Stanserhorn-Bahn — Attraction in Stans

This review is mainly about the funicular. The experience was very disappointing due to the lack of organization and professionalism. Despite an ongoing event, better planning was expected since reservations were required. Unfortunately, the funicular was overbooked, leaving insufficient space for all guests. Upon reaching Stanserhorn, we were informed that no return times were available, and there was no option to reserve a return trip online. Fortunately, we managed to secure a late return time.

An employee suggested we walk down the mountain to catch the funicular at a lower point, claiming it would be faster. This walk turned out to be a 2.5-hour trek with a 6,000 ft. descent, an unreasonable recommendation given their poor organization.

When we finally reached the funicular, the conductor showed clear favoritism towards a German-speaking group that arrived simultaneously. They were allowed to queue next to the funicular while we were brusquely told, "No, next one. Next one," despite being the only other people there. I understand that the guests arriving from the cable car were first priority, but we also had a reservation and would’ve taken the cable car if it weren’t for the extremely late return time. Exhausted from our six-mile walk, we attempted to queue again with the same group and were once more rudely directed to wait for the next funicular despite being told we would be able to get on.

This miscommunication and bias were particularly frustrating as my father's Parkinson's was acting up after the long walk. Despite our obvious need for empathy and accessibility, we were treated poorly, while the German-speaking group faced no such issues and did things we were scolded for attempting. As it turned out, there was room for us so we were able to make it on. However, the experience with the worker left a bad taste.

Additionally, there was no regard for health and safety when other tourists were rushing in to both the cable car and funicular. There was no order, further exacerbating the chaos and making the experience even more stressful.

Stanserhorn is beautiful, if only the employees made it a better...

Stansenhorn Cabrio cable car used to be one of our family's favourite place for weekend trips and to showcase the beauty of Swiss nature to friends and family members from abroad.

Last visit in August turned out to be a major dissapointment.

We bought tickets with a reservation for a specific time. Irrespectively of the reservation, we spent 45 minutes waiting for a train - with a 1 year child on my hands, a pregnant wife standing besides me and a group of friends having a very poor 1st impression of Swiss service.

The most frustrating part for everyone around us was that coaches bringing groups of tourists were given absolute(!) priority, resulting in situations when none of the public queue had a seat left, and had to wait for another train round.

When queried, smiling local personnel informed us that the groups "had a program", being entirely ignorant of any existing agenda dozens of people around us had.

Upon further waiting, we managed to get up with a 1 hour delay and an exhausted child.

To secure a timeslot for our return journey, we stopped at the appropriate stand right after the ascent, but only managed to get slots for 3 hour later.

When trying to return earlier, another employee informed us of the impossibility of such a step, as the cable cars were booked by tourist groups (see above), with no seats left.

Upon further discussion, kindly asking them to consider our group's needs, we managed to get on board.

Overall, very disappointing experience, a definite deterioration of excellent quality from the past and our last visit.

1 star for the view, 1 star for a...

The Stanserhorn is only 15-20 minutes south of Lucerne and is easily accessible by public transport (train or boat, there is also a large car park with parking for 5CHF for 5 hours). Tickets can be bought online or at the ticket station. Wary about queues I bought them online which was a very simple process. There is discussion of needing a timed boarding card (which is extra) which I'm still not sure whether it was necessary (although the price of this is redeemable at the shop or restaurant).

When we arrived the queues were not bad at all, even though it was a beautiful clear day. You board an old wooden funicular for the first leg of the journey. This is very slow moving and passes through beautiful Swiss countryside including cows with the typical Swiss bells. Then on to the double decker cable car, with a open air viewing platform at the top. The cable cars were very spacious and even though I was a little nervous the ride was so smooth. If you have any anxiety about going up, please don't as the cable car barely moves. It also is weighted so you never feel like you are tipping forward.

At the top, the views are incredible, especially on a clear day. There are many walks and a restaurant (food is reasonably priced but drinks are very expensive). If you are worried about the weather being bad, there is a webcam which you can check on their website.

We went in June when the temperatures were over 30 on the ground and no more than a t shirt was needed at the top, but be sure to bring extra layers...