The composer Felix Mendelssohn wrote: «If you haven’t seen the Interlaken contryside, you haven’t seen Switzerland.» The fashionable holiday resort with village character and a spacious park nestles between Lakes Thun and Brienz at an altitude of 570 metres above sea level and boasts a fantastic view of the Jungfrau Massif. The “Höheweg“, a 700-metre-long boulevard, is Interlaken’s promenade wooeing passers-by with windows of exclusive boutiques, watch and jewellery shops and luxurious hotels.

The most famous hotel along the Höheweg is without any doubt the Victoria-Jungfrau Grand Hotel & Spa. The beautiful view of the Jungfrau and the extravagant spaciousness of the appropriately furnished rooms are a reminder of the heyday of the «Belle Epoque».

Summer

Trains to the Jungfrau region in the direction of Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen with connections to the railways to Mürren and from there to the Schilthorn as well as via the Kleine Scheidegg to the Jungfraujoch depart from the Interlaken Ost railway station. A fleet of ships, including one historic paddle-steamer on each lake, cruises on Lakes Thun and Brienz. Interlaken is located on the «Golden Pass» panorama route from Montreux on Lake Geneva past the luxury holiday resort of Gstaad to Interlaken and from there across the Brünig Pass to Lucerne.

Just ten kilometres away from Interlaken, on a sunny south-facing slope, lies Beatenberg-Niederhorn, a paradise for paragliders. For hikers there is an extensive network of hiking routes. The Niederhorn also provides a habitat for ibexes, chamois and marmots.

Winter

In winter visitors benefit from the central location of Interlaken and the associated opportunity to every day pick their favourite among the ski regions of the Jungfrau Top Ski Region (Mürren/Schilthorn, Kleine Scheidegg/Männlichen and First) or the family-oriented ski region of Beatenberg. Over 45 mountain railways, aerial cableways, chair and ski lifts take athletes to 200 kilometres of pistes. Cross-country skiers and toboggan riders also are well catered for in the vicinity. And there are over 220 kilometres of winter walking trails in Interlaken, Beatenberg, Habkern, Wilderswil and the Jungfrau region.

Highlights

• Schynige Platte near Wilderswil – nostalgic rack-railway, fascinating view of Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau, Alpine garden with about 500 plant species and a lot of hiking possibilities.
• Jungfraujoch and Schilthorn – the rides by rack-railway to the highest railway station in Europe and the cableway to the Piz Glora revolving restaurant: two top mountain experiences in the Bernese Oberland.
• Harder Kulm – a cableway takes passengers up to Interlaken’s „house mountain“ which affords a view of the health resort and the whole Jungfrau region. The Alpine wild animal park near the valley station is an experience for children.
• Heimwehfluh – a nostalgia funicular provides transport to the vantage terrace with a restaurant, all-weather toboggan run, model railway display and large playground.
• Jungfrau Tourism Museum in Unterseen – the regional tourism museum shows 200 years of tourism in the Jungfrau region.
• St. Beatus Caves – one kilometre of lit limestone caves with stalagmites, impressive halls and waterfalls accessible by boat, car, bus or on foot on the historic pilgrims way.

Top Events

• Greenfield Festival – over 40 international and Swiss bands bring three days of open-air festival atmosphere to the airport area of Interlaken (June).
• Interlaken Classics
• Jungfrau Music Festival
• Internat. Trucker- & Country-Festival
• International Jungfrau Marathon – about 3500 runners complete the 42-kilometre-long race at an altitude of 1823 metres above sea level (September).
• Tell Open-air Theatre – amateur acters have been performing the heroic epos «Willhelm Tell» by Friedrich Schiller on a natural stage near Interlaken for almost 100 years now (June-September).

How to get there

Public Transport:

Direct trains every hour from the largest Swiss airports as well from all major Swiss cities to Interlaken West and Interlaken Ost.

• from Zürich HB 1 hour 45 min., Zürich Airport 2 hours
• from Geneva 3 hours
• from Basel 2 hours
• from Lucerne on the Panorama route of the Brünigbahn (Brünig train), via Brünig Pass along Lake Brienz to Interlaken Ost, 2 hours. 15 min.

By car:

• from Basel, Zürich or Geneva on the Autobahn via Bern to Interlaken, exits Interlaken West and Interlaken Ost
• from Luzern via Brünig Pass and along Lake Brienz to Interlaken

Other/Air:

Zürich Airport / all major airlines
Train: Distance 198 km / driving time 2 hours 25 min.
Road: Distance175 km / driving time 2 hours 15 min.

Geneva Cointrin / all major airlines
Train: Distance 226 km / driving time 2 hours 40 min.
Road: Distance 186 km / driving time 2 hours 30 min.

Highlights
* Jungfraujoch – snow and ice are guaranteed on the «Top of Europe» at 3454 m, the ultimate excursion destination in the Bernese Oberland.
* Eiger north face – one of the most spectacular and difficult faces to climb in the world; successfully climbed for the first time in 1938.

* Eiger Trail – mountain tour imparting an ‘Alpinist’ feel: starting from the Eiger glacier station, the route sticks closely to the rock along the foot of the Eiger north face and leads down to Alpiglen.
* Gletscherschlucht (Glacier Gorge) – at the village end of Grindelwald lies the wildly romantic, thunderous glacier gorge with its glacial mills and striations as well as the pink and green marble blocks, through which a path leads over man-made footbridges and through rock galleries and tunnels.
* First (2168 m) – over 100 km of hiking trails as well as 50 km of ski pistes and a toboggan run can be found on the south-facing, not overly steep First slope.
* Männlichen (2229 m) – gentle walking and winter sports terrain with a link to the nearby Kleine Scheidegg and with the perfect panorama across the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau.
* Pfingstegg – at 1391m is the lookout post of Grindelwald and offers a unique vista across the valley floor.

Top Events

* World Snow Festival – during the course of a week, Swiss and international teams of artists hew and construct figures and sculptures from metre-high snow blocks that have been provided (January).
* “Velogemel” World Championship – every year a world championship on snow bikes takes place in Grindelwald, a speciality to Grindelwald (February).
* Snowpenair – Snow Openair, always held at the end of the winter season on the Kleine Scheidegg (March).
* Landart Festival – short-lived works of art are placed on the landscape using natural, local materials (June).
* Spring Mountain Festival – held annually on the Männlichen near Berghaus, with dances in traditional costumes, folk music and flag throwers (June/July).

How to get there
Public Transport: Direct trains run daily from numerous European cities to Interlaken. From here, direct connections take you in 35 minutes to Grindelwald. Daily train connections from neighboring countries to Interlaken.
By car: National roads (Autobahnen) lead from Basel, Geneva or Zürich via Bern to Spiez. From here, well constructed national and cantonal roads lead via Interlaken to Grindelwald.
Other/Air: The international airports Zürich-Kloten, Geneva-Cointrin and Basel Mulhouse have direct train connections to Interlaken – Grindelwald. Bern-Belp Airport is connected to the rail system via airport taxis.

Thanks to its magnificent vista and the glacier which once reached right into the basin, Grindelwald attracted its first guests – primarily the English – from the end of the 18th century onwards. The actual breakthrough of Alpinism occurred in the mid 19th century, and local mountain guides climbed the peaks of the region with English tourists. The first ascent of the Eiger, the most difficult of Alpine mountains took place in 1858 (the north face only in 1938).

Road and railway construction made Grindelwald much more accessible towards the end of the 19th century, which in turn also heralded the onset of winter tourism. The first cableway in the Alps was built here in 1908 on the Wetterhorn. And in 1912, a railway reached the Jungfraujoch via Kleine Scheidegg; today the «Top of Europe» still remains Europe’s highest railway station and a world-renowned excursion destination within permanent snow and ice.

Summer
There are 300 km of walking trails around Grindelwald. The high-altitude walk from Grindelwald-First along the Bachalpsee to the Faulhorn mountain hotel and then on to the Schynige Platte ranks among the most beautiful hikes of the region. An easy walk with fantastic views of the three, world-famous mountains of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau leads from the Männlichen up onto the Kleine Scheidegg.

Winter

The two ski regions of First and Kleine Scheidegg – Männlichen – Wengen offer 160 kilometres of pistes with around 30 lifts reaching up to an altitude of 2500 m. The Schilthorn near Mürren, also part of the Jungfrau region ski arena, even reaches 2971 metres. But the most spectacular piste of the region is without doubt the Lauberhorn piste near Wengen, popularised by the World Cup circus.

Choose from 80 kilometres of winter walking trails with views across seven four-thousand-metre peaks and majestic glaciers, as well as 60 km of toboggan runs, including, at 15 km, one of the longest toboggan runs in the Alps from the Faulhorn into the valley. Naturally Grindelwald also has many further winter sports on offer.

This does mean, however, that you’re much more likely to hear British English in the lift queues and restaurants than Swiss German, and it also means that the prices can be kept high without massive investment in the infrastructure – beware horrendous queues for the morning gondola and unmanned, unprepared drag lifts.

Having said that, the queues once you’re up are not too bad, and there’s plenty of artificial snow being pumped in the early season. And the views of the Wetterhorn and Eiger in the afternoon sun are quite special.

First is a wonderful place to go hiking in Summer. You can choose different kinds of hiking routes. The most easy one is from First to Bachalpsee. It takes about 45 minutes one way and you can see the perfect invert image of Jungfrau from Bachalpsee.

Getting there

By train, Grindelwald is reached in around half an hour from Interlaken Ost, and then from the station you’ll have either a walk or a shuttle bus to the lifts. The “Snow and Rail” tickets from the SBB include, as always, return train travel and a day’s lift pass.

From Zurich by train, you need to change in Bern and Interlaken, with a total time of around 2h50m, plus a walk or a shuttle bus to the lifts, making it a bit far (and pricey) for a day trip.
By car from Zurich, it’s a long but scenic run through Luzern and over the Brünig pass to Interlaken, and then up the Grindelwald valley, taking around 2 hours. Parking is a bit problematic in the centre of Grindelwald, you might have to use the park-and-ride car parks outside the centre.

It has a panorama, which spans from the Titlis, Jungfrau, Mönch, Eiger, over the Bernese Alps and the Jura mountains up to the Vosges Mountains and the Black Forest. Mont Blanc is also just visible.

To get to the Schilthorn from the valley floor either of a series of cable cars must be taken. The cable cars begin in Stechelberg leaving to Gimmelwald and then onto Mürren. From Mürren another cable car is taken to Birg, which is the final change before the Schilthorn. The other way up is to take the cable car from Lauterbrunnen to Grütschalp and a train to Muerren, from where the cable car must be taken.

There is a panoramic revolving restaurant, named Piz Gloria, at the summit, which is where the James Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service was set. A famous black ski run featured in the film starts at the summit and leads down to the Engetal below Birg. The restaurant revolves a full 360 degrees in 55 minutes.

During the summer the Inferno Triathlon finishs at the summit after a run up from the Lauterbrunnen valley.
Mürren sits high above the Lauterbrunnen valley and together with the neighbouring resorts of Grindelwald First and Männlichen / Kleine Scheidegg forms part of the Jungfrau region. The main attractions here are the height of the Schilthorn (almost 3000m) and the panoramas of the neighbouring mountains – the calendar-perfect trio of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau, the Männlichen and Schynige Platte ridges, the Lauterbrunnen valley and the Breithorn and Gspaltenhorn.

As with Grindelwald and Wengen, the english-speaking contingent is noticeable, with many of the pubs and bars being run by Brits.

Getting there

There are two ways up to the Mürren area, firstly you can take the bus from Lauterbrunnen up the valley to Stechelberg and from there the pair of cable cars up to Mürren. This is a fast way to gain height, as it connects straight to the cable car up to Birg. An alternative is taking the cable car up from Lauterbrunnen (directly opposite the station) to Grütschalp and from there the train along the shoulder of the valley to Winteregg where you can join the chairlifts.

From Zurich by train, it takes around 3h15 to Lauterbrunnen with changes at Bern and Interlaken. The “Snow and Rail” ticket from Zurich (with a halbtax card) is currently a hefty CHF 92 for a single day or CHF 141 for 2 days (not including accommodation, of course). The two-day pass is valid for the other Jungfrau areas too, so it’s possible to ski one day at Mürren and one day at Wengen / Männlichen, for example.
By car from Zurich, it’s a long but scenic run through Luzern and over the Brünig pass to Interlaken, and then up the valley to Lauterbrunnen where you can park right by the train station. There is also parking at Stechelberg by the cable car station.

Trümmelbach Waterfalls

With its ten galcier water falls inside the mountain, made accessible by tunnel lift, the Trümmelbach waterfalls are truly unique in Europe. Trümmelbach alone drains the enormous galcial walls of the Eiger (3970m), Moench (4099m) and Jungfrau (4158m) with up to a spectacular 20,000 litres of water per second. This stems from a catchment area of 24 square kilometres of which approximately half is covered with snow and ice. The Trümmelbach falls are open daily from the beginning of April the the beginning of November between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and from July to August between 8.30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

To get to Trümmelbach Falls by car from Berne/Basel/Zurich/Geneva, take freeway N6 or take N8 if you are coming from Lucerne/Zurich. Near Interlaken, take the Wilderswil exit and continue driving toward Wilderswil and Lauterbrunnen. About 3 km after passing through Lauterbrunnen you will arrive at Trümmelbach Falls.

If you are going to Trümmelbach Falls by train, go via Interlaken (SBB/BLS/Brünigbahn) toward Lauterbrunnen (BOB). A bus will take you from there to the Trümmelbach Falls bus stop.

The Trümmelbach Glacier Waterfalls are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily from the beginning of April to the beginning of November and from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. in July and August.

Entrance fee:
Adults    CHF 11,-
Children    CHF 4,-
Special prices available on request for groups of 10 or more

Trümmelbach Falls
CH-3824 Trümmelbach/Stechelberg
Phone      033 – 855 32 32
Fax     033 – 855 32 33

Staubbach Falls

People were fascinated by the 300 m high Staubbach Falls as early as the Middle Ages. The milky-white waters thundering down over dark green rocks have inspired painters, poets and travel writers over the centuries. Goethe wrote a poem based on his 1779 visit, making the lake famous in the late 18th Century.
When Goethe visited the Lauterbrunnen valley in 1779 he made the waterfall famous by dedicating his “Gesang der Geister über den Wassern” (“Song of the Spirits over the Waters”) to it: “The soul of man is like water. It comes from heaven and rises again to heaven, it ascends to heaven and falls again to earth, eternally alternating. The pure stream flows from the high, steep rock face, falls softly in cloud-waves onto the smooth rock and, gently accepted, rolls and ripples into the abyss.”

Location:
The spectacular waterfalls are within a few minutes walking distance of the village.

How to get there:
By train: from Interlaken Ost to Lauterbrunnen
By car: Highway exit Interlaken, direction Wilderswil-Lauterbrunnen

Opening hours:
All year round

Description

* From the western mouth flows the Great Aletschfirn, which runs along the northern foot of the Aletschhorn and Dreieckhorn. The Aletschfirn is supplied from the north by three notable firns: the Ebnefluhfirn, the Gletscherhornfirn, and the Kranzberfirn. All of these Firns have their starting points at around 3800 m. From the Ebnefluhfirns to the Konkordiaplatz, the Aletschfirn is 9 km long and is on average about 1.5 km wide. From the west, the Aletschfirn flows over the 3173 m high Gletscherpass, the “Lötschenlücke”, connecting with the Langgletscher, and then into the Lötschental valley.

* From the northwestern mouth flows the Jungfraufirn. This firn in fact represents the straight continuation of the Aletsch Glacier, yet is the shortest of the three tributary glaciers. It has its origin on the southern flank of the Mönch, at the Jungfraujoch and at the eastern flank of the Jungfrau. Up to the Konkordiaplatz, the Jungfraufirn is a scarce 7 km long, and returns to flank the Kranzberg in the west and the Trugberg in the east. At its highest point, it is 2 km wide, and further down it is still a good 1 km wide.

* From the northern mouth flows the Ewigschneefeld (Eternal snow field), where its starting point takes the east flank of the Mönchs. In an elbow, it flanks from Trugberg in the west and the Fiescherhorn and Grünhorn in the east, flowing on to the Konkordiaplatz. Up to here, it is about 8 km long and averages about 1.2 km wide. The mouth at the Konkordplatz it follows over a rise with a descent from 25 to 30 percent; here, the glacier is sharply split. Against the north is the Ewigschneefeld over the snow-covered pass of the Lower Mönchsjochs (3529 m high), connected with the catchment area of the Lower Grindelwald glacier. Through the Higher Mönchsjoch (3627 m high) between the Mönch and the Trugberg stands a connection to the Jungfraufirn.

Also at the mouth of the Konkordiaplatz from the east is the small but important Grüneggfirn (3 km long and averaging 600 m wide). This firn is connected in the over the glacier pass Grünhornlücke (3280 m high) to the Fiescher Glacier in the east.

From the Konkordiaplatz, the Aletsch Glacier has a width of approximately 1.5 km and moves at a rate of 180 m per year to the southeast on course with the Rhône valley, bordering the Dreieckhorn in the west and the great Wannenhorn in the east. It then takes a great right turn and bends ever closer to the southwest, running through the edge of the Eggishorn and Bettmerhorn of the Rhone valley. The lowest part of the great Aletsch Glacier is largely covered with detritus of the lateral and medial moraines. The glacier’s toe currently lies about 1560 m high, far beneath the local tree line. From it springs the Massa stream, which flows though the Massa Canyon and is used to generate hydroelectric power. It continues through the upper half of the Brig, eventually entering into the Rhone.

The great Aletsch Glacier shows considerable ice cover. At the Konkordiaplatz, it has an ice cover of more than 900 m, but as it moves to the south, the greater part of the ice melts, gradually decreasing the cover to around 150 m.

The characteristically dark medial moraine, situated almost in the middle of the glacier, runs protracted in two bands from the Konkordiaplatz along the whole length to the glacier’s toe-zone. This medial moraine is collected from the ice of three large ice fields, which all run together. The westernmost medial moraine has been named the Kranzbergmoräne, and the easternmost carries the name Trugbergmoräne.

On August 18th, 2007, photographer Spencer Tunick used hundreds of naked people in a “living sculpture” on the Aletsch Glacier in a photo shoot intended to draw attention to global warming and the shrinking of the world’s glaciers. The temperature was about 10 °C at the time of the photo shoot. The 600 participants on the shrinking glacier volunteered for Tunick (a collaboration with Greenpeace) to let the world know about the effects of global warming on the melting Swiss glaciers. The Aletsch Glacier receded by 100 m (330 ft) between 2005 and 2006.

The Jungfrau (German: “maiden/virgin”) is the highest peak of a mountain massif of the same name, located in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss Alps, overlooking Wengen. The other two peaks are the Eiger (3,970 m) with its famous north face, and the Mönch (4,099 m).

The summit of the mountain was first reached in 1811 by the Meyer brothers of Aarau. Once difficult to access, the Jungfraubahn cog railway now runs inside the mountain, up to the Jungfraujoch railway station at 3,454 m (11,332 ft), the highest in Europe.

The train into the mountain leaves from Kleine Scheidegg, which can be reached by trains from Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen. The train enters the tunnel running eastward through the Eiger shortly after leaving Kleine Scheidegg.

It runs close behind the Eiger’s north face, stopping at Eigerwand, where there is a window about 8 m long and a metre high, halfway up the face. The windows have been placed in holes used to remove excavated rock from the tunnel during construction, and are also occasionally used as access points to rescue climbers. This window was used for one of the final scenes of a Clint Eastwood spy movie the The Eiger Sanction. There one can get off the train to admire the view before the train continues five minutes later. The tunnel then turns west, heading towards the Jungfrau. There is a second stop at a window looking out on the Eismeer (“Sea of Ice”) before the train continues to the Jungfraujoch. The tunnel was constructed between 1898 and 1912; it is about 7 km (4 mi) long, with gradients of up to 25%. The journey from Kleine Scheidegg to Jungfraujoch takes approximately 50 minutes including the stops at Eigerwand and Eismeer; the downhill return journey taking only 35 minutes.

A large complex of tunnels and buildings has been constructed at the Jungfraujoch, mostly into the south side of the Mönch. There is a hotel, two restaurants, an observatory, a research station, a small cinema, a ski school, and the “Ice Palace”, a collection of elaborate ice sculptures. Another tunnel leads outside to a flat, snow-covered area, where one can walk around and look down to the Konkordiaplatz and the Aletsch Glacier, as well as the surrounding mountains.

At 3454 m a.s.l., the Jungfraujoch is arguably the highest train station in all of Europe. Snow and ice are guaranteed but so is a good time: The Sphinx Terrace with its fantastic view onto the Aletsch Glacier, the Ice Palace and the Walking Plateau for walks in eternal snow are attractions that are open year round.

Kleine Scheidegg – Eiger North Face

At the foot of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau mountains with a top-tier view of the Eiger North Face, the Kleine Scheidegg is a meeting point for mountain climbers and hikers from everywhere in the world.

Schynige Platte – Paradise of Nature

The Schynige Platte is a classic among alpine excursions. With its nostalgic cogwheel train, interesting and well-groomed hiking trails and a botanical Alpine garden, it offers something for everybody.

Grindelwald – First

A brief 20-minute aerial cable-car brings passengers from Grindelwald to the First.

From here, you can admire the alpine peaks and set out on hikes on the 100 km long trail network.

Schilthorn – Piz Gloria

There is no better place to fully appreciate the breathtaking beauty of the Swiss Alps than from the summit of the 3000 m high Schilthorn, which you reach in 20 minutes by cable car from Mürren. Just imagine yourself comfortably installed in our revolving restaurant, and enjoy more than 200 mountain peaks slowly passing in front of your window.

Swiss Pass, Swiss Flexi Pass and Swiss Youth Pass holders: ride free till Grindelwald, Wengen and Mürren. From there, enjoy a 50% discount to the Kleine Scheidegg, the Schynige Platte, the Schilthorn and to the First. On the route between Kleine Scheidegg and Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe you get a 25% discount. Swiss Card holders: enjoy a 50% discount on all the routes of the railways and cable cars of the Jungfrau region. No seat reservations possible for individual passengers.

Routes:
Interlaken East – Lauterbrunnen/Grindelwald – Kleine Scheidegg – Jungfraujoch
Wilderswil – Schynige Platte
Grindelwald – First
Lauterbrunnen – Mürren – Schilthorn