Guest contributor Margaret Doherty gives us some tips on the best Lucerne attractions and  five free things to do in Lucerne, following her visit to this Swiss city.

The Chapel Bridge and Water Tower Lucerne

I’ve only been in Lucerne a few hours and it’s all getting a bit surreal. I’m getting my bearings among the medieval lanes and cobbled squares, admiring the painted facades of the hotels and hostelries and starting to feel the layers of history embedded in the very fabric of the buildings when I catch a glimpse of a small troop of brightly-clad Swiss Guards armed with pikes marching across a distant bridge. In an instant they are gone, my imagination clearly going into overdrive, especially as I’m sure I hear the sound of horses hooves clattering on the cobbles in the narrow streets nearby. Then, as I turn the corner I run into what looks like an army of extras from The Three Musketeers, all dark blue and white uniforms topped with dashing wide-brimmed hats with huge white feathers. It turns out that I’ve arrived in the middle of festivities for Corpus Christi when the fraternity of the Herrgottskanoniere, ‘the gunners of god’, praise god with canon fire on the eve and on the day of Corpus Christi. The Lucerne Marching Band (they of the blue outfits) accompanies the fraternity from the Kornmarkt to the Chateau Gütsch where this celebration takes place.

Lucerne Marching Band

With its taste for pageantry, fantastic mountain scenery and ability to keep well-heeled travellers happy, Lucerne has long been a magnet for those drawn by its stunning location in the shadow of Mount Pilatus. From humble origins as a fishing village, its strategic location between the Swiss Plateau and the Alps in the centre of Switzerland and the opening of the Gotthard Pass around 1220 led to its inevitable growth. By its nineteeth century heyday when steamboats traversed Lake Lucerne and luxury hotels like the Schweizerhof were built on its shores, Richard Wagner, Mark Twain and Leo Tolstoy were among its famous visitors. Wagner liked it so much that he stayed at the Schweizerhof Hotel for six months before moving to a large house overlooking the lake at Tribschen. Today you can visit the elegant house where he spent six happy years and where his son Siegfried was born. Wagner was famously inspired by the Swiss Alps, taking to the glaciers and mighty peaks with little more than everyday boots, a straw hat and boundless energy, even incorporating the sounds alpine instruments in his work.

Lakeside sculpture in Lucerne

If you don’t have Wagner’s energy or the weather is uncertain, Lucerne has plenty to keep you occupied. For the casual stroller all the city’s main sights are within walking distance. The wooden Chapel Bridge which spans the River Reuss and was built in the fourteenth century and once part of the city’s defences, was nearly destroyed by fire in 1993. A large part of the bridge and many of the paintings under the eaves were lost but sensitive restoration has ensured it remains one of Lucerne’s most iconic images. The octagonal Water Tower was also part of the city’s defences and over time has served as an archive, a treasury and a prison. Ten minutes away the Dying Lion Monument dedicated to to the Swiss mercenaries lost while defending Louis XVI at the Tuileries in 1792 draws big crowds. Created by Danish sculptor Thorwaldsen it sits high above a small pool and is hewn directly from the rock and was described by Mark Twain as ‘the saddest and most moving piece of rock in the world’.

The Dying Lion, Lucerne

In the nineteenth century the panorama was a popular entertainment in a time before cinema, especially in a region blessed with astounding views. You can find a history of its development as well as one of the remaining examples at the Bourbaki Panorama The original 16-sided building, now contained within a much more modern cube, houses a wonderfully atmospheric 10m high circular painting by Edouard Castres depicting the the internment of the defeated Bourbaki Army in Switzerland during the Franco-Prussian war. Castres’ experience as a Red Cross volunteer during the 1870-71 conflict enabled him to convey with great insight the desperate condition of the stricken French forces, refugees, German POWs and Red Cross volunteers that found relief at the hands of the Swiss during that dreadful winter. An english commentary and and a three-dimensional sculpted foreground really draws you in to the work and, though the sun shone outside, I felt the bitter chill of winter in my bones.

For an eclectic trawl through Swiss history the Museum of History is a treasure trove of pieces both ancient and relatively modern. A bar code guide enables you to get information on any object on your handset or follow specific themes as diverse as the Roman era, Foreign Visitors in Lucerne or Lust. There’s everything from a fabulously carved racing sleigh (1684), a guillotine built in 1863 but last used in 1940 to carnival costumes and archaeological finds. Among my favourites was the 15th century Milanese painted shield bearing the arms of the Sanseverino family with the latin inscription ‘live well and have fun’. Good advice for any traveller.

If you fancy a spot of evening entertainment the Lucerne Theatre  established in 1839 offers a programme which includes opera and dance in its intimate 555-seater auditorium and is in the heart of the city.

Five Free things to do in Lucerne

1 Take a stroll along the lakeside. The walk along the lakeside towards the Lido is lined with parks, cafes and plenty of benches where you can sit and watch the world go by and see the snow-capped mountains in the distance. You might even catch a free concert at the bandstand.

2 Check out the local landmarks. Both the Chapel Bridge and the Dying Lion Monument are free to visit.

3  Climb one of the Musegg Wall’s towers for spectacular views of the city and mountains beyond. You can also walk along a section of the 800m long city walls which were built in 1400 and are among the longest and best preserved city rampart walls in Switzerland. You might even see a llama. No, really.

Musegg Wall, Lucerne

4 Have a quiet moment in one of the city’s many churches. Built in 1666 the Jesuit Church is one of Switzerland’s finest baroque churches with its distinctive onion domes a later addition. The interior is finely decorated in white, clotted cream and salmon pink colours and beautiful ceiling paintings. The simple Protestant church where Wagner married his second wife Cosima is tucked behind the Schweizerhof Hotel while the imposing Renaissance Hof Church with its twin towers was built on the site of a Benedictine monastery founded in the 8th century and is the city’s main cathedral.

5 Soak up the atmosphere in the bustling markets. The Saturday flea market that meanders along Burgerstrasse, Reusssteg and Reussplatz must be one of the most picturesque locations to peruse the stalls of treasure and tat. For the best seasonal local produce from white aspargus to plump radishes and as well as meats, cheeses and a fish market there’s a market every Tuesday and Saturday morning along the Reuss river from the Chapel Bridge.

Saturday Food & Flower Market, Lucerne

Where to stay

For a bit of 5* luxury the Schweizerhof Hotel was built in 1845 and has been owned by the same family since 1861. Now run by the fifth generation it is in a prime, central spot on the lake and close to the station.
Or, if you fancy something a little more quirky and luxury-lite (no phone or TV in the rooms), you could stay in the Jailhotel Lowengrabe. Yep, it’s a former prison, built in 1862 and in use until 1998, mainly for those on remand or those who refused compulsory military service, opening as a hotel in 1999.

General information about Lucerne

For information on the Lucerne Card which offers discounts and free local transport and other information such as city tours, boat trips and day excursions go to the official Lucerne site.

Here are Margaret’s other Europe a la Carte guest posts on Switzerland:

The Bernese Oberland

Best Basel Attractions

Free Geneva