Some of the most beautiful and impressive mountain peaks of Central Switzerland’s Alps are located around Lucerne. One of the most rugged of Lucerne's local mountains, Mount Pilatus, is literally just a stone’s throw away from the city. Similarly, the more gentle and majestic Mount Rigi, which overlooks Lake Lucerne, is just a half hour train ride or boat cruise away.

You can, of course, just admire these mountains from afar, but we recommend that you make the effort to see them up close. Many are easily accessible by cable cars, cogwheel trains, lifts and the like and the views up there are something else! Thankfully, many of these destinations have also upgraded their transport infrastructure over the last couple of years. Stanserhorn, for example, offers the world’s first cable car with an open upper deck, so you can enjoy the ride up under an open sky. Now that truly is something else! Still not convinced? Then take one of the world’s steepest funicular railways to Stoos, which is accessible from Schwyz.

In fact, there are more than a dozen peaks that are an easy day trip from Lucerne and we list them all below. You can book guided bus tours to many of them, but you can usually get there on your own by using public transport. Local trains and buses reach many of the valley stations and the ride there is often an adventure itself. Take, for example, the narrow gauge train to Engelberg where you can gain access to Mount Titlis at over 3,000m above sea level. Visit the eternal ice of a glacier, walk over a suspension bridge and then whiz down the slopes on an inflatable tube. And even the Bernese Alps with the renown peaks Schilthorn and Jungfraujoch are just a day trip away.

Each entry below provides information on how to get there and, more importantly, how much a ticket costs. If you plan on visiting more than one mountain you should consider buying a Tell Pass, which gives you free rides on public transport throughout Central Switzerland as well as access to many of the mountain peaks for a specific number of days.

Your journey to all of the classic mountain peaks around Lucerne begins here.