When visiting a new city like Lucerne as a tourist, you often wonder how safe it is. After all, petty crime is everywhere, and walking alone at night can feel daunting.
Switzerland is one of the safest places in the world, and Lucerne is no exception. But that is not to say there is zero crime.
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Petty Crime In Lucerne
I stayed in Lucerne for a week recently and had no issues with petty crime like pickpocketing. However, such crimes in the busy streets of downtown Lucerne are to be expected.
It is easy to pickpocket someone’s wallet in a crowd, and if you have walked across the bridge from the train station in Lucerne, you will know how busy it can get in summer. It is filled with tourists and locals and is often difficult to navigate.
Three foreign pickpocketers were apprehended in September, having just stolen one guy’s wallet at Schwanenplatz, which is right near this bridge. So, this illustrates the point:
Make your valuables difficult to steal when moving through crowds in Lucerne. Don’t have your wallet in your back pocket or your backpack open.
This is not to say you will get robbed in Lucerne, but it can happen. So, be cautious in crowds and avoid being one of the statistics.
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Is It Safe At Night?
We walked around Lucerne a number of times heading out to dinner from a nearby suburb and never felt unsafe. We even passed by the crowds around the train stations, which is often where I have found people “hang out and drink” in many cities, and did not notice any issues.
To us, Lucerne was a very safe place to walk around in at night.
However, if you are alone late at night, then try to stay on well-lit streets and avoid dark parks or deserted streets. It is rare for their to be a problem in Switzerland or Lucerne specifically, but you never know.
