Exploring Lake Thun and Lake Brienz without car
A traveler named Thy is excited about their upcoming trip to Switzerland and has questions about visiting Lake Thun and Lake Brienz using public transportation, as they have a Swiss Travel Pass. They want tips on popular spots and short tours since they don’t plan to rent a car.
- Consider taking a lake cruise to Iseltwald and the Giessbach waterfall, which are accessible with the Swiss Travel Pass.
- Visit the Ballenberg Open Air Museum and enjoy a lakeside walk from Spiez to Faulensee, both reachable by public transport.
- Explore the Niesen for stunning views, but make sure to buy a round-trip ticket or be prepared for a challenging hike down.
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Hello,
Our trip is getting closer and we are so excited and have many questions. We have STP and not planning to rent a car but worried that we will miss out some great spots around lake Thun and lake Brienz. Would you please give us some tips on popular places or things to do with public transportation. And some short tours to take. Thank you.
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Hi Thy,
Glad to know you are making a lot of effort planning your itinerary. I’m sure you will have a fantastic time. There are lots of things you can see and do around Lake Brienz and Lake Thun with the Swiss Travel Pass. You definitely should go on at least one lake cruise. I can recommend the boat trip to Iseltwald and the Giessbach waterfall, and take the Brienzer Rothorn cogwheel train from Brienz.
For other things to do around Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, do check out the following links:
- Lake Brienz: http://www.myswissalps.com/lakebrienz
- Lake Thun: http://www.myswissalps.com/lakethun
Regards,
Anna
Thanks Anna.
No worries, the best spots can all (or even only) be reached by public transport. And you won’t be limited to activities that begin and end at the same location. The list of tours is endless but here are some of my favorites for good weather days:
- http://www.myswissalps.com/niesen
- http://www.myswissalps.com/hiking/niederhorn-waldegg
- http://www.myswissalps.com/brienzerrothorn
If the weather is bad then a visit to Thun and its castle is an option.
Hello. My name is Mike but I am still using Maggie’s email address.
We visited Switzerland for many years and always stayed in Thun.
Here are a few places we liked.
Ballenberg Open Air Museum is a short bus ride from Brienz railway station. They sometimes put on special events – one year we watched a lady making silk scarves ans saw the silkworms.
There is a lovely lakeside walk from Spiez to Faulensee. All boats from Thun to Interlaken call at Spiez but you will need to check the timetable to see which boats which call at Faulensee.
There are castles at Spiez, Oberhofen and Huenegg near Hilterfingen. They often have special exhibitions at Huenegg; one year it was a collection of cable car gondolas and another was chamber pots! These last two are on the No 21 bus route along the north shore of Lake Thun – bus stop outside Thun railway station.
There are caves to explore at Beatenbucht; get there by boat or bus.
Mountains at Niederhorn ( I was lucky enough to bet some pictures of ibex on the top), Stockhorn and Niessen – all these around Lake Thun.
Hope this helps.
Mike
Thank you so much for all responses.
Hello again.
I’ve been checking Maggie’s research.
You could try Kandersteg and Oeschinensee.
Interlaken’s home mountain, Harderkulm, has a good restaurant at the top and the views are good on a fine day; there is also a small animal park at the bottom near the Talstation.
In Boenigen on Lake Brienz there is a trail around the village to see some of the historic houses.
Best wishes
Mike
On a clear day, the Niesen provides some amazing 360 degree views over the Bernese Oberland, the surrounding valleys, with all of Lake Thun directly below. To get to the top of the Niesen you actually ride two funiculars. The first one starts at the bottom in Mülenen, and it takes you up to a station at Schwandegg. In this same station to get off the funi that has brought you up that far, and board another funi that will take you to the top of the Niesen (Niesen Kulm).
A word about tickets, however. The adult round-trip ticket is CHF 59. There is also what is known as a “hiking ticket”. for CHF 48, for which you ride three segments on the funiculars, and you walk the other one. You choose which segment you want to “hike. If you buy this ticket and think you will hike down the top section (Niesen Kulm to Schwandegg) you may have second thoughts once you see the trail. Unless you are in super shape, it will take you longer than the posted times. We got to Schwandegg just in time for the last funi down to Mülenen. The next day we heard that a man was behind us, did not get to Schwandegg for that last funi, and had to be rescued by a REGA helicopter. Next time I will be buying the round-trip ticket. I also plan to start a new thread about the REGA, as it is good information to have.
If I can find any of my photos of our day on the Niesen, I’ll post them separately. By the way, we don’t say “Mount Niesen”, just “the Niesen” in the same way that we don’t say “Mount Matterhorn”, but rather “the Matterhorn”. In the French part of Switzerland, we call it “le Cervin” and it’s “il Cervino” in Italy and the Tessin.
Here is a tidbit from Wikipedia: The service stairway for the Niesenbahn funicular is listed by Guinness Book of Records as the longest stairway, with 11,674 steps and a height of 1,669 m (5,476 ft). The stairs are usually employee-only, but there is a public run called “Niesenlauf” once a year. I see that it was cancelled this year, and the next one (Niesen Treppenlauf) is scheduled for Jun 10 and 11, 2022. I think I am going to give that event a pass. I attach a photo of some of the climbers on the lower section from a previous year.
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