Mt Pilatus

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239 Reviews | Add review

Address: Switzerland
Hours: Cog-railway open May - Oct 10am - 5pm
Admission: Free

ATTRACTION Keywords:
Good Views / Viewpoint, Good Views / Viewpoint, Walking/Hiking, Walking/Hiking, Mountain, Mountain

9:02 AM Friday, May 24
Broken clouds. Chilly.
7 day forecast

Mount Pilatus rises high above the city of Lucerne giving wonderful views of Lake Lucerne and the Swiss Alps. At 6,992 ft (2,132 m) high, it has 2 cable cars, the world's steepest cog-railway, hotels, restaurants and lots of outdoor activities. People come here to toboggan, sledge, mountain bike and for the excellent hiking. There is a Rope Park for treetop adventures.

Rumor has it that the mountain is named after Pontius Pilate who they say was thrown into a nearby lake and haunts the mountain. More likely is that the name comes from the Latin word for cloud-covered, pileatus. It was made famous by the composer Richard Wagner in the 19th century and Britain's Queen Victoria rode up here on horseback.

Latest Reviews

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All Mt Pilatus Reviews

Review by Richard S, February 2013
Doing what: Mt. Pilatus Winter Day Trip from Zurich

A perfectly organized day that exceeded our expectations.

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Review by Courtney S, November 2012
Doing what: Mt. Pilatus Winter Day Trip from Zurich

Wonderful tour! Our guide was very kind and knowledgeable. I recommend this tour as a quick way to see Lucerne and some pretty countryside as well as Mt. Pilatus. The cable car was closed but we took the cogwheel and saw the beautiful mountain side!

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Review by Ang, November 2012
Doing what: Mount Pilatus Summer Day Trip from Lucerne

Absolutely beautiful scenery. It's a must see, but the tour group seemed disorganised. 4 people had to stand in the coach as there wasn't enough seating. Also 2nd leg of funicular was very overcrowded, it was really uncomfortable

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Practical Info

To ride up on the cablecars, take trolley-bus no. 1 from Lucerne Railway Station towards Kriens. Get off at stop Linde/Pilatus, then it's an easy 5 minute walk. To go on the cog-railway, go to Alpnachstad by train from Lucerne Station (look for the Pilatus sign) or by boat from landing stage 2 which takes about 90 minutes. From May-October, the boat and cog-railway is by far the most scenic option.

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