4.5 days in the Jungfrau region in summer
A traveler named Will W is planning a trip to Switzerland with his wife in about a month, focusing on the Jungfrau region for 4.5 days. They are looking for advice on their itinerary and whether their planned activities fit into the time they have, as well as which town would be a better home base between Grindelwald, Wengen, or Lauterbrunnen.
- Consider staying in Wengen for a quieter, charming experience with easy access to hiking and trains.
- Make sure to utilize the Jungfrau Region Pass to maximize your travel and explore the area efficiently.
- Check out the boat trip to Geissbach Falls, which offers easy hiking back along the lake and spectacular views.
- Use the SBB timetable to plan your transport effectively and ensure you don’t miss out on scenic routes.
AI-generated summary-
First and foremost, I want to thank everyone for the great info on this site. As a first-time traveler to Switzerland, I’m learning so much on here about how things work and where to go.
We’ll be there in about a month. My wife and I have decided to explore the Jungfrau region on this trip. We have about 4.5 days total. I wanted to get some thoughts on what we have outlined so far on our itinerary and whether that’s too little/too much. We’re trying to get the most out of the Jungfrau Region Pass. We’re also deciding which town might be best as a home base. We’re currently booked in Grindelwald, but upon our initial planning, Wengen or Lauterbrunnen might make sense.
Our itinerary is as follows:
Day 1-
Arrive in area, mid-afternoon, explore Lauterbrunnen and walk to Staubbach Falls. Travel half an hour to Wengen and explore the town.
Day 2-
Take the Panoramic hike from Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg. Do the detour with the Mannlichen Playground and Royal Walk Outlook. Roughly 2.5 hours total. Stop for lunch. Take the Eigergletscher and hike the Eiger Trail toward Grindelwald, about 3 hours total.
Day 3-
Schynige Platte Panorama Trail from Interlaken. Stop at Hotel Schynige Platte to see the alphorn players, for a total time of about 3 hours. Take the train to Interlaken and do a boat tour on either Thun or Brienz. Take the train back to Interlaken and leave via Harder Klum funicular.
Day 4-
Head to Murren via the Allmendhuble funicular. Explore Murren for 2-3 hours. Walk the Northface loop trail and possible stop at Spurtz Waterfall for a total of 2.5 hours. Possibly add on cable car to Gimelwald. Take bus to Trummelbach Falls and walk the falls for an hour.
Day 5-
Head to Grindelwald. Take Gondola from Grindelwald to First. Hike an hour to Bachalpsee lake and picnic. Hike an hour back down and prepare to leave Switzerland mid-afternoon.
We would like to work in other recommended stops too, but want to make sure we have enough time to take everything in. We’re in reasonable shape, but not experienced hikers. As a note, we’ve decided against doing the Top of Europe and Schilthorn this trip.
Any thoughts or suggestions would greatly be appreciated!
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Hi Will W,
Welcome to MySwissAlps.
It’s great to know you are visiting Switzeland and thank you for sharing your itinerary with us. I personally think your itinerary covers all the must-see destinations in the Jungfrau region during your 4.5 days stay. I like that it’s not rushed and you have certainly allocate enough times for your hikes and boat trips.
For more ideas and tips from fellow travellers, you can search our trip reports here: http://www.myswissalps.com/forum/tripreports
Just a quick tip. You can use the SBB timetable to plan your journeys: http://www.myswissalps.com/timetable
And if you are looking for accommodation in Wengen or Lauterbrunnen, you can use the following links:
- Lauterbrunnen: http://www.myswissalps.com/lauterbrunnen/hotels
- Wengen: http://www.myswissalps.com/wengen/hotels
Safe travels and regards,
Anna
Thanks a million, Anna. A couple more dumb questions –
1. Will we need insect (mosquito) repellent anywhere?
2. In your opinion, is the paragliding a “must do”?
We always stay in Wengen at the Hotel Alpenrose. They have a great meal every kni9ght. Also you can hike right from the hotel to a lighted trail at night. We did see a big green harmless snake at night once. If you have a car, you can prepay your parking for the train covered lot which allows you to exit and enter many times. If you are going to Schynige Platte remember the train is very slow and it is not worth it if it is foggy. I would suggest the boat trip to the Falls and then walking back along the lake part way. Stay in Wengen, Grindelwald is way too busy if you like peace and quiet.
Hi Will W,
First, paragliding – it depends on you. If you have ever tried it and liked it then sure, do it, it will be wonderful. If you are afraid of height – no way, stay away 🙂 I’ve never tried it so far, but my husband does it often and he says it is amazing. We always see many paragliders in the area, they are usually landing in Interlaken. Here you’ll find some recommended clubs, where you can try a tandem: http://www.myswissalps.com/jungfrauregion/activities.
Regarding the insects – I am living more than 3 years ago in Switzerland and this is the first year that I’ve met mosquitos but also very rarely. Read these too: http://www.myswissalps.com/forum/topic/are-insects-a-problem-around-the-lakes-in-summer and http://www.myswissalps.com/forum/topic/are-there-biting-insects-in-spring-in-switzerland.
Ildiko
Hi Rgoppelt,
How timely! That was one of the hotels we were considering. Thank you for the endorsement and your many insights.
The boat to the falls sounds wonderful. We didn’t see that online anywhere during our research. Are you able to provide a little more detail, or a start/end point? Any further information you could provide would definitely be appreciated.
Hi Ildiko,
Appreciate the information. My wife is a little afraid of heights, so we’ll take your advisement under consideration. Though, the act of paragliding in Switzerland seems so idyllic and, frankly, awesome.
Great to hear that mosquitos aren’t usually a problem. We’ll continue looking around this site and follow the links you provided. Thank you.
Take the train to Interlaken, get on the boat that takes you to Geissbach falls. When you stop there is a small funicaular, costs 10 ch to go the top and then you can walk to the falls. They are right there. If you want you can walk along the lake shore all the way back or part way back and then catch a boat or bus back to Interlaken. There is also a famous antique hotel that has a swimming pool at the base of the falls. We have never stayed there but the owners of the Alpenrose Hotel stayed there for a honeymoon suite. You might consider that as a romantic place to stay but it is off the beaten track. If you take the boat ride the other way, you can visit a nice cave . That is a good rainy day activity.
Hi there,
Rgoppelt, I think this is the “famous antique hotel” at the Geissbach falls: https://www.hotelscombined.com/Hotel/Grandhotel_Giessbach.htm. Right?
Will W, have a look at this hiking route too: http://www.myswissalps.com/hiking/giessbach-iseltwald
Ildiko
Hi You are correct/.The hotel from the small entrance is amazing. We stopped there for apple strudel but often wished we had stayed there. We did take that hiking trail which is an easy walk in the woods. There is also a high hiking trail behind the falls which we never did but it may be more exciting if you are a good hiker. If you do not walk all the way back, try to time your hike so you can meet the bus or the boat. When we took the hike we waited about an hour for the bus back because we did not walk all the way back. Rnjoy. We are planning on going there soon and can’t wiat to sit down, eat apple strudel, have some Fendant wine, and admire the glaciers on the mountain. Switzerland is the greatest place in the world.
Hi Will W,
I think your itinerary sounds great.
I agree with Rgoppelt, in that you may want to consider staying in Wengen. Just my humble opinion, mind you, but It’s a beautiful and charming little village with no cars. (As is Murren.) From the many threads I’ve read on this forum, it is also a lot less congested and commercial than Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen, and It is fairly central to many of the places you want to explore. Its only about a 13 min. train ride down to Lauterbrunnen (with a fabulous view of the valley on the way down, sitting on the left side of the train). The cable car up to Mannlichen is right outside many of the hotels, no more than a ten min. walk from the aforementioned Alpenrose hotel. You can get to Grindelwald via cable cars and not even take a train, (once you’re up on Mannlichen). And once you’re in Lauterbrunnen, you can go anywhere from there. The ride to Wilderswill (from which you switch trains to Schynige Platte) isn’t more than 15-20 min. from Lauterbrunnen.
On day 4, you’re going to Murren “via the Almonhubbel funicular”…That funicular is in Murren. Perhaps you may want to consider the hike to Murren via the high alpine hike (not sure the name of it) from the Grutschalp. That will take you to up to the Almonhubbel, and you can take the funicular down to Murren from there. I haven’t done this particular hike, but have read about here on the Forum (fairly recently). Perhaps others can chime in about this hike. I had done the hike from Grutschalp to Murren via Winteregg. That is beautiful, with the big three mountains in full view the whole walk/hike.
It sounds like you may be going to Harder Kulm later in the day. If so, try to stay up there for the sunset. I did that and even though somewhat cloudy, it was a beautiful sunset between the clouds.
As far as para gliding goes, I had not done it but saw many, many folks doing it, especially from Murren and over Interlaken. My sister did it about 20 yrs ago in Zermatt and absolutely loved it. Said she’d do it again in a heartbeat.
I hope you have a great trip.
Danielsan
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