The Pilatus Kriens cable cars travel up the north side of Mt Pilatus, dropping you off at a spectacular mountain viewpoint over the Lake Lucerne region.

The lower section from Kriens-Krienseregg-Frakmuntegg is serviced by small individual gondola cars that fit 4 people. These gondolas run continuously through the day. The one way journey takes about 18 mins.

The upper section from Frakmuntegg-Pilatus Kulm is a large cable car, nicknamed "Dragon Ride." It was replaced in 2015 with a modern car with large floor-to-ceiling panorama windows. It fits 55 people. The car leaves about every 10 mins. The journey takes just under 4 minutes.

Amusements

These cable cars access various amusements.

At the Frakmuntegg station, you'll find the summer toboggan, ropes park, Dragon Glider, restaurant, and tree tents.

At the Krienseregg station, you'll find the PILU-Land playground and restaurant.

Opening times

The gondolas and cable car run mostly year round. They close for a maintenance break usually a couple days in early April and two weeks starting in late October. During this break, you can instead ride the Alpnachstad mountain train to reach Pilatus Kulm.

From mid April to mid October, the gondola runs from 8:30, last ride down 17:30. From mid November to early April, the schedule is a little shorter, starting at 9:00, last ride down at 16:30.

See Pilatus.ch for current opening times.

Tickets

You can buy round trip cable car tickets for Kriens-Pilatus on GetYourGuide (cancel up to 24h in advance for full refund).

For other types of tickets and to apply discounts, buy tickets via Pilatus.ch.

Free with Lucerne Tell Pass. Discount with Swiss Travel Pass and Swiss Half Fare Card.

If you are doing the Golden Round Trip from Lucerne, the package ticket includes the cable cars as well as the boat from Lucerne and cogwheel train on the south side of the mountain.

How to get there

The cable car starts in Kriens, just west of Lucerne city. Schlossweg 1, 6010 Kriens

By bus: The closest bus stop is Kriens, Pilatus-Bahnen, 26 min from Lucerne with one change at Kriens, Busschleife. This connection runs once an hour, so make sure to coordinate your plans carefully to avoid a long wait at the bus stop. Check bus schedule on SBB.ch.

By car: There are two small metered parking lots next to the Kriens cable car station. See on map. These lots fill up fast, especially on the weekends and school holidays.