"Special treat: a palace-style hotel with spectacular views, 66 enormous rooms, and outstanding bathrooms. Doubles from 295SF/ £195, room only. (0041 (0) 41 419 0000 CHK; hotel-montana.ch)"
The 16th-century Wilden Mann (0041 (0) 41 210 1666; wilden-mann.ch) has a warren of 50 rooms, a superb Old Town location, a wood-beamed restaurant and warm, quirky décor. Doubles from SF270/ £180 B&B.
Have an aperitif on the Rathausquai, next to River Reuss, followed by dinner upstairs at the Hotel Schiff (0041 (0) 41 418 5252; hotel-schiff-luzern.ch; mains from SF23.50/£16).
Contemplate its Spreuer Bridge's picture series – painted in 1636 and preserved with egg yolk – depicting the 'dance of death': can you spot two skeletons in each scene?
Follow Bruggligasse to the Musegg wall. Walk along, relishing the views and perhaps climbing a watchtower.
Head via Löwenplatz to the Alpineum Cafe (Denkmalstrasse 11). Have a coffee (SF3.80/£2.50), then see the 19th-century diorama of painted Alpine landscapes in the adjoining Alpineum museum (SF5/£3.50).
It’s time for a swim and the best free 'beach' is the Ufschötti, with lawns and ice cream stalls, south of the KKL.
Book a table at the Scala Terrace at Hotel Montana. The southern European cuisine (mains from £20/SF30) and the sensational view over mountains, lake and city make this the place for an occasion.
Explore the beautiful Old Town squares – Kornmarkt, Hirschenplatz, Weinmarkt – where painted facades depict themes from beer-brewing to medicine.
For a quieter base, stay in Weggis, a half-hour steamer ride away from Lucerne. (SF16 single/ £11). Hotel Graziella (doubles from SF210/£140 B&B) has a rooftop spa, garden with pier, and free bicycles
