Lucerne William Tell Private Guided Hike

Spectacular mountain scenery and age-old rural scenes accompany you along this historic route.

Make a quick stop (weekdays only) at the family-run Aschwanden Cheese Dairy and hear about the award-winning cheeses they make on site, and then taste a few of them. This is a great place to buy locally made “Alp” cheese.

Here we begin the actual walk parallel to Lake Uri with great views of the Rütli meadow down below. This is Switzerland’s “place of birth” in 1291; your guide will give you the fascinating story of the beginnings of the country’s unique direct democracy.

After about 30 minutes we enter the “Tannwald – pine forest” where verses of the “Lord’s Prayer” are on signs along the way. The trail is level on hard packed dirt with protruding rocks and roots yet very pristine with a special spiritual feeling. The hike continues on a level gravel path which links with a country road and takes us up an incline with steps leading us to the 16th century “boutique castle” of Beroldingen where we can view the little house chapel.

It is the home of an artist and sometimes she invites people passing by to come in and enjoy a coffee with her.

After lunch, we begin the descent down to lake level, hiking from the 800 m / 2400 ft plateau level down to the 440 m./1320 ft lake level level via 850-odd stone steps that lead to the picturesque village of Bauen. There are many benches for great vista rest stops along the way.

A stop at the rustic Zwyssig Restaurant (open Wed-Sun) is worth it to experience the typical village architecture with low ceilings and also take refreshments on the balcony with its glorious sweeping lake views. The place is also where the composer of Switzerland’s national anthem was born and brought up.

We depart this idyllic setting by boat for a 2,5 hour cruise back to Lucerne with ports of call at the Ruetli and a number of Swiss villages. As you cruise along, look up at the steep cliff faces where you walked.