail is free of slippery ice on top of the pathway. We went on end April and by the time we were not able to enjoy this course as it was closed due to the weather with slippery pathway. Try it when you are there in summer!


Lake Balchapsee (Adapted from https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/grindelwaldfirst/lake-bachalpsee/)

👉 After we had fun playing with snows (1st time for us!), sliding down the man-made snows slide (so childish, we follow the kids!), and enjoying the cliff walk, we headed down to Grindelwald by cable car. You may try the Bergrestaurant on top, the view is amazing but eating under the hot sun, is really super hot, the weather is 6 celsius with no wind, sunny day and you can feel the scorching heat after u are outside for some time! Fret not, there is indoor and outdoor dining, just that everyone will opt for outdoor dining with those pretty view! 


Our first encounter with snowsss
我们初见雪的兴奋
Jump shot
旅行少不了的跳跃照
Lunch with a view
午餐配超美的景色
Bergrestaurant First
First的餐厅
Fun at the top of mountain
大人小孩玩的不亦乐乎


Grindelwald wanderlust ends here! Interested to venture more of Switzerland? Refer to the links for other posts! Please share with me if you have any comments or inquiries. Follow me in Facebook and Instagram to get updated on new blog posts and photos too! Xoxo 💗


(Notes: My website contains some affiliate links and advertisement which are not scam, they are safe to click and at no cost to you, it gives me a little bit of commission for me to keep on maintaining the website. Your support is my biggest motivation!)












Refer to below links for more Switzerland April Spring trip blogs:

1. Executive Summary: Executive Summary Blog
2. Day 2 (Interlaken): Day 2 (Interlaken) Blog
3. Day 3 (Thun): Day 3 (Thun) Blog 
4. Day 3 (Bern): Day 3 (Bern) Blog
5. Day 4 (Jungfraujoch): Day 4 (Jungfraujoch) Blog
6. Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen): Day 4 (Lauterbrunnen) Blog
7. Day 5 (Zermatt): Day 5 (Zermatt) Blog
8. Day 6 (Lucerne): Day 6 (Lucerne) Blog
9. Day 6 (Lungern): Day 6 (Lungern) Blog
10. Day 7 (Bern): Day 7 (Bern) Blog







⭐Follow me below:
Instagram: melon_journey
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MelonJourneyBlog/





💗 Author: Ng Mei Lian/ Adrian Yeoh Aun Hong
👉 Date: 19/4/2019