10 Beginner Snowshoe Trails in Switzerland

Here are a few easy snowshoe trails in Switzerland I suggest for beginners. Most are within day trip distance of Zürich or Lucerne. As we snowshoe more, I’ll continue to add to this list. 

What is a snowshoe trail

Switzerland has many sign-posted snowshoe routes that are intended for people walking with snowshoes. The routes are designed for beauty and safety, marked with pink poles in the snow, so you can see where to walk even if no one has trampled the snow yet. Unlike winter hiking trails, the snow is not groomed by machines. 

If you are new to snowshoeing, see How to Snowshoe in Switzerland for Beginners. If you don’t have snowshoes, see our Winter Walks, which can be done with regular hiking shoes. 

Snowshoe trails near Zürich

1. Raten Gottschalkenberg snowshoe hike

This snowshoe trail is a good first snowshoe because it’s free (no mountain transport) and close to Zürich. It’s an easy trail, walking across fields and dipping through forests. The destination is the Gottschalkenberg restaurant and Bellevue viewpoint at the far side of the loop. We did the first half of this loop with my dad and my boys, their first time on snowshoes. You can even rent snowshoes on site for both adults and children.

Hike stats: 5km • 1hr30 • 120m up/down
Location: Oberägeri, Central Switzerland

See trail info on SchweizMobil.

2. Amden Arvenbüel snowshoe hike

Near the Arvenbüel ski hill, there are three snowshoe loops from 4 to 8 km. We have done part of the Altschen snowshoe trail in November, when there wasn’t so much snow (shown below).  It’s partially through the forest but you also walk across big fields with lovely mountain views. You can drive directly to the start of the snowshoe trail, minimizing your costs.

Hike stats: 4.8km • 1hr45 • 140m up/down
Location: Amden, Eastern Switzerland

See trail map info. 

3. Toggenburg Sellamatt Snowshoe Hike

This trail is a lovely wander through the forest with occasional views of the impressive Churfirsten mountain peaks. You ride a chair lift to access the trail, then head away from the ski resort so it’s very quiet.

Hike stats: 2 h • 5 k • 219m up/down
Location: Alt St Johann, Toggenburg, Eastern Switzerland

See details for Toggenburg Sellamatt Snowshoe Hike

4. Euthal Chlosterweid Snowshoe Hike

This was our first snowshoe hike as a family. It’s a beautiful 5.2 loop that starts just outside the Euthal village, walking along a stream, then looping uphill through the forest so you get a beautiful valley view as shown below. The uphill climb is a bit longer and tougher than other hikes on this list. But still relatively easy compared to most other Swiss snowshoe trails.

Hike stats: 2 h • 5.2 k • 200m up/down
Location: near Einsiedeln, Central Switzerland

See details for Chlosterweid Snowshoe Hike.

Snowshoe trails near Lucerne

5. Arnisee Snowshoe Trails

We like Arnisee for snowshoe beginners because it has three connected mini loops, allowing you can customize the length of your tour from 3 – 9 km. Even without snowshoes, you can walk to this beautiful frozen alpine lake and catch the views. You ride a gondola to access these snowshoe trails.

Hike stats: 2 h • 5 k • 190m up/down
Location: near Gotthard tunnel entrance, Canton Uri, Central Switzerland

See details for Arnisee Snowshoe Trail

6. Mt Rigi snowshoe trail

This trail was my first snowshoe adventure with my 70 year old dad. We started at the top at Rigi Kulm and followed the snowshoe trail down the Rigi Klösterli station, where you can catch the mountain train. The views are absolutely gorgeous and it’s fun and easy to walk downhill the whole time, making our own path. Afterwards, you can add on a sled run for more fun.

Hike stats: 1h15 • 3.2k • 430m down
Location: east of Lucerne, Central Switzerland

See details for Mt Rigi Snowshoe Hike

7. Melchsee-Frutt Blausee snowshoe hike

This easy and beautiful snowshoe trail is a good choice for families and beginners. Unlike most winter trails we’ve done, this one doesn’t have any forest, so you get wide-open mountain views the whole time. After the hike, you can enjoy a thrilling 8 km sled ride down the mountain.

Hike stats: 1.5h • 4k • 156m up/down
Location: south of Lucerne, Central Switzerland

See details for Melchsee-Frutt Snowshoe Hike

8. Bannalp snowshoe hike

This snowshoe trail is a short loop surrounded by impressive mountain peaks towering over a frozen alpine lake. It was a little tricky traversing the ski slope, but the views are definitely worth it. You can rent snowshoes at the ticket office for CHF 10.

Hike stats: 1.5h • 3k • 110m up/down
Location: south of Lucerne, Central Switzerland

See details for Bannalp Snowshoe Hike

9. Klewenalp snowshoe hike to Stollen viewpoint

This short loop has a big reward for medium effort. The views over Lake Lucerne are spectacular, especially when you reach the highest point of the hike on the cliff edge. Even though you might need to huff and puff a bit on the climb, it’s short and not really that much elevation gain. Probably don’t pick this as your first snowshoe hike. But after you have a little experience, you’ll feel pretty accomplished after doing this one.

Hike stats: 1hr15 • 3.3k • 90m up • 100m down
Location: southeast of Lucerne, Central Switzerland

See details for Klewenalp Stollen Snowshoe Hike

Elsewhere in Switzerland

10. Zermatt Gornergrat snowshoe hike

If you only do one snowshoe hike in Switzerland, this should be it. It’s easy walking all downhill and you have Matterhorn views the whole way. After the hike, you can ride back up and sled down for a little adventure. 

Hike stats: 2h • 4.5k • 28m up • 536m down
Location: Zermatt, southern Switzerland

See details for Zermatt Gornergrat Snowshoe Hike

How to pick a snowshoe trail

When you start snowshoeing, I suggest picking a trail that is rather short (3-5 km) and not too much elevation gain (under 300-400m). Even if you are used to hiking more difficult trails, snowshoeing takes a bit longer and more effort than hiking the same trail. So start with trails you would find easy as a summer trail.

Finding more snowshoe trails in Switzerland

Here are all the snowshoe trails we’ve reviewed on our site. Click on the marker for a summary and link to trail info.

The SchweizMobil website lists almost 200 official snowshoe trails, which is a good starting point in your research. FYI, many snowshoe trails on this site require a gondola to access. Schweizer Wanderwege is another good resource, but their site is a little hard to use.

In addition, look at the winter maps for ski areas, which have many more snowshoe trails than appear on the national list. For example, on the Einsiedeln map below (download PDF version), the pink dotted lines indicate snowshoe trails, while solid lines are winter walking trails.

WegWandern.ch also has a nice catalog of snowshoe trails with more details than you find on SchweizMobil (German only) and trail maps you can download. However I found that most of their suggestions were quite difficult, with a lot of elevation gain.