Swiss Family Photography: Where and How to Plan It

The right place is flat, close to where you are staying, and forgiving if the plan changes at the last minute.

• Interlaken is the easiest Alpine choice: the Höhematte meadow is a five- to ten-minute walk from either station, entirely flat, with the Jungfrau as a backdrop that needs no climbing to reach.
• Lucerne keeps the old town, the Chapel Bridge and the lakefront within a level, paved walk of the station, with cafés for a break along the way.
• Zurich offers the widest lawns close to the centre at Zürichhorn, reached by tram, with a restaurant and toilets at the water’s edge.
• Geneva and Lausanne both put a large lakeside park within a short walk or a direct metro ride of downtown, so a pram never has to leave the pavement.
• Lugano gives a flat, Mediterranean-feeling park with free entry and shade for hot afternoons.

Avoid anywhere that needs a lift change, a long uphill walk or a narrow, crowded street with a family under about eight. Save those settings for a couple session and keep the family shoot to ground everyone can cover without effort.

Couples plan around sunset; families plan around the children. The best hour is the one your child is usually happiest in, and for most families with young children that is mid-morning or the hour after an afternoon nap, not golden hour.

A 9.00 start has two advantages beyond mood: popular places are still quiet, and the light is soft without being flat. An evening session in midsummer, when the sun does not set until after 21.00 in the lowlands, can run past a toddler’s bedtime before the light is even right, so it suits families with older children better.

Build in slack. A ten-minute buffer at the start absorbs a late nap or a slow walk from the car, and a short break halfway through, with a snack, resets a tired toddler better than pushing on. The photographer plans for this by shooting the posed group photo early, while everyone is fresh, and leaving unposed play for later in the session.

Three generations together change the plan in a few practical ways.

Choose a place with level paths and benches, not stairs or gravel slopes; the Arboretum-style lakeside parks in Zurich, Geneva and Lausanne all work well, as does the flat Höhematte in Interlaken. Mention any mobility needs when you request, so the route is planned around them rather than discovered on the day.

Plan for 90 minutes rather than 60. The photographer takes the full group photo first, while everyone is fresh and dressed as intended, then works down to smaller combinations: grandparents with grandchildren, each set of parents and children, and finally the couple alone if they would like a few photos together too.

Seating matters more than scenery. A bench or a low wall lets an older relative be included comfortably rather than standing through the whole session, and it often produces a more natural group photo than everyone lined up on their feet.

Families living in Switzerland and families visiting book the same kind of session for different reasons, and the timing follows from that.

Residents often book a yearly portrait, a session to mark a new baby, a move, or simply because there has not been a good family photo in a while. Because there is no travel involved, the date is flexible and the same place can be revisited across the years, which many families do deliberately to track how children have grown against the same backdrop.

Visiting families usually place the session in the middle of a Swiss stay, not on the arrival or departure day, so that everyone is rested and not watching the clock for a train or flight. If your trip includes more than one base, choose the stop where you have the most free time rather than the most famous view.

Either way, a family session pairs naturally with other stages: many residents book a maternity session before a birth and return to the same place afterwards, and milestone birthdays are often combined with a family portrait on the same afternoon. For longer trips that mix family time with a couple’s own photos, vacation photography covers both in one booking.

Every figure below is a starting price. The exact amount depends on the photographer, place, date, duration and group size, and is stated in your proposal before you book.

What moves the figure

• A larger or multi-generation group
• A longer session, typically for groups of eight or more
• Weekend or school-holiday dates
• A second location the same day
• Travel to an Alpine base

There are usually no third-party costs for the places on this page beyond ordinary public transport, and children under six travel free when accompanied. See pricing and the article on what a photographer costs in Switzerland for the wider picture.