This spectacular hike visits five beautiful alpine lakes scattered along an impressive landscape shaped by glaciers. This popular trail is no secret; you definitely won’t be alone on the trail, no matter when you go. But it’s still one of our very favorite trails in Switzerland that we hike almost every summer.
Although the trail is not extremely long or particularly dangerous, it does require endurance to manage the three steep ascents and descents over rocky terrain. If that seems a bit much, I have a shorter version below, hiking to the first two lakes and back, which would still be a great hike.
Keep reading for all the details and tips for planning your day.
Contents
| Location: | Heidiland region, Eastern Switzerland |
| Address: | Letzistrasse 7323 Vilters-Wangs |
| Car: | Metered parking: 47°01’47.3″N 9°26’01.3″E 1hr from Zurich to Wangs |
| Train: | Bus stop: Wangs, Pizolbahn 1hr10 from Zurich HB |
| Trail: | 10 km, about 4-5 hours |
| Elevation: | highest point 2500m, 430m up, 760m down |
| Condition: | dirt mountain trail |
| Skill: | difficult |
| Open: | July through mid October |
| Cost 2024: | mountain lifts CHF 52/adults Discounts for GA, Half-fare, kids. SBB Junior card accepted. |
| More info: | www.pizol.com • check trail status • webcams |
Hiking map
Here is the official Pizol summer hiking map. The Five Lakes hike starts at Pizolhütte at 2227m. You get there by taking a gondola from Wangs, then two chair lifts. The trail ends at Gaffia, where you can catch the chair lift back down the mountain.
Here is a more detailed trail map. Note that the first lake, Wangersee, is near the Pizolhütte, but a five minute walk in the opposite direction of the trail. So you won’t see it unless you make a little detour.
See hiking map on Komoot • SchweizMobil • OutdoorActive
The Pizol website says the trail is 11 km. But my Garmin watch and trail apps say only 10km. Either way, it’s takes a minimum of 4 hours, but more like 5-6 hours if you take lots of photos and stop for a picnic.
It’s not a dangerous or technical trail, just lots of up and down. I definitely recommend walking sticks on this hike. The hardest section for us was just after km 4, which was the second big elevation gain. During the first uphill section, the kids were fresh and excited. But by the second one, they had already seen the two best lakes and were tired.
The last 2 km were difficult for me as parent carrying all the gear, because the trail is quite steep downhill, hard on the knees.
Trail alternatives
Shorter version: You can do a shorter version of this hike, by simply hiking to the first two lakes, about 3 km one way, then back to Pizolhütte and ride back down. That would be a wonderful hike with smaller kids that can’t do the full distance.
Even shorter: If you want to do a much shorter hike, you can do the Pizol Panorama Höhenweg, which is a short loop that also starts at the top of this lift. See my other post for details.
Getting there
Pizol is a mountain resort in eastern Switzerland near the Rhein valley. The trail is accessed from the Pizol gondola in Wangs (not the one in nearby Bad Ragaz).
By public transport:
Take a train to Sargans, Bahnhof, then a bus to Wangs, Pizolbahn. The bus drops off at the far side of the Pizolbahn parking lot, a short walk from the gondola station. The bus runs about every 30 minutes.
By car:
Get yourself to the town of Wangs, taking exit 50-Sargans off the A3, then following signs to the Pizolbahn. There is a big parking lot next to the elevator. It costs CHF 5/day. You can pay with coins or EasyPark mobile app.
Here is the parking lot and the elevator which takes you up to the Pizolbahn.
Planning your day
Tickets
For this hike, you need the 5-Lake Trail ticket, which includes gondola and chair lifts necessary for this hike.
In 2024, this ticket costs CHF 52/adult. Discount with Swiss Travel Pass, GA, SBB Half-fare and children 6-16. Free with SBB Junior card. See current prices.
They also sell “family tickets”, which includes 2 adults and all children under 17.
Operating times
The first gondola at Wangs opens at 8:15 in summer. On weekends, there’s usually already a line forming at the ticket office at 8am. So be prepared to wait.
This hike is long so it is important that you plan enough time to catch the last lift down the mountain, else you’ll have to walk down. This hike finishes at the Gaffia station, where the last ride down is 16:30. Check website for current schedule.
Sample time schedule
We were very pressed for time and had to hurry the whole way, only taking short breaks for rock skipping and lunch. We rode up at 10:30, on the trail by 11:00 and luckily made it to Gaffia by 16:15. This was too rushed for us. We were sad to not have more time to explore around the lakes. I recommend going up as early as possible so you can have time for longs breaks and some buffer in case the kids go extra slow.
Here is a rough schedule showing how far it is between each point:
Wangs to Pizolhütte lifts, about 30 mins
Pizolhütte to Wildsee 2.5 km, about 1 hour
… then to Schottensee 500 m, about 15 mins
… then to Schwarzesee 2.5 km, about 1 hour
… then to Baschalvasee 2.5 km, about 1 hour
… then to Gaffia 2 km, about 45 mins
Total walking time: 4 hours, not including breaks. This was a great pace for our kids. Usually we go at least 50% slower than the posted time. But this time, we were right on schedule.
What to bring and wear
There are no services along the trail. So bring minimum 1L of water per person and snacks to keep your energy levels up. There is a restaurant at the start and end of the trail. At the Pizolhütte, you can buy sandwiches to take on the trail.
The trail has lots of uneven terrain, so best to wear sturdy hiking shoes with good tread. I suggest bringing hiking sticks to help with your balance, particularly on the steep downhill at the end. Weather can change quickly in the mountains, so bring a fleece and windbreaker even if the weather seems clear.
Wearing shorts is ok as there aren’t sections with tall grass or bushes. If you want to jump in one of the lakes, bring a swim suit so you don’t have to hike in wet underwear the rest of the hike. We’ve seen plenty of hikers swim in their underwear or naked because they didn’t plan ahead.
In case of emergency, we suggest becoming a patron of the Rega air rescue service (CHF 40/adult, CHF 70/family) and downloading their mobile app. This allows you to easily and quickly notify Rega in event of an emergency and can cover helicopter rescue if not covered by your insurance. See Rega website for details.
Photo story of the trail
Riding up the lifts
Here is the playground at the Furt station. Save this for after the hike. The last cable car down from here is 17:30.
Riding up from Furt to Gaffia.
At Gaffia, you get off the chair lift and walk over to the next lift which will take you up to Pizolhütte.
Looking up the mountain from Gaffia station.
Starting the hike from Pizolhütte
The hut and restaurant at the top of the Pizolhütte lift. Great views from here even if you don’t feel like hiking. Last lift down from here 16:00. You can do a short easy panorama loop here if you want something easy.
Follow signs to “5 Seen Wanderung.” The first lake on the trail is Wildsee, which is 2.5 km and about 1 hour walking uphill.
The start of the hike, heading up to the grey, rocky saddle between the peaks.
Lots of switchbacks. It was crowded, so we often stepped to the side to let faster hikers pass us.
Looking up this grassy part at all the hikers above us.
Almost there.
Wildsee
The first lake: Wildsee. So pretty! We took a short break here but would have liked to explore more if we had time. It is not easy to access the water, you would have to scramble down the rocks. Better to wait for the next lake if you want to get wet.
The trail doesn’t circle the lake, but just passes by.
This trail descends to the right to the next lake. Lots of people stopped at these rocks for picnics, where you had a view back to the Wildsee and a panorama view in the other direction.
Schottensee
After leaving the rocks above, the trail heads down about 500m to the second lake: Schottensee.
Looking back up the trail to Wildsee.
The Schottensee was our favorite. We could have spent hours here, exploring and skipping rocks. We even saw a few people jumping in quickly to cool off.
Lots of people were spread along the shoreline.
The trail continues along this lake to the right. Some people headed off trail into this rocky landscape to explore. I would have loved to do if we had time.
Looking back at the Schottensee and peaks near it.
Now up and over.
Looking back toward Schottensee.
Lots of switchbacks up this hill.
The view is worth all the hard work!
Hike down to Schwarzsee
At the top of this hill, you can look over and see the Schwarzsee below.
The rocks where I took the above photo. A nice place for a break before heading down.
A short hike from the cliffs down to the lake, about 15 minutes.
Lots of room to spread out along the lake.
We had our 20 minute picnic here.
Looking back at the lake as we continue on the trail.
Back up again, this time only about 10-15 mins up before you head down for good.
The path up.
A big garden of rock towers at the top.
View from the rock garden down to the valley where the lifts are.
Wide path heading down, one of my favorite parts of the trail.
The trail skirts along these cliffs and peaks.
Baschalvasee
First view of the last lake down below, Baschalvasee. Luckily a stranger was risking their life, so I didn’t have to send one of my kids out there for this pic.
Follow signs to Gaffia and Baschalvasee. The trail heads steeply down to the last lake.
Baschalvasee, the least impressive of the lakes. It was rather muddy all around. We didn’t stop here long.
The trail heads up a bit from the last lake, just a few minutes.
Such a pretty view across the valley.
Then down, down, down to Gaffia. This was such a pretty part of the trail, but we had to hurry so much to catch the last lift down that I didn’t take many photos.
Finally down to Gaffia, where you can take the chair lift down to Furt, then the cable car to the valley. There is a restaurant here, but I doubt you’ll have time, since the last car goes down at 16:30. Better to go to Furt where the last car down is 17:30.
Wasserwald at Furt
At the bottom of the chair lift, there is a playground at the Furt station, with trampolines, swings, climbing stuff, etc. There are a couple restaurants too. The last cable car down from here is 17:30.
From the Furt middle station, it’s a two minute walk to Wasserwald, a water play area in the forest next to a river. There are a variety of water features to play with, as well as the river itself. There is also some play equipment.
There is a marble run, with marbles to purchase for 1 CHF. I recommend bringing your own.
A waterfall and sculptures.
At this station, you can pump water across the stream into the buckets, trying to fill them up.
A picnic area with a fire pit and wood.
I hope you like this hike! Leave a comment and tell me all about it.
46 responses
Thank you very much for this excellent and detailed blog. It was very reliable and useful for my trip. I did go up to wildsee only and turned back. It was wonderful. Searching for my next one in your blog. Cheers!
Hi!
Is it possible to take a 1+ year old kid up to the Pizolhutte? We can easily carry her in a child carrier and are relatively experienced hikers ourselves, and our daughter is used to long hikes in the carrier, so that’s not our concern, just if it’s possible to take her up the chairlift.
Thanks in advance!
Yes, there are no restrictions by Pizol on the child’s age. In my experience, I preferred to use a front facing soft carrier with my toddlers so they were safely attached to me while riding the chair lift.
Hello, do you recommend to do this train in the winter season with the snow?
Hi Michela, The Pizol 5 Lake Trail is closed in winter. You can see the Pizol winter trails on their website: https://pizol.com/
Thanks so much for this! Is there a mountain hut or somewhere to stay over to make this into a multi-day hike?
There is a mountain hotel near the chair lift but nothing along the trail.
Hi, first off, I love your blog.
I just finished this hike, and I politely disagree with the idea that it’s not at all dangerous or technical. Someone who is a pretty casual hiker like myself and is not used to rocky mountain terrains, or is afraid of heights, should not do this hike. There are moments where the path is 3-4 feet wide, and you’re going steeply downhill on a pebbly surface, with a 50 meter rolling hill or a sea of rocks below you. Quite scary. If you’re not surefooted, one could easily fall and possibly die at these sections. These scary sections for me start after the 2nd big lake so if you’re a less comfortable hiker or afraid of heights, do the 2 lake version. 🙂
Other notes:
-There are no water fountains along the trail but I saw many people fill up their bottles at streams. There are like 5 of them along the trail.
-If you’re still unsure about whether you’re qualified to do this hike, start as early as possible!! I started at 9:30AM and was so slow I didn’t finish till 3:30PM. And the panic and rush I felt while navigating what is in my opinion, a slightly dangerous trail, was terrible.
-I don’t think the water at the Wangs cable car station bathroom is potable.
-You can go swimming in some of the lakes but it’s ice cold.
-The views are breathtakingly beautiful!!
If I could go back in time, I wouldn’t do the full hike again, but if anything, I’m glad to to have learned my lesson about overestimating my hiking skills.
Hi Caitlyn, thanks for sharing your experience on the hike, which may be helpful for other hikers considering the Pizol hike. It is important to have different perspectives when considering any activity.
When I say that the hike is not technical, I mean that you do not need climbing equipment for the hike. However, you do need hiking experience and sufficient balance and fitness to manage the challenging terrain. I agree that there are some steep slopes and exposed areas, which a person who is uncomfortable around heights may prefer to avoid.
I would NOT advise filling up water bottles from any stream or lake. The water is certainly contaminated from bacteria from cattle and wild animals. I think 2L would be plenty for this relatively short hike and is not an unreasonable amount to carry in a backpack. I also do not suggest filling up water bottles in any bathroom in mountain huts unless it is specifically labeled as Trinkwasser. If necessary, clarify with the mountain hut staff.
I agree that you should start early. I recommend getting there as soon as the gondola opens at 8:30. Do not take any chances on not making the chair lift down.
Swimming in extremely cold water of the alpine lakes can be dangerous for some people with known or unknown heart conditions. Enter the water slowly to allow your body to adjust.
Hi, we would like to do the Pizol Five Lake trail on June 10th or 11th. Are the trails open during this time? If i understand correctly the opening is July 1st. Could you advise?
Thank you very much
Hi Ornit, I doubt the Pizol Five Lake Trail will be free of snow by June 10th. You can check the status of that trail on the Pizol website. If they say the trail is closed, it usually means that it still has snow covering parts of the trail and/or there is trail damage from winter season that has not yet been repaired. So they do not recommend hiking the trail in these conditions. Also, I don’t think the lifts will be running in early June to access that trail anyway. Probably better to hike elsewhere during that time.
Is there a bus service from Bad Ragaz to Wangs? At what time in the morning does the first gondola start ?
From Bad Ragaz village, you would take a train to Sargans, then a bus to Wangs. You can check the schedule on Sbb.ch. The first gondola from Wangs is at 8:15. You can see the schedule here: https://pizol.com/updates/operating-times FYI, the 5 lakes trail isn’t open yet.
I love your website and currently in Zurich with my son who is 10.5yr and eager to hike while my husband is here working for 3 weeks we decided to keep busy and start hiking. Can you recommend where to buy inexpensive but good hiking gear for thr both of us as we need shoes, walking sticks , jackets and pants.
We made an unexpected stopover here before heading back to Singapore .
We will start tomorrow with the 5 peaks. I’ll stop by sihlcity to buy some shoes and jackets. The weather says 4C to 8C tomorrow can this be right that is really cold??? I’ll need gloves and hats and winter coats?
We will be starting our trek probably arriving at the the first lift 11;00am since we need to stop and buy items.
Do you recommend we start at the top and go down? My son really wants to trek the full trail but I told him we might have tk cut it short due to time. What is your recommendation if he wants to go to thr top take lift ton2nd lake?
Your advice is appreciated.
Angelica
Sorry I’m late on this reply. Decathalon is the best place for affordable hiking gear. I prefer start at the top and hike down, especially because you have a bit more time to reach the finish since top lift closes at 16:00.
This is such a great blog. Thanks so much for writing it so well. It helped me plan the hike way better. A few edits/improvements though after I did the hike.
1) You mentioned the following:
Wangs to Pizolhütte lifts, about 30 mins
Pizolhütte to Wildsee 2.5 km, about 1 hour
… then to Schottensee 500 m, about 15 mins
… then to Schwarzesee 2.5 km, about 1 hour
… then to Baschalvasee 2.5 km, about 1 hour
… then to Furt 2 km, about 45 mins
The last part from Baschalvasee to Gafia is about 45 mins and not Furt. Gafia to furt is the chair lift.
2) There is no drinking water available after you start the hike till you reach Gafia. If you can mention this in the blog, it can help plan better
3) For tickets, you can buy on the ticket machines for which the line is wayyy shorter than the counter. But, for this you would need the “original” swiss pass card. Copy or app won’t work
Thanks for all the tips! So helpful. I’ll update my post accordingly.
Hi!
Thank you for sharing your experiences in such details!
My knees still hurt a bit (especially on downhills) after the Monte Tamaro+Monte Lema hike last week. 🙂
Which direction do you recommend for me to make the hike? From Gaffia to Pizolhütte with the less descent or the opposite direction? Quick help needed, I go tomorrow 😉 I’m 30+, it’s really just my knees, haha.
Thanks,
Sorry I didn’t reply earlier. Which direction did you go? If your knees hurt, best to start at Gaffia. That descent down to Gaffia in the other direction was a killer on my knees.
And I just realized you skipped the first lake – Wangser See 🙂
https://pizol.com/sommer-erleben/wandern/29/5-seen-wanderung
That makes a total trail distance of 11,4 km or 4:30 hours.
553 meters ascend and 911 meters descend.
We have always skipped that lake when we do the “5” lakes trail because it’s the other direction and would demoralize our kids having to retrace our steps and waste precious time because we are so slow. But we’ve visited that lake on other trips. It’s certainly worth a visit.
We did the 5 lake trail today and it’s good fun. The Gaffia lift is open till 16:30 and somehow we missed your recommendation to start early. It’s one of the tougher trails with 3 climbs to about 2500 meters and then a steep descend. https://hiking.waymarkedtrails.org/#route?id=1661492&map=15!46.9816!9.4109
It’s 10km but takes a good 4 hours to complete. Another option is to hike up from Gaffia and finish in Pizolhütte and some people were doing that.
Yes, very important to start early on this hike. We are always in a panic to catch that lift at Gaffia. I don’t know why they close it so early.
We did the short version yesterday (to the second lake and back) and it was absolutely stunning! Our kids (7 and 9) enjoyed most of it too. Thank you so much for all information on this hike. It was a great help. Also the other hikes on this site. I love it!
Wonderful! I love getting feedback about the shorter version. I think those two lakes are the best ones anyway.
We loved the hike as well! The lakes and views are amazing! I made a short video from the hike: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7iHq5JYew0
Such a great video! Thanks for sharing.
Hi there, love your advice, we’re newbies to Switzerland and my family and I have used your guidance on a number of hikes now – thank you for all your helpful suggestions and comments 🙂
On the Five Lakes Hike – do you end up back at your car in Wangs? It looks like on the map that you finish somewhere different?
You park in Wangs and ride a gondola and two chair lifts to the start of the hike. The hike ends at one of these chair lifts, which you ride back down (along with the gondola) back down to Wangs. Let me know if this answers your question.
Hello, Are there enough water fountains along the route?
From the map, I see there are restaurants only at Pizolhutte or Gaffia, are there any restaurants anywhere else on the 5 lake hike route?
There are no services or fountains along the route, only at the start and end of the trail. You need to bring all the water you need with you.
Thank you so much for all the info, as I said to you on Instagram. We did this hike yesterday and I am still amazed. The fare is now 23 CHF/adult. We chose to do this hike this weekend while our daughters are not here, to be sure we really enjoy it :D. Next year, maybe, we’ll see. Good to know, I noticed some people attempt this hike with regular sports shoes (like running shoes) and they were having a really hard time. I followed your advice to arrive early – we have no car at the moment so we came from ZH by train and slept not too far, and were at the gondola at 8:15 AND the weather forecast was average but there were quite a lot of people. However, I suspect it might be due to the chairlifts being closed the day before. Thank you again!
Yes, it’s a popular one for sure, any time of day. Going early was important for us mostly so we would have enough time to finish the trail before the lifts close since we walk so slowly. Glad you enjoyed it!
Hello,
Thank you for your review! We would like to do the 5 lake trail this friday and we have a car. Where is the nearest place from the beginning of the hike where we can park the car? You mentionned Wang but can’t we get closer ? Is it possible to go by car at Pizolhütte (or somewhere close) ?
No, you can’t drive up the mountain. It’s a private road only for service vehicles and those living or staying on the mountain. You have to take the gondolas and chair lifts to the top. Or hike up 😉
Hi there. I am planning to visit the region in April over the Easter bank holiday. Would the trail be open then?
This trail will definitely not be open in April, but you might be able to snowshoe up to the first lake. https://pizol.com/experience-winter/winter-hiking-snowshoeing?lang=en_GB
Also see my post about recommended hikes for Easter break here: https://swissfamilyfun.com/switzerland-easter-break/
First, when are you coming? If it’s next summer, you could add on the 7 peak hike at Flumserberg (the gondola is being replaced right now, you can still do it, but a little more complicated) https://www.schweizmobil.ch/en/hiking-in-switzerland/routes/route-0932.html I did a modified version of this with my son, adding on the alpine coaster, which is awesome. https://swissfamilyfun.com/flumserberg-4-peak-tour/ I can help you map this out if you are interested.
Another epic hike in the area is Saxer Lücke. I have the easy version here: https://swissfamilyfun.com/saxer-lucke-hike/ But if you want this hike to be a bit longer and add a stop at an alpine lake and hut for lunch, I mapped out this loop I’m planning to do soon, maybe tomorrow. https://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=tanfdkrckgfqndno
About a 30 min drive from Bad Ragaz is this hike at Flims: https://swissfamilyfun.com/flims-trutg-dil-flem/
Other ideas for two days:
in central switzerland: do the Stoos ridgeline hike: https://swissfamilyfun.com/stoos-ridgeline-hike/ and then Walenpfad https://swissfamilyfun.com/walenpfad/ The Tell Pass travel pass covers all the transport you need for these. https://www.tellpass.ch/en/information/network/
do the brienzer rothorn trail https://swissfamilyfun.com/brienzer-rothorn-ridge-trail/ then take an easier day but super gorgeous hike at Gelmersee https://swissfamilyfun.com/gelmerbahn/ you could stay in Meiringen or Brienz.
Let me know if you need more info.
Thank you!,
We have children in the same age 10~12 and reading your post helped us prepare this trail much more than we would have done without. The info where to park the warning about the closure time and take at least 7 hours to go around, awsome.
Thank you!
The DutchFamily 🙂
Wessel
So happy that I could help! We were so stressed trying to finish this trail on time. Hope you start early and have a great time!
Hi, I enjoyed your description of the 5 Lake Walk! We would like to do this hike next summer.
Can you tell me if it is well signposted all the way? Is the trail easy to follow? (We are experienced hikers and like challenging mountain hikes but prefer if the trail is not difficult to follow).
Also, do I understand the route correctly in that you can leave your car at the bottom of the cable station and end up back there at the end of the hike?
Yes, the trail is very well-marked and popular, so you’ll definitely see other people on the trail and you won’t get lost. Yes, you can leave your car at the bottom on the cable car and you return to the same place. Hope you get to do the hike, it’s a great one!
We did this one today…well the first 2 lakes (thank you for this advice). My husband has been talking about this hike and even though our kids are young we couldn't resist the UBS discount and the sunshine! It was absolutely gorgeous and I would highly recommend it. Our only issue was our 4 year old. We decided to only 2 the first two lakes because our kids are 4 and 6. Our 6 year old did fine with some incentive and our 4 year old did great, but it was really hard for her and us! 4 is a tough age – too heavy to comfortably carry and too little to hike long distance. She made it though with a few lifts from mom and dad. My recommendation is to either go when you can comfortably carry your child in a carrier or wait until they are 5 or can hike 1.5 hours uphill on loose rock and then back. It was well worth it for us…but we were a little nervous and very tired!! Thanks for the post! This trip was one of the prettiest places we have ever seen! We will wait a few years before we try the whole loop.
I loved your post! My kid is still 4, so I will wait a bit more! Thank you very much!
This is what I needed to know for the 3 year old. I’m tempted to throw her into the Deuter carrier and see if I can do the shorter 2 lakes (or 1 lake to conserve energy for that first uphill climb to lake #2). Maybe she’ll be as heavy as the gear Tanya was carrying?
It’s a tough climb up to Wildsee but a good workout. Hope you make it!