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Crown Jewel -Switzerland tour
Hi going on the Switzerland tour in a few weeks. My husband and I have taken multiple tours before. This tour will have the highest on elevations that we will be on. We are both in early 70s and quite active just wondering if the elevation effects many that have already been on the tour. Thank you, P
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We did not have any effects from the elevation. We're older than you.
If you want a preview of the tour, go to https://www.mikeandjudytravel.com/2023-2Switzerland-01.htm
Staying hydrated is very important. Ginger—either in hard candy-like form or tea—works for me.
Did this tour in August 2023, a few people, including myself, had reactions to the altitude at Jungfraujoch. I felt it at the very end and it was minor, just needed to sit for a bit - felt better after some hot chocolate.
We live at an elevation of 5,000 feet in Colorado and have regularly traveled to elevations of over 12,000 feet, and up to 14,500 feet (higher than Jungfraujoch, which is about 11,400 feet). My experience is that most people will notice some effect (e.g. shortness of breath when climbing stairs, headache) whenever they travel to an elevation more than about 5,000 feet above their "normal" elevation. For me, my body has already acclimated to 5,000 feet, so I only notice an effect when I go higher than about 10,000 feet, and it gets pretty pronounced at 14,000 feet. But visitors from sea level often notice it even at 5,000 feet, especially if they aren't in great physical condition. It depends a lot on your physical condition -- a runner probably won't notice much at 11,000 feet, but someone who already gets winded climbing stairs at sea level is definitely going to feel it at 11,000 feet. Drink lots of water, take it slow, and have some acetaminophen/paracetamol handy for possible headache and you should be fine, especially since you are already active.
I live at sea level and had no problem with elevation on this tour taken in 2023 or an earlier one that also went to Jungfraujoch taken in 2011. The advice to stay hydrated is good advice.
My husband and son are both affected by elevation and they are both fit. My son ran a marathon recently. It’s not just about physical condition, there must be another component.
Yes there is another component. And nobody knows what it is. Even people who never had altitude sickness can be affected. There are cases of people who live at altitude, descend to shop or whatever, and get sick when they return. If you’ve had it best to see a doctor and get some meds before you go. Being in great shape is no protection.
Just returned from this wonderful tour. One person in our group with known altitude issues (she even carried a blood oxygen reader with her) had a problem at Jungfraujoch so she ended up sitting in the cafe while we all wandered. Stay hydrated. Walk slowly.
Karen, We leave next week for this tour.If you have any time, a quick review with suggestions would be great! Glad you had a great time!! Thank you!!
Taxare - Hope I’m not too late with my randomly listed memories that follow. Weather was warmer than we expected - and sunny on all the most important sight seeing days. Jungfaujoch was chilly but not freezing cold. It was crowded. Ice Palace is walkable in good sneakers - just take it slowly. There are lots of meals provided on this tour- all were 3 courses, so pace yourself. Our last hotel was in Engelberg - which was lovely but added an extra 20-30 minutes to the ride to airport in Zurich in the very early morning (for us) flight home. A few of the hotels only had duvets (not sheet and blanket) and fan, not AC so it was very warm at night. If you have time in Lausanne - a train ride to the Olympic museum is worthwhile. You buy tickets for train but no one asks for them - it’s the honor system but supposedly they do random checks so have them on hand. Loved the stop in Bern. There are opportunities to buy chocolate everywhere. After lunch in Lugano afternoon is at your leisure. Most of us rode the Funicular San Salvatore (near the hotel) to check out the amazing views- definitely worthwhile. The cheese factory stop was ok - many didn’t like it but we enjoyed it. However the lunch there was underwhelming - fondue (of course) with bread, potatoe, and apples. Watching the paragliders land in the park in front of our hotel in Interlaken was fun - we watched w cocktails and snacks on the bar terrace. One person in our group actually did a paraglide and loved it making me wish I’d tried.
Taxare- the chocolate at Jungfraujoch is some of the best we've had. You can buy it on the mountain, but the shops were very crowded (groups of teens). There is a shop in Interlaken a few blocks down from the hotel that has all the official merchandise. Laderach is a big brand in Switzerland, but we have numerous branches in the NY area so it didn't make sense to bring it home. Same with Lindt. Although we did just buy some Dubai chocolate at Lindt when we were in Paris- it's all the rage here and made great gifts!
We went in June and it was warmer than expected. Packed too many sweaters and not enough T shirts.
We never saw sheets with duvets until we moved to the US, we loved the idea and would not be without them. We have traveled with people more than once who have gone to reception to say the maid forgot to put a sheet on the bed.
Costco had Dubai chocolates recently, absolutely delicious, when I went back a couple of weeks later, no more😟 Our Mall has them at a ridiculous price. If you go thru Dubai or Doha, look out for them maybe at the airport.
It is customary in Europe not to have sheets in a bed when there already is a comforter with a duvet cover on it. Another layer of anything traps more heat.
We did this tour in 2019. I had heart ablation surgery a month before the trip and did fine. We had no ill effects from the altitude. It was an amazing trip. Have fun.
Thank you for the additional posts. We really appreciate the good information. Kristof will be our tour director.Looking forward to a great two weeks!