Winter Mt Rigi Day Trip – Details
Mt. Rigi Alpine Panorama Winter Walk & Spa
Mt Rigi, or the “Queen of the Mountains”, is the THE mountain peak where Swiss alpine tourism began 200 years ago. With easy, year-round access by cogwheel mountain railway or cable-car, it is a favorite hiking destination especially in the Winter months when there is thick fog shrouding the city and lake below.
Enjoy a round trip with 360-degree views over the Alps, Lakes Lucerne and Zug, an hour or more in the warm healing waters of the “Kaltbad” mineral spring Spa, as well as typical Swiss mountain hospitality. The tour uses 4 types of public transportation – local train, cogwheel railway, aerial cable car and boat.
The Tour
A 30 min train ride alongside Lakes Lucerne and Zug gets you to the RigiBahn station where you switch to Europe’s first cogwheel train originally launched in 1871, and ride 40 minutes up through winding forests and alpine pastures to reach Rigi-Kulm, the summit of the mountain at 1800 m / 5400 ft. Enjoy impressive 360-degree views over the Alps stretching way out into the distance
Walk the short 15 minute incline to the radio mast on the actual summit and enjoy more vistas over lakes and mountains. You will be able to see Mt Säntis, the highest peak in Eastern Switzerland, and then scan the entire Swiss alpine range as far West as the eye can see. Look out for peaks such as the 3000m/10000ft Mt. Titlis, and the famous trio of Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau in the Bernese Oberland.
On a really clear day you might be able to make out Germany’s Black Forest region in the North and France in the West.
After you have taken in as much scenery as you want, walk 20 mins down a mountain path to an artisan alpine cheese dairy farm run by Franz Toni Kennel, the 7th generation in his family to run the farm. The place is open year round and its modest restaurant offers the best Alpine views and most authentic local foods. Here you can visit the cheese-maker at work and see how much handwork is involved in making a wheel of cheese. Enjoy a typical cheese fondue of three different Alp cheeses all made right on site (if you have dietary restrictions or don’t eat cheese, please notify us in advance so we can organize an alternative for you).
After lunch, continue walking through wintry landscape for another 90 mins to 2 hours on a gravel (or packed-snow) mountain trail, along a ridge path with spectacular views over the lakes and far into the distance. and its very modern Spa buildings
Reaching Rigi-Kaltbad , warm yourself up by spending time in the mineral spring baths – an indoor/outdoor pool of spring water heated to 15C/95F. This very modern facility continues a 600-year old tradition of health seekers from far and wide coming to the healing waters to be healed of their ailments.
Depending on the time you reach Rigi-Kaltbad, spend one or two hours soaking up the revitalizing, mineral rich and balmy indoor/outdoor waters, before it is time to start the return journey to Lucerne. This involves a a breathtaking cable-car ride down to the resort town of Weggis. A 10-minute walk through the pretty town gets you to the ship landing just in time to catch the boat all the way back to Lucerne on a relaxing 40-minute scenic boat cruise.
Note for visitors with a fear of riding in cable-cars: you can travel both up and back down again by cogwheel train.
Additional Notes for the Winter Mt. Rigi Tour
Our guides are here to maximize your Mt. Rigi experience and flexible so you receive the full benefit of your tour with the mission to have your expectations met and exceeded.
The goal of each tour is to tailor to the interests and hiking levels of the participants. Because Mt. Rigi offers so many ways to walk, hike and experience all its scenic highlights, your guide will look to identify how much or how little you wish to walk and or hike and design the hike in a way you will enjoy most.
The current weather conditions may dictate what is going to be the best options to maximize your experience. If the winds and visibility conditions on top of Mt. Rigi are either too windy, cold or totally in the clouds, the environment by Mt. Rigi Kaltbad, 347 m/ 1041 ft lower is often completely different.
- We have had Australians on this tour who wanted a more athletic experience so we take steeper trails and came up with a “No Worries” option. Therefore if you are looking for more of an adventure ask about the “No Worries” options.
- We have had Americans on the tour, a 70-year-old mother and 45-year-old daughter for example who wanted a 2-hour easy level hike on the snow. Here we take a different route and go to the Mt. Rigi Scheidegg summit and hike on the signposted very level trail that follows the old train tracks that once connected Rigi Scheidegg, 1661 m/4960 ft and Mt. Rigi Kaltbad, 1450 m/4350 ft.
- We’ve had a Singapore family who have never seen snow before with the Dad just wearing his street shoes. Here we re-routed the itinerary and took the boat from the train station and then transferred on the Mt. Rigi railway to Mt. Rigi Kaltbad where you can easily walk on the snow packed path with your everyday shoes.
Winter Map for Mt. Rigi
