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Winter is traditionally considered an unfavorable season for hiking. However, this is not quite true in Switzerland, where the extensive hiking network is well maintained and prepared even during the cold season! Indeed, many routes are accessible, even if they are covered in a thick layer of snow! And the great thing is that you don't need any special equipment to follow them, just good, comfortable, waterproof shoes! We love discovering the winter landscape on foot, and to convince you to do the same, in this article we suggest 4 easy winter walking routes in Central Switzerland, not too far from Zurich and Lucerne!
1. Rigi Panoramaweg, walking on Lake Lucerne
Mount Rigi, the “Queen of Mountains” as it is lovingly called by locals, is an easily accessible hiking destination even in winter. The many public transportation options and the wide variety of winter sports that can be enjoyed in its valleys and along the slopes of the mountain make it a popular destination not only for tourists, but even for locals. The hike we propose starts from Rigi Kaltbad and leads, through panoramic spots and valleys, to Rigi Scheidegg. Known as “Panoramaweg” because of its wide variety of panoramic spots, this hike follows the route of an old railway line and uses the existing infrastructure such as bridges and tunnels. It is an easy itinerary of about 8 km that can be covered in more or less two and a half hours.
2. Winter hike from Klewenalp to Stockhütte
Located in the heart of Switzerland, just above Lake Lucerne, the Klewenalp Region offers many opportunities for hiking and winter sports enthusiasts who can get here easily, either by car or public transportation. Here you can enjoy magnificent hikes on well-prepared and marked trails – with or without snowshoes – or go skiing, cross-country skiing or sledding.
The hike we propose is a linear route that starts from the upper station of the Beckenried – Klewenalp cable car and offers a magnificent view of the imposing mountains that surround this region and of Lake Lucerne, often during the winter covered by a surprising sea of fog. This is an easy route of about 5.5 km that can be covered in about two hours at a relaxed pace.
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For a safe hike, it is important to have the support of maps and GPS. That’s why we plan and track all our hiking routes using Outdooractive, a platform for tracking outdoor activities such as hiking, cycling and more. By subscribing for free to the website you can browse the entire route database, copy our routes, edit them and create your own and of course share them with friends.
If instead you want to know why you should sign up for a PRO or PRO+ subscription and why we have already done it, we have told you about it here along with 5 other essential apps for hiking in Switzerland.
3. Zugerberg, winter walk over the sea of fog
Zugerberg, Zug’s city mountain, offers plenty of opportunities for leisure throughout the year. During the summer, the area comes alive with hikers and visitors taking advantage of the extensive hiking network, which offers over 80 kilometers of trails and a rich and varied landscape. But even in winter, the mountain has nothing to envy from many other Swiss locations: with its four winter hiking trails, more than 20 km of cross-country skiing trails and a sledding path, Zugerberg is certainly a perfect and easily accessible destination for everyone to spend a pleasant day outdoors as a couple or as a family.
The route we propose starts at the upper station of the Zugerberg Bahn (a funicular railway) and leads you back to the starting point, through forests and along viewpoints over the sea of fog and the lake. It is an easy walk of about 10.5 km, which can be covered in about three hours at a relaxed pace.
4. Winter hike in Lungern, from Turren to Breitenfeld
Turren, just above Lake Lungern, is a village in the Canton Obwalden that is easily accessible by public transportation and offers a good variety of hiking activities in both Summer and Winter. The landscape around the lake is absolutely fascinating and remains fully enjoyable even during the short winter hike from Turren to Breitenfeld. The route we propose is a round-trip hike that starts at the Turrenbahn cable car mountain station and, following a comfortable prepared trail, offers great views of the high mountains surrounding Lake Lungern. It is an easy route, just 5 km long and takes about an hour and a half.
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