Most of what you do on Mount Pilatus is free once you are up there: the peaks, the Dragon Path, Dragon World. Whichever Mount Pilatus guided tours you choose, plan your time at the top around three short climbs, a meal, and the middle station on the way down.
The summit station sits in a saddle between rock peaks, and each has its own path. Start with the one that fits your time. The times below are the railway company's, and the peaks are signed from the terrace.
The striking summit peak, about 10 minutes by the railway's timing. It is the quickest view from the top, and the one to do first if cloud is building.
About 30 minutes, by the same timing. The railway calls it probably the best viewpoint on the mountain, with the whole panorama open from the top.
The highest point, about 2,128 metres, at the end of the flower trail. Allow about 1 hour 30 minutes. The trail is open from June to October.
A circular walk through the rock from the end of the Panorama Gallery, with views out over the valleys. It takes about 20 minutes, and it is free.
Displays on the dragon legends of the mountain, free, and about 20 minutes. Pick up the free booklet of legends at the hotel reception.
The centrepiece of the summit hotel, from 1890, named after the queen who came up about 20 years before it was built. It seats 120.
The Tomlishorn is also where the guided barbecue hike goes, so if you book that day you walk it with a guide. In winter, parts of the Dragon Path can be closed, and the flower trail is shut.
Two hotels stand side by side at the top, and both run restaurants open to day visitors. Hotel Pilatus-Kulm is the four-star house, opened in 1890, a year after the railway. It has 27 superior doubles and 3 junior suites, from CHF 420 a night. Its restaurant has three dining rooms and a sun terrace, and you cannot book a terrace table.
The Bellevue was the first hotel on the mountain. Its present building, from the 1960s, has a self-service restaurant and standard doubles from CHF 320. You cannot drive to either hotel: you park in the valley and ride up. A night at the top gives you the sunset and the early morning without the day crowds. Read a night on Mount Pilatus for the rooms and the evening up there.
The summit restaurant keeps seasonal hours. In 2026 it opens daily from 11:30 until 24 October, closes earlier until 29 November, and from 30 November it opens Wednesday to Sunday.
Fräkmüntegg is the middle station on the Kriens side, where you change from the gondola to the Dragon Ride. Its summer activities are the reason families stop here. From Kriens it is about half an hour by gondola, and you can break your journey there on any ticket.
| At Fräkmüntegg | Season | Age or rule | Price in 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fräkigaudi toboggan run, 1,350 metres | April to October, in good weather | Operated by Wastra GmbH | Set by the operator |
| Pilatus Rope Park, 10 courses | 25 April to 18 October | From 8, at least 120 cm | CHF 30 adult, CHF 22 child |
| Dragon Glider, 500 metres | 25 April to 18 October | Under 6 with an adult | CHF 8 adult, CHF 6 child |
| Wipfelpfad treetop path | 25 April to 18 October | Twelve platforms | Free |
| Pilu Rope Park | Beside the rope park | From 4 | See pilatus.ch |
The Fräkigaudi is the longest summer toboggan run in Switzerland, and it runs only in good weather. The rope park, the glider and the treetop path share one season, and the rope park and the glider may close without notice in strong wind, rain or thunderstorms. Lift tickets are not included in any of them. You buy entry to the rope park on the spot, and a self-service restaurant and the Drachenalp barbecue area sit next to it.
The small-group day from Lucerne stops about an hour at Fräkmüntegg and gives you two hours on the summit before the cogwheel down.
Krienseregg is the first stop above Kriens, and it suits a family morning. There is a restaurant serving pasta and pinsa next to the PILU-Land playground, with fireplaces and firewood nearby. The Dragon Moor path, a gentle circuit through a protected moor, takes about 1 hour 30 minutes and is open all year.
From Krienseregg an easy path climbs through the forest to Fräkmüntegg, open all year. If your children like a challenge, the railway's Dragonchallenge trail runs from here to the top in about 3 hours.
From 30 November only the Kriens side runs, and the mountain turns to snow play. With enough snow, two sledging runs lead from Fräkmüntegg to Krienseregg: a red one of 3 km and an easy blue one of 4.8 km. Three marked snowshoe trails loop between the same two stations.
You hire sledges and snowshoes at the Kriens valley station. A full day's sledge costs from CHF 13, and snowshoes with poles CHF 20. The dates and the snow depths that open each run are on the seasonal schedule.
Use this to plan your time at the top. The guided half-days from Lucerne give you 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours up there, which is enough for the Oberhaupt, the Dragon Path and lunch.
| What | Time to allow |
|---|---|
| The Oberhaupt, there and back | About 10 minutes |
| The Dragon Path | About 20 minutes |
| Dragon World | About 20 minutes |
| The Esel, there and back | About 30 minutes |
| The flower trail to the Tomlishorn | About 1 hour 30 minutes |
| The rope park | Up to 3 hours |
| A ride on the Dragon Glider | About 2 minutes |
| Hiking up from Kriens or Alpnachstad | About 5 hours |
There are no fireplaces on the summit, so plan a barbecue for Fräkmüntegg or Krienseregg.
Hiking up takes about 5 hours from Kriens or Alpnachstad, and the railway recommends summit hikes only from mid-June, once the snow has gone. Lower paths around Fräkmüntegg can open earlier. The paths are graded T1 to T3, and none suits a pushchair.
You can hike one way and ride the other: a one-way ticket from either valley costs CHF 42. Bring good shoes, a waterproof and plenty of water, as the railway advises. Each route is walked through step by step in Mount Pilatus hikes.
An easy guided hike from the summit to the mountain's highest point, then a Swiss barbecue lunch, meat or vegetarian. The bus and cable car tickets are in the fare.
From $154 per person
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A return up and down one side: the cogwheel from Alpnachstad, or the gondola and cableway from Kriens. Your own pace, no guide.
From $101 per person
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Two mountains in one day with your own guide: about four hours on Pilatus, then a boat to Vitznau and up Rigi. Meets under the arch at Lucerne station.
From $974 per person
Check AvailabilityNext: plan your day on the visitor guide, check the weather on the weather page, or compare every tour on Mount Pilatus Tours.