It’s so nice to bring a stroller on the trail, not only to carry my child but also all the gear and picnic stuff we like to bring. I love that Switzerland has lot of “obstacle-free” routes, not just for strollers but also for wheelchairs, so everyone can enjoy the great outdoors, even pregnant mamas with swollen feet.
Here are some of our favorites. Enjoy!
What kind of stroller should you use?
When I say “suitable for strollers”, I mean a sturdy all-terrain stroller with big knobby tires that can maneuver over gravel and lumpy dirt paths. I’ve seen all kinds of flimsy strollers on the trail, but that is much more work than its worth.
If you plan to hike frequently with your stroller, I recommend investing in a stroller suited for hiking. We had a BOB Sport Stroller with a fixed front tire and it survived dozens of trails, many quite unsuitable for strollers.
Near Lucerne
1. Melchsee Frutt
This trail is perfect for anyone who needs an easy stroll with beautiful views. You can even shorten the journey by riding a little “train” shuttle to the far end of the trail, then walk back along the lakes. The train has room to transport folded up strollers.
The path is flat and smooth, no tricky footing. If you want to cut your trip even shorter, you can catch the train back from one of the stops along the way. There’s a big playground back at the gondola car station as a reward for little walkers.
Read more about Melchsee-Frutt >>>
2. Engelberg Trübsee
This easy family hike around a lake has a big playground and some fun play stations along the way. This is a great choice for smaller children that are learning to hike, as the trail is short and suitable for strollers.
The setting is spectacular, at the beautiful Trübsee lake below the Titlis mountain peaks. You can combine this with a visit to the top of Titlis, to walk on a glacier, visit the ice caves and admire in the panoramas.
3. Stoos Fronalpstock Panorama Trail
This Panoramaweg is a 1.5 km loop, starting along the cliffs overlooking Lake Luzern, then looping back back to the chair lift. The cliff side of the path is wide and groomed dirt, best for strollers with sturdy wheels. The loop back on the lower trail is a bit bumpy, so I suggest simply walking out and back.
There’s a nice playground and picnic area at the start of the hike, near the cliffs, but fenced in for safety. You have to take a chair lift up, but the staff will safely hook your stroller on to a separate chair.
4. Sattel Engelstock Panorama Trail
This loop trail at Sattel-Hochstuckli has panorama views across lakes, valleys and mountains. The path is mostly a wide dirt trail as shown below, with a few paved sections. At the far end of the loop, the uphill is a little steep, so you may find it tiresome to push your child on this section.
There are a couple picnic areas with fire pits and a restaurant along the way. The hike loops back to the big play area with bouncy castles, trampolines and summer toboggan – a nice reward for good hiking.
Learn more about Sattel Panorama Trail
5. Rigi Panorama Trail
A mountain train brings you up to the top of Rigi Kulm, where you can admire amazing panoramic views without hiking a bit. Instead of riding down, you can push your stroller along this smooth dirt path down as far as you care to walk. You can go as little as 1 km to the next train stop or as much as 9 km to the end of the Rigi Panorama trail, where there is a big playground with trampolines, slides and swings.
6. Zugerberg
This small mountain near Zug has lots of paths crisscrossing the fields and forests. For children, there is the “Zugiblubbi theme trail”, with fun activities along the way. You can do this trail with a stroller, but there are a couple stroller detours you’ll need to take, as clearly noted on the trail signs.
Learn more about the Zugerberg trail
7. Golzernsee
After riding a cable car up the mountain, you walk on a easy dirt road to a small village then to the beautiful Golzernsee lake shown here. The path is mostly smooth, with a few bumps here and there, best with a sturdy stroller. At the lake, there is a big picnic area with fire pits. On warm days, you can splash and swim in the lake.
Learn more about Golzernsee.
Near Zurich
8. Hoch Ybrig
Hoch Ybrig has a beautiful ridge trail that is easy and safe to walk, thanks to a wide dirt path set back from the edge and protected by fences. It’s mostly downhill and easy walking. It’s wide enough for a stroller, but a bit bumpy on the first half.
Near the end of the trail, there is a small lake with a picnic area and playground near the restaurant. To reach the trail, you need to ride a chair lift, but the staff will help you loading and unload a folded stroller.
9. Flumserberg Flower Trail
This little stroll was the first hike we ever did in Switzerland with our then 2 year old. This short 2 km loop was just right for his little legs, a good introduction to a lifetime of hiking with his family. A few years later we took his great grandmother on this same walk and it was just her speed.
The views are big, the flowers plentiful, and the cows friendly. The path is wide with dirt and gravel, obstacle free.
10. Näfelsee Obersee alpine lake walk
To reach this lake, you have to drive up a narrow winding mountain road. But once you are there, it’s relaxing and quiet. There’s a short loop trail around the lake on a wide dirt path, possible with strollers. The second half of the trail is on the paved road, so watch for cars though there is only very infrequent traffic.
Hike: 2.7 km • 1 hr • 20m up & down
Location: Näfels Obersee lake, 50 mins drive southeast of Zurich • see on map
Cost: free
See trail map and directions for Näfels Obersee lake walk
11. Pizol Heidi Trail
This theme trail has play stations along the way to help motivate your child to keep walking. The kids get a little trail passport that they stamp along the way as they complete the stations.
It’s not a difficult trail, but little legs can get tired over the 4 km. So it’s nice to have a stroller along in case they need a break. There are lots of play areas, several restaurants and picnic areas along the way.
Learn more about the Heidi Theme Trail
12. Elm Giants Trail
This theme trail at Elm is great for children of all sizes, with more than a dozen play stations, including a giant xylophone, a mini suspension bridge, trampolines, and much more.
The trail is short at 2km and easy walking on a wide dirt path suitable for strollers. It’s also very inexpensive compared to other mountains but still spectacularly beautiful.
13. Toggenburg Tone Trail
This is a classic theme trail for children, where every few minutes along the trail you’ll find a different musical “instrument” for the kids to clank, bang and make lots of noise with.
The full path is long at 6km but since it’s suitable for strollers, this is a great one to train your kids to walk, giving them a break in the stroller when they need it. There are a couple stroller detours on the trail that skip some of the stations. If your stroller is very rugged and you are motivated, you can probably manage on the main trail if you are careful (I’ve done it a couple times).
Bernese Oberland
14. Engstligenalp
After riding up a cable car past an amazing waterfall, you reach an enormous, strangely flat alpine valley surrounded by impressive snowy peaks. There is an easy stroller-friendly path circling the valley, passing over a few streams with little bridges. There’s lots of room for the kids to safely run around, while you admire the view.
Graubünden
15. Pigniu Reservoir and Waterfalls
This is one of our favorite lakes, with big waterfalls spilling off the surrounding cliffs and running down river to the lake. The east side of the lake is a dirt road suitable for strollers, leading to the picnic area with plenty of room to run around and throw rocks into the river.
19 responses
Hi Tanya
Your website is a boon for newcomers to Switzerland and I have been using it to pick my weekly hikes. We moved to Zurich in Dec 2022. I often have visitors with varying capabilities! My sister is going to visit with her 4 and 6 year old and the 4 year old is not a good walker, wants to be carried after a short while. Can you suggest a place to rent a sturdy stroller for her for the week they are here.
Sorry, I don’t know of any places that rent strollers.
Hello,
thank you for the informative article!
I would like to ask, maybe you could give us a recommendation where to go with a toddler (20 m) and a grandma, where there would be a nice view of mountains, but also it would be possible to go with a stroller in winter time, thank you very much!
Hi. Sorry for the late response. For a winter hike with a stroller, you might try Trübsee near Engelberg. It’s about 3km, very flat and easy. The snow isn’t always hard enough to manage with a stroller, so you’d probably be better off dragging the child on a sled or carrying them in a backpack. Good luck! https://swissfamilyfun.com/winter-walk-titlis-trubsee/
Thanks so much for putting together all this great information. Your website is my go-to destination for inspiration to be outdoors with baby! Now we are planning a long distance hike (trek) for about one week with the kids trailer. Any recommendation for routes or areas to look at?
Thanks for the kind words. Do you mean a long distance hike bringing the stroller on all the hikes? Is that what you mean by “kids trailer”? That would be challenge as most mountain hikes are not suitable for strollers. The longest trail that comes to mind is the path from the Leukerbad Gemmipass to Sunnbüel. https://swissfamilyfun.com/gemmipass-suennbuel/ But that’s only one hike.
We are planning a trip to the Berner Oberland region with Wengen as our base and will probably do most hikes with a backpack carrier. Bur I’m unsure if I should opt for a lightweight stroller to push in the airport, train travel, walking around towns etc. or a jogging stroller for the option to do some hikes if our backs are tired? I’m mainly worried that the weight of the jogger will be a hassle if we have to fold up and carry or if the smaller wheels on the travel stroller with be an issue on roads. I’d appreciate any insight!
I agree that a jogger stroller is large and heavy. I would only bring this if you plan to use it a lot on trails. Probably a lightweight stroller is a better option for travel. You might encounter some lumpy cobblestone in the cities, but I’m sure you’ll manage.
Hi,
I really like all the recommendations on stroller friendly hikes. Are there more stroller friendly hikes recommendations which are not listed here? I am looking for recommendations around or near to luzern area.
Thanks for your feedback
Regards,
Kk
Thanks. You can see all hiking posts tagged “stroller-friendly” here: https://swissfamilyfun.com/tag/stroller-friendly/
You can also use the Advanced Search to filter on “stroller ok”: https://swissfamilyfun.com/search-hikes/
Near Luzern, it depends on how long you want to hike. Maybe Trübsee, Rigi Panorama, Klewenalp, or Lungerersee? https://swissfamilyfun.com/trubsee/
Your blog is incredible! Thank you so much!!!
You’re welcome!
Hi Swiss Family-
What clear and detailed directions and pictures! Looks like your family really enjoys hiking with kids!
Do you have any recommendations for stroller-friendly hikes in the Davos- Klosters area?
Thank you!
Thanks! I found this great list on their website with so many options: https://www.davos.ch/en/summer/activities/families/leisure-activities/hiking-with-children/ Most of these walks are in the valley near the Davos village, not up in the mountains. We did the path from Jakobshorn to Stadlersee, which is in the mountains, walking on a service road to ends at a little lake (I think it’s a man-made reservoir, so it’s nice but it feels a little civilized). There is a fire pit at that lake, which we used for a picnic. It was a good short option when we had a baby in the stroller and a 3.5 year old walking. We also did the path from Rinerhorn to Abirüugg, which also ends at a fire pit. We did this a long time ago when my second son was only a month old and I carried him. It’s listed as a stroller hike, but I don’t remember the quality of the path since I wasn’t using a stroller. The views are amazing from this trail.
Strangely, I have not written about either of these hikes on my blog. I’ll have to fix that!
For more options, I would recommend stopping at the tourist information office and chatting with them about stroller trails. They are usually very helpful in explaining the quality of the trails and helping you find the right one for your needs.
Swiss family, your post is awesome!! So detailed, with very good pictures, perfect! Thank you very much for your time!
Hi Tanya,
thank you so much for your passion you put into this blog! You helped us enormously to plan our family trip.
Believe me, your work is much appreciated and valued!
Thanks! Now I’m smiling for the rest of the day. So glad I could help.
thanks
We did amazing route today with 2 kids 2 and 5 y.o. using recommendations from this amazing web-page. We selected the path Elm Riesenwald Theme Trail, and it perfectly fits strollers.
Thank you for your informative blog, we plan to do more routs using your page as a guide.
Misha