Swiss Alps with young kids: come for the views, stay for the financial regret

Take the gondola up to Stoos, car-free, mountain village.

Switzerland: thicc cows and udderly thicker prices. 🐄💸😅

The Swiss Alps with young kids is not a budget trip. You’ll pay $40 for a basic lunch, $100 to ride a gondola, and $500 to rent a car that barely fits your car seats. And somehow? It’s still worth it because the views are unreal, the playgrounds are perched on mountaintops, and the cows are PHAT. 

Here’s how we did the Swiss Alps with three kids under six—and didn’t totally lose our minds (or our wallets).

If you like vids, my wife shares some of this here.

Timing is everything

If you want to visit the Swiss Alps without the full crowd chaos of Europe and Asia (I thought I’d be the only Indian—turns out, not even close, there was def a lot of us), aim for shoulder season. That’s before June, before the summer-break surge hits. You’ll still pay a premium—it’s Switzerland—but the crowds are thinner and the prices are slightly less insane. Weather can be hit or miss, but it’s worth the gamble.

Getting around the Swiss Alps with young kids: rent a car

We rented a car from Europcar—$550 for 5 days for a small SUV (Audi Q3). Somewhat pricey, yes, but 100% worth it with little kids. Parking wasn’t cheap—around 50 CHF/day ($61) in the touristy towns—but thanks to shoulder season, we didn’t have much trouble finding spots. And the roads? Absolutely perfect. I didn’t see a single pothole—guess that’s where all those Swiss Francs are going.

With strollers, naps, pee/snack breaks, blowouts, and full-blown meltdowns, having our own schedule was essential. We used short train rides occasionally—most hotels give you a free guest pass—but for us, the car gave us the freedom and flexibility to let kids be kids.

Where we stayed and, frankly, why it was worth every Franc

We based ourselves in Wilderswil, at this 4-bedroom Airbnb. It was stunning—mountain views, peaceful, charming, and a really cool interior design. The big backyard and toys made it perfect for post-adventure downtime with the kids.

There was a sweet little playground nearby, walking trails, and plenty of livestock to keep the kids entertained. It felt close to everything but wasn’t packed with tourists—a rare combo.

• Cost: $1,870 for 5 nights.

• Location: 1 hour from Lucerne, 2 hours from Zurich.

Eating in Switzerland (without going broke)

Restaurants? Think 40 CHF ($50) per person for basic AF food, and your kids aren’t going to eat any of it anyways. 

Solution: Grocery stores + an Airbnb kitchen. Stock up on basics and cook at home. We made breakfast and dinner ourselves, packed lunches for outings, and saved hundreds over the week. Groceries are still 2x the cost back home, but still a bargain in the Alps! 

Okay, finally, the good stuff, the views!

Ima keep this section light on words and just let the pics speak for themselves. 

Stoos and Fronalpstock:

Take the world’s steepest funicular and 2 chairlifts up to panoramic views, alpine trails, and mountain parks. Cost: $110 for 2 adults (kids under 6 ride free). Totally worth it for the unreal scenery, fresh air, and space for little legs to roam wild.

Grindelwald First Mountain:

Ride the gondola up, stop at Bort for a killer playground, then head to the top for the famous First Cliff Walk. Cost: 122 CHF ($150) for 2 adults (kids under 6 ride free). Big fun. Big views. 

Interlaken:

Nestled between two lakes, Interlaken offers riverside strolls, playgrounds, shops, and plenty of food options. There’s just something about the good vibes here—walking the streets, taking in the teal-blue lakes and river, and soaking up the mountain backdrop.

Bern:

A favorite day trip—picnic by Bear Park (there are actual bears), climb cobblestone streets, and soak up that classic European charm.

Lauterbrunnen & Wengen:

See the waterfall at Lauterbrunnen then take the train (57 CHF / $70) up to car-free Wengen, and play mini-golf with a view.

Chur & the Bernina Express

Take the train from Zurich to Chur ($52/adult), check out the natural history museum (free with guest pass), then hop on the Bernina Express for jaw-dropping scenery.

• Bernina Express is 276 CHF ($336) total for our family. Wowza!

• One of the most scenic rides we’ve ever done, it takes about 4.5 hours.

The Alps have offer a lot to see, and these spots ranged from 15 minutes to 1.5 hours from our Airbnb. A car makes this a lot easier with little kids. I can’t imagine doing all this with public transit—you’d probably lose a kid during all the transfers. Bright side? They’d end up with a fantastic Swiss education.

Financial regret

Even when you have total flexibility on location and timing, traveling isn’t always inexpensive. But it’s still rich in the stuff that actually matters. This is the kind of trip you remember. The kind your kids talk about years later—even if they were too young to fully understand what they were seeing.

Yes, the Swiss Alps will dent your wallet and make you refresh all your retirement spreadsheets. While getting to FI is about saving 50%+ of your income, there are times when you’ve got to turn that part off, do the thing, and just enjoy it. And sometimes, that looks like your kids chasing goats in an alpine park while you sip a $15 cappuccino with a view of the mountains.

So, how does this tie back to FI? We made this trip work within our annual retirement budget by planning to spend time in lower cost-of-living countries like Turkey and India later in the year. That’s the beauty of FI—freedom and flexibility.

And it all starts with finding your why.

This post is part of our 'finding our why' series, sharing real-world stories of why families choose financial independence and early retirement with kids.