Guide · Timetable

Lake Lucerne cruise timetable through the year

The Lake Lucerne cruise timetable is not one table but four, one for each season, and a few boats run only in summer. Here is how the year is divided, what sails in winter, and where to check the departure you need.

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Editorial team, lucerneboattrip.comUpdated October 19, 20266 minutes to read15 sources

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In short

01Right now: SGV's winter timetable runs from 19 October 2026 to 16 April 2027.¹
02Catamaran in winter: Hourly from 09:07 to 19:07, until 22:07 on Fridays and Saturdays.²
03Catamaran in summer: In summer 2027 every hour from 08:07 to 23:07.³
04Full lake: The Grand Lake Cruise has one winter departure at 10:12 and hourly summer departures.⁴
05Always check: The spring, summer and autumn 2027 timetables are still drafts.¹

Four timetables in one year

SGV, the company that runs the public boats on the lake, splits its year into seasons, and each season has its own set of departures. The winter timetable runs from 19 October 2026 to 16 April 2027; after it come a spring timetable from 17 April to 21 May 2027, a summer timetable from 22 May to 5 September 2027 and an autumn timetable from 6 September to 17 October 2027.¹

The later timetables are marked as drafts on SGV's page, which is normal well ahead of the season.¹ Treat any departure time you read now for next summer as a guide, and confirm it in the week of your trip. The same page also flags special timetables for single days, such as a shooting festival on the Rütli on 4 November 2026.¹

For planning, the useful question is not the exact minute but the pattern. Some services run all year at a steady rhythm, others thin out in winter, and a few close completely between autumn and spring. Knowing which is which tells you whether you need to plan around a single boat or can simply turn up at the pier.

The boating year

SGV's seasons, from one autumn to the next

19 Oct to 16 Apr

Winter timetable

Catamaran hourly, one Grand Lake Cruise a day.¹ ⁴
17 Apr to 21 May

Spring timetable

Catamaran hourly from 09:07 to 22:07, in draft.³
22 May to 5 Sep

Summer timetable

Catamaran hourly from 08:07 to 23:07, in draft.³
6 Sep to 17 Oct

Autumn timetable

Catamaran hourly from 09:07 to 22:07, in draft.³
15 May to 15 Sep

Legends on the Gallia

Storytelling and a 5-course menu in 2027.⁵

Boats that sail every day of the year

The steadiest service on the lake is the catamaran to the Bürgenstock. SGV runs the motor vessel Bürgenstock hourly between Lucerne and Kehrsiten-Bürgenstock on 365 days a year, and the crossing takes around 30 minutes each way.⁶ It leaves from pier 3, in front of the KKL, the same pier where this site's catamaran round trip boards.⁷

SGV's short catamaran cruise also keeps a regular beat. In winter 2026, from 19 October to 23 December, it leaves every hour from 09:07 to 19:07, and on Fridays and Saturdays until 22:07.² Luzern Tourismus lists the Kehrsiten boat from pier 3 with the same hours for the whole winter timetable to 16 April 2027.⁷

This site's catamaran listing works the same way at booking: you pick a starting time from those available, ride for 1 hour and return to pier 3. Because SGV's catamaran sails at a regular rhythm, there is usually a starting time that fits your day. That makes the catamaran the easiest boat to fit around a rainy morning or a late breakfast.

Month by month

Daylight and rain in Lucerne

Hours without sunDays with precipitationSeason

For each month: hours without sun at mid-month, and days on which at least 1 mm of rain or snow falls. MeteoSwiss, Lucerne, 1991 to 2020.¹²

Season by season

What sails when

Service	Winter 2026/27	Summer 2027
Catamaran cruise	09:07 to 19:07, hourly	08:07 to 23:07, hourly
Grand Lake Cruise	10:12 only	09:12 to 14:12, hourly
Bürgenstock boat	Hourly, every day	Hourly, every day
Boat to Alpnachstad	Not running	Check the timetable

From SGV's timetable pages and Pilatus-Bahnen, read 19 October 2026; summer 2027 is still a draft.² ³ ⁴ ⁶ ⁸ ¹

Three seasons on the lake

Summer, winter or the months between

Most departures

Summer

22 May to 5 September

Catamaran: 08:07 to 23:07
To Flüelen: Hourly 09:12 to 14:12
July high: 24.9 °C

See the boats

Mild and green

Spring and autumn

17 April to 21 May, 6 September to 17 October

Catamaran: 09:07 to 22:07
April high: 15.3 °C
October high: 14.3 °C

See the boats

Quiet lake

Winter

19 October to 16 April

Catamaran: 09:07 to 19:07
To Flüelen: 10:12 only
January high: 4.1 °C

See the boats

Decision helper

When should you go out on the lake?

Pick the wish closest to yours

I want the most choice I want to sail the whole lake I travel in winter I want Pilatus by boat I want a historic steamer in winter

Summer

Catamaran from 08:07 to 23:07 in summer 2027.³

Summer

The cruise to Flüelen runs hourly from 09:12 to 14:12.⁴

The catamaran

It leaves every hour from 09:07 in winter 2026.²

May to mid-October

In 2026 the Alpnachstad boat stopped on 18 October.⁸

The Uri

The only steamer SGV rates for winter.⁹

The motor vessel Bürgenstock provides an hourly connection between Lucerne and Kehrsiten-Bürgenstock, offering a fast and comfortable journey across Lake Lucerne 365 days a year.

Lake Lucerne Navigation Company (SGV)Source 6

A Lake Lucerne cruise in summer

A Lake Lucerne cruise in summer has the widest choice of the year. In the summer 2027 timetable SGV's catamaran cruise leaves every hour from 08:07 to 23:07, and in spring and autumn from 09:07 to 22:07.³ The Grand Lake Cruise to Flüelen and back, which takes 5 h 30 min from pier 1, has hourly departures from 09:12 to 14:12 in summer 2027.⁴ ¹⁰

Summer is also when the special trips return. SGV's Legends of Lake Lucerne experience on the steamboat Gallia, with storytelling and a 5-course menu, comes back from 15 May to 15 September 2027.⁵ The car ferry between Beckenried and Gersau, run by its own operator, sails from 26 March to 10 October in its 2027 timetable.¹¹

Long days help too. Lucerne has 15.9 hours of daylight in mid-June, against 8.5 hours in mid-December.¹² Evening departures in summer give you light on the mountains well after dinner, while in winter the last boats run in the dark. On a long June evening, a late catamaran can be the calmest hour of the day.

Checklist

Before you plan around a departure

Check

Which season's timetable covers your date
The last boat back, before the first one out
The pier number for your line

Bring

A warm layer, even in summer on the deck
Your pass or booking confirmation
Sunglasses for the glare off the water

Cost calculator

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Lake Lucerne Boat Trip, from Lucerne to Flüelen

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A Lake Lucerne cruise in winter

A Lake Lucerne cruise in winter is quieter and shorter, but very possible. The Grand Lake Cruise to Flüelen keeps one departure in the 2026/27 winter timetable, at 10:12.⁴ Among the paddle steamers, SGV rates only the Uri for winter operation, and it has an enclosed panorama restaurant on its upper deck.⁹

Some connections stop altogether. Pilatus-Bahnen says the boat from Lucerne to Alpnachstad ran only until 18 October in 2026, while its cogwheel railway runs until 29 November.⁸ From 19 October to 27 November 2026 the Pilatus gondolas and cableway are closed for maintenance, leaving the cogwheel railway as the only way up.¹³

Dress for it. Lucerne's average daily high in January is 4.1 °C and the low is -1.5 °C.¹² The open deck can be cold and gray, but the saloons are warm, the light on snowy peaks can be beautiful, and SGV's winter day pass is cheaper, at CHF 53.00 in 2nd class from 1 November to 31 March.¹⁴ A thermos of tea and gloves turn a cold crossing into a pleasure.

How to read a departure and plan around it

Start with the pier, not the clock. In Lucerne, boats to Weggis, Vitznau, Brunnen and Flüelen leave from pier 1, boats to Alpnachstad from pier 2, and boats to Küssnacht and the Bürgenstock from pier 3.¹⁵ Once you know the line, its departures are easy to follow on SGV's page for the current season.

Then build the day backwards from the last boat home. A mountain trip that relies on a boat at both ends needs the return departure checked first; a lunch cruise has a fixed boarding time, which on the first-class lunch cruise was 11:45 for a 12:00 start in both the 2025/26 winter and the 2026 summer. A one-hour round trip, by contrast, fits wherever you have a free hour. Write the key times down before you set out, so a quick look settles any doubt at the pier.

If you are searching for the Lake Lucerne cruise timetable as a PDF, use it with care. A printed table from an earlier season can be wrong by whole weeks, since the season dates move every year. Take the season from this page, then read the departures on SGV's own timetable page for those dates, and recheck on the morning you travel.

Weather, light and the best months for a cruise

Boats sail in most weather, and the timetable does not change because of a cloudy day. What changes is the view. Lucerne's wettest months are June to August, each with around 13 to 14 days of at least 1 mm of rain, while February has 9 such days.¹² Rain on the lake rarely lasts all day, and a break in the clouds over Pilatus is worth waiting for.

Temperatures are mild in the shoulder months. The average daily high reaches 15.3 °C in April and 14.3 °C in October, comfortable for the deck with a jacket.¹² July is the warmest month, with an average daily high of 24.9 °C.¹²

May, June and September combine long days with a full timetable, and they are mild enough to sit outside with a jacket. In winter, pick a clear, cold day for the short catamaran loop and enjoy the snow on the peaks around the bay. Whatever the month, check the forecast for wind, keep a warm layer in your bag, and plan a café or museum nearby in case the clouds sit low on the mountains all afternoon.

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