I'm heading to Switzerland in September and I'm looking for recommendations from those who have been to the region before. I've got a 2 week itinerary planned out with bases in Montreux, Zermatt, Wengen, and Lucerne by train.
Any blogs or websites out there I should check out? What experiences and side trips from these areas have you enjoyed?
What gear would you bring? I've got a Fuji with 10-24, 16-55, and 70-300.
One suggestion for you is an FM member by the screen name of "bmike-vt". He lives in Switzerland I believe, so you may want to PM him or look for his posts mostly in the Landscape Photographer forum.
Without knowing your style and taste in photography, it is hard to be specific. Generally, on full frame, the 24-105 focal length will be useful in Switzerland. To that you can add a 70-200 zoom.
The areas you cite above are tourist honeypots. The Appenzell region in the east is beautiful, and less run over.
Added: Bernina Express is a great train ride and if the light is right, there are ample photo opportunities from the train window. Book First Class if you want the cabin almost to yourself.
Yes, totally aware that I am visiting the hotspots, however it's my travel partner's first time to the country.
I did enjoy the Bernina Express a lot on my first visit, not so much the Glacier express as it was too long. I'm looking to probably do a road trip through the Engadin area of Switzerland combined with the Dolomites in the future so I left it out intentionally this time, plus it's a bit harder to work into the rest of my current plans.
Nobody but you can answer your question of which lenses to take, because it depends on your own style, not someone else's style. When I spent time photographing the alps several years ago at least half of my photos were shot in the 200-300 mm range. And I have an ultra wide that I never use because I don't like how tiny it make the mountains look.Take what you use most often.
For folks who don't yet have sufficient background to have a pretty good idea of what sort of lens(es) will work for them while traveling and who aren't able to provide any specific subject-related hints...
... I usually recommend something like the 24-105mm lens for full frame. since it includes both wide and somewhat long focal lengths and typically has image stabilization. (For cropped-sensor camera users, something roughly equivalent would be a 16mm to 55mm or a bit longer lens.)
With the Fujifilm system (which I also use), if you aren't constrained by weight/bulk issues you could bring all three of those. If you cannot bring all three, I'd look at it this way:
1. Build around the excellent and flexible 16-55 f/2.8. You _could_ make that your only lens if you want to keep things minimal.
2. If you can only bring one other lens, consider whether experience tells you that you are most likely to shoot wider than 16mm or longer than 55mm. If unsure and you want to add one lens, think of weight and bulk. (Personally, if I were taking two lenses from among these, I would add the 70-300mm, but that's a personal preference. The 70-300mm lens isn't too big or heavy for what it offers, and I can get by with 16mm as my widest focal length.)
It also matters whether you think of photography as a central goal of your travel or more as a way to capture some memories as you focus on other activities.
There are a lot more dimensions to this, but they get into some expenses and personal preference areas that may not be relevant. (For example, I'm a fan of using primes for travel photography, but I'll leave it to you to decide if that is the kind of thing you want to consider.)
Tom In Arizona wrote:
One suggestion for you is an FM member by the screen name of "bmike-vt". He lives in Switzerland I believe, so you may want to PM him or look for his posts mostly in the Landscape Photographer forum.
Hope that helps.
Tom
I agree with Tom. I have a month long trip planned to Switzerland in September and Mike has been awesome helping me plan my itinerary. My kit is going to include 24 mm T&S, 16-35, and 24-70. Have planned multiple hikes. Hiking in high altitude with lots of heavy gear could be difficult.
Yes, I did reach out to Mike and his advice has been very helpful thus far. I'm sure I'll need more of it as I plan in greater detail.
My 16-55 has been my bread and butter lens. The 10-24 is newer to me. I think I will bring all 3 and leave one behind in the hotel each day depending on what I anticipate shooting.
jli.jon wrote:
I think I will bring all 3 and leave one behind in the hotel each day depending on what I anticipate shooting.
Good call.
I use a different set of lenses than you when I travel in Europe and similar places, but I also tend to carry only a subset of my lenses each day. Some days I may limit myself to a single prime lens. If I'm shooting at night I switch over to a couple of larger aperture lenses. If I know I'll be doing tight interiors I add my wide prime.
September is a great time of year to visit Switzerland. It just so happens that we were in Montreux last week for a couple of days. A stroll through the vineyards of Le Lavaux (UNESCO World Heritage Site) was memorable. We took the train to Chexbres for an abbreviated hike, but here is the entire route and full information with map and photos: https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-ch/experiences/route/lavaux-vineyard-terraces-the-swiss-wine-route/
jli.jon wrote:
I'm heading to Switzerland in September and I'm looking for recommendations from those who have been to the region before. I've got a 2 week itinerary planned out with bases in Montreux, Zermatt, Wengen, and Lucerne by train.
Any blogs or websites out there I should check out? What experiences and side trips from these areas have you enjoyed?
What gear would you bring? I've got a Fuji with 10-24, 16-55, and 70-300.
When in Wengen consider taking the cable car to Mannlichen. Walk the relatively flat trail to Kleine Schidegg. You can return to Wengen by train or "simply" walk down the mountainside trail that follows the train tracks (not as easy). Of course this is not the most difficult trail, easy really, but if your companion has not done this sort of thing before it is really memorable. As you walk the trail, the north face of the Eiger, the Jung Frau, and Monch loom over open meadows. Spectacular.
engel001 wrote:
September is a great time of year to visit Switzerland. It just so happens that we were in Montreux last week for a couple of days. A stroll through the vineyards of Le Lavaux (UNESCO World Heritage Site) was memorable. We took the train to Chexbres for an abbreviated hike, but here is the entire route and full information with map and photos: https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-ch/experiences/route/lavaux-vineyard-terraces-the-swiss-wine-route/
All three are quite photogenic and worth the experience. Have a great trip!
Thank you! I visited the Lake Geneva area on my first trip several years ago, visiting the Chateau and Geneva. I'm spending more time in the area this time around and Rochers de Naye, Gruyeres, and the Lavaux vineyards are definitely on my itinerary. I did read in one of those travel books, maybe Fodor's, that starting in Chexbres and walking towards Saint Saphorin or Rivaz was recommended so that was my plan. How far did you go?
nma wrote:
When in Wengen consider taking the cable car to Mannlichen. Walk the relatively flat trail to Kleine Schidegg. You can return to Wengen by train or "simply" walk down the mountainside trail that follows the train tracks (not as easy). Of course this is not the most difficult trail, easy really, but if your companion has not done this sort of thing before it is really memorable. As you walk the trail, the north face of the Eiger, the Jung Frau, and Monch loom over open meadows. Spectacular.
Oh yes I read about that online somewhere and fit it into my itinerary this time. I believe it's called the panorama trail, but there seems to be many panorama trails in Switzerland hah. During my last visit, I only wandered around Murren and the Schilthorn, so this hike and many others are definitely in my plans thus far.
jli.jon wrote:
Oh yes I read about that online somewhere and fit it into my itinerary this time. I believe it's called the panorama trail, but there seems to be many panorama trails in Switzerland hah. During my last visit, I only wandered around Murren and the Schilthorn, so this hike and many others are definitely in my plans thus far.
This (Panorama Trail) is nothing like the Murren and Schilthorn experience. On a sunny day, it is breathtaking that you may feel giddy.
Back to your question regarding Chexbres. It was such great late afternoon light and a beautiful view that we couldn’t stop. We just kept going all the way to Vevey. This is definitely not recommended as the final lengthy stretches are along major roads. Next time I will follow the advice to descend to Saint-Saphorin and catch a train (hourly) or the boat back to Montreux (currently around five per day).
