[OzBen]

15 June 2026 at 13:31:15 #2797337

Hi everyone,
I’m putting together a few different day-trip itineraries from Bern to the Jungfrau region for mid-December (13–16 December) so that we have some flexibility depending on weather and crowd levels.

Because daylight hours are quite short at that time of year, and I’m trying to fit a fair bit into each itinerary, I’m concerned that some of the scenic railways and cable car descents may end up being too late in the day to actually be able to see anything.

I understand that sunset doesn’t mean it immediately becomes dark, but I imagine that due to surrounding mountains and valley walls, some routes may lose useful daylight well before official sunset.

What I’m hoping to understand is: for the routes below, what is roughly the latest departure time that would still allow us to enjoy the scenery reasonably well? In other words, when would you consider it “too late” because it’s too dark to see outside?

I’m not particularly concerned about the train journeys from Grindelwald or Lauterbrunnen back to Interlaken/Bern. If those are in darkness, that’s fine. I’m mainly interested in the final scenic descents from the mountain areas.

The routes I’m considering are:

Grindelwald side

• Jungfraujoch → Grindelwald Terminal via the Eiger Express
• Jungfraujoch → Grindelwald via the Wengernalp Railway (WAB)

Lauterbrunnen side

• Kleine Scheidegg → Lauterbrunnen on the WAB
• Mürren → Lauterbrunnen via Grütschalp (train and cable car)
• Mürren → Stechelberg on the Schilthornbahn and then the Bus to Lauterbrunnen.

For anyone familiar with these routes in December, I’d appreciate any guidance on the latest practical departure times for still having decent views.

Thanks!

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[Anna]

Reply 1 of 5 • 15 June 2026 at 21:55:17 #2797345

Hi OzBen,

Welcome to MySwissAlps!

In mid December, sunset in the Jungfrau region is typically around 4:30 to 5:00 PM. If you want to catch the sunset on Kleine Scheidegg, I’d recommend leaving the summit at 3:00 – 3:30 PM so you won’t feel rushed.

Please check the timetable to plan your journey!

Jungfraujoch: https://www.myswissalps.com/activity/jungfraujoch/#dates

Regards,
Anna

[OzBen]

Reply 2 of 5 • 15 June 2026 at 23:57:47 #2797347

Thanks Anna,

To add a bit more detail I should have had in my original post, I’m iterating over different versions of a Grindelwald day (with a visit to Grindelwald First and Jungfraujoch) and a Lauterbrunnen day (with visits to Kleine Scheidegg, Murren, Schilthorn, Birg), each with different timing of various sites/activities. So just to clarify, I wasn’t (necessarily) wanting to catch the sunset at Kleine Scheidegg, my query was more about how late can I leave on each of those different final “sightseeing” legs so that it won’t be in darkness.

On the Grindelwald day, if for example I left Jungfraujoch at 3:15pm, got to the Eigergletscher station at ~3:41pm, jumped on the Eiger Express at ~3:50pm would there still be sufficient light on the gondola ride to Grinedelwald terminal to actually see “stuff” rather than be staring out into darkness? And if that’s the case, does that mean that I could push back the Jungfraujoch departure to a later time (3:45/4:15/4:45) and still have the final gondola ride with some daylight?

Similarly, on the Lauterbrunnen day I’ve got different “final” legs that I’d like to do with some daylight – eg KS to Lauterbrunnen, Murren-Grustschalp-Lauterbrunnen, Birg-Schilthorn. I assume being at lower elevations the daylight picture changes a bit, so maybe the latest you could leave those options would vary?

 

[Roger Sexton]

Reply 3 of 5 • 16 June 2026 at 6:16:31 #2797348

Hello Ozben

In the last 25 years I have taken a number of very enjoyable mid-winter holidays in Switzerland, most recently in December 2025.  I base myself in Zurich, except on one occasion when I based myself in Bern.   I go out on day excursions.

My practical experience is that it ‘gets dark’ between 4 30 and 5 pm.   In planning my day trips, I therefore have an approximate target of trying to finish all the really scenic bits by 4 30 pm, or just after.

Very best wishes in planning your trip
Roger

[Anna]

Reply 4 of 5 • 16 June 2026 at 10:22:04 #2797353

Hi OzBen,

To avoid travelling in the dark, I would try to complete all the excursions before 4 PM.  Also, take into consideration that in winter, mountain transportation usually shuts down for the day early so always check the timetable.

For the trip to Jungfraujoch, please note that the journey from Grindelwald Terminal to the summit takes about 1 hour. Meanwhile, from Jungfraujoch to Lauterbrunnen via Kleine Scheidegg, it takes roughly 1 hour 40 mins. So plan your ascent/descent accordingly.

Regards,
Anna

[OzBen]

Reply 5 of 5 • 17 June 2026 at 2:12:24 #2797368

Thanks Roger, that’s really helpful info. I also found a couple of Männlichen webcams at https://www.maennlichen.ch/en/live.html which have full day archives for a couple of years so I went and checked December 13-20 2025 that aligns with what you’ve said.

And yes Anna, I had been looking at the different departure times for each route and working back from a fixed deadline at Grindelwald or Lauterbrunnen to decide where everything fits before that. The sunset/darkness timing was about working out what that fixed deadline time would be.

Cheers