Navigation on Lake Lucerne

A boat trip is fun as well as beautiful. Enjoy the fresh lake air on an outing on Lake Lucerne. You'll be fascinated by the scenery, the attractions of inland navigation and the historical places dotted along the shoreline.

Combine your walk with a boat trip. Enjoy a late-night cruise through the mild summer evening or a trip out to admire the city of Lucerne all lit up in Advent.

A trip aboard one of the five historic paddle steamers or 15 elegant saloon motor vessels is one of the highlights of the region. Dating from the Jugendstil era, the paddle steamers sail between Lucerne and Flüelen through some fabulous natural scenery. The meals served up by the galley double the pleasure of the on-board experience.

You can sail to numerous destinations, mountain railways and aerial cableways that are right by the lake, such as the Rigi, Pilatus, Bürgenstock and Seelisberg. The boat is also perfect for lots of other excursions. And in winter you can take the boat directly to the lower termini of the Klewenalp and Rigi ski resorts.

The German name of the lake has its origins in the four historical “forest cantons” that surround Lake Lucerne: Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden and Lucerne. The oath sworn in 1291 on the Rütli meadow by Lake Lucerne laid the foundations for the Swiss Confederation. For a long time, the lake was the most important transport axis in the region. Until 1863 it was the only means of accessing the Gotthard mountain pass if you had goods to transport.