Christmas in Switzerland

Day 1 London - Zurich - Lucerne Titan’s VIP door-to-door travel service collects you from home, for your journey to London Heathrow Airport for a direct, scheduled British Airways flight to Zurich. We transfer to the beautiful town of Lucerne and the Hotel Wilden Mann (4T) and enjoy a welcome drink on arrival. Dinner is included at our hotel this evening. Day 2 Mount Pilatus Lucerne sits on the edge of cobalt blue, Lake Lucerne and is surrounded by impressive mountains. It is a charm to explore this morning, on a walking tour that includes the well-preserved medieval Altstadt and the 14th century Chapel Bridge, with its legendary artwork. Our day continues to Mount Pilatus, one of the most beautiful and legendary places in central Switzerland. Hear of tales of the dragon rock that supposedly fell from the sky, the petrified man who stands guard in front of a cave, and the Roman governor Pontius Pilate who is thought to have been buried in Lake Pilatus. We conquer the mountain on a spectacular cable car. You will be transported past Alpine meadows, sparkling mountain streams and grand rock faces to the summit from where, on a clear day, you can enjoy a spectacular panoramic view of 73 Alpine peaks. We return to Lucerne this afternoon to enjoy the rest of the day at leisure. Day 3 Christmas Eve - Mount Titlis We have a memorable day ahead on our excursion to Mount Titlis. We take the express train to Engelberg to take our first cable car to Stand and then a second, revolving cable car up to Kleintitlis, the eternally snow-covered summit at over 3,000 metres. You have a short time to enjoy the magnificent views across Mount Titlis to surrounding peaks, before we return to Engelberg for a horse-drawn sleigh ride through the village named ‘Angel Mountain’. The ride starts and ends at the beautiful Benedictine monastery which makes its own Swiss cheese, and you have time to visit after the sleigh ride. After lunch at leisure, we return to Lucerne and our hotel to relax and prepare for a special Christmas dinner this evening. Day 4 Christmas Day - Mount Rigi Spend Christmas morning exploring snow-blanketed slopes, as we take a journey on Europe’s first cogwheel train (dating back to 1871) to Rigi - a typically Swiss area of meadows and forests - and ascend Mount Rigi, the Queen of Mountains. We have arranged lunch at the picturesque summit, to experience Alpenmagronen, the local speciality, and some leisure time to enjoy the views over Lake Lucerne and across the entire Swiss Mittelland as far as Germany and France. We return by train to Vitznau, where we board a vessel for a leisurely cruise across the lake back to Lucerne. The rest of the afternoon is at leisure to enjoy the day’s festivities, before a special dinner this evening. Day 5 Boxing Day - Glacier Express After a leisurely start, we take a coach to Andermatt where we board the world-famous Glacier Express to Filisur. The warm, modern carriages have panoramic windows for near-unobstructed views of the beautiful wintery mountain scenes. After climbing through the dramatic Oberalp Pass, a three-course lunch is served on board. You will understand why the route is known as the ‘slowest express train in the world’ as our journey continues through the wonderful Rhine Gorge and part of the Albula Valley, negotiating tight curves as it snakes through the valley between the river and steep rock faces, and on past pretty towns and fortresses, crossing the famous Landwasser Viaduct. Information about the route and sites along the way is provided via headphones. From Filisur we take the coach back to Lucerne. Day 6 Lucerne - Zurich - London We transfer to the airport for a direct, scheduled British Airways flight to London Heathrow. On arrival you will be met and guided to your Titan vehicle, for the journey home.