Hi, what is the best way to get to Lake Bachalpsee from Grindelwald.It is said to take the Gondola to First and hike up to Lake Bachalpsee. However, is it possible to hike up straight to the Lake Bachalpsee? and how long does it take?
From Lake Bachalpsee is it possible to hike down to Grindelwald? What is the best route?
Thanks.
Available now: Swiss Travel Pass Promo 2025!
➤ Get 1 or 2 travel days for free if you travel between October 2025 and March 2026. See how it works
You will note that the climb from Grindelwald to First is about 1100 meters. Pretty steep.
I am not a very good hiker, especially uphill at high altitude, so that would take me substantially more than 2 hours, and I’d be out of breath about half way up. 😉
“I very much appreciated the suggestions of where to go based on our priorities of spending time in nature and away from crowds. I also appreciated the train guidance.”
➤ That’s what Carolyn said about her trip planned with the MySwissAlps Plan + Package service. Tell us your wishes, and we’ll turn them into a personalized travel package! Learn more
Hi Slowpoke! Thanks for your advice. we are not really good hikers either 🙂
Can we choose an option to go up by gondola and then return by hiking down? will it be easier then to hike downhill? or should we go to and back by gondola? What would you suggest?
<<“Can we choose an option to go up by gondola and then return by hiking down? will it be easier then to hike downhill? or should we go to and back by gondola? What would you suggest”>>I think that walking 1000 meters down will ruin your knees and leg muscles for 2-3 days unless you are used to steep down hill hiking. Up is actually easier on your legs than down.
You might plan use the lift in both directions, and take a look at the topography on the way up. If you really want to try it after you have looked, then think about the fitness of your leg muscles.
If you are not really good hikers then I think you may find the First to Bachalpsee hike a good outing. There is some uphill involved in the first stretch
After your return to First you may choose to walk the rather flat panorama trail from there to Grosse Scheidegg. The advantage of doing this is that you can then take the positively stunning bus ride down from there to Grindelwald. Very different views than those riding up on the gondola from Grindelwald to First. Highly recommended.
I’ve hiked from the top of the First to Bachalpsee many times, it’s a lovely walk, but for me would be far too much from the bottom at Grindealwald. To extend the walk I usually walk on from the lake to Waldspitz. At this point there are several options, either to wait for the bus back down to Grindelwald, or I’ve walked through the alpine garden (quite steep) and back across to Bort where I’ve got on the gondola back down to the bottom.
To provide the best experiences, we and our partners use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us and our partners to process personal data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site and show (non-) personalized ads. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Click below to consent to the above or make granular choices. Your choices will be applied to this site only. You can change your settings at any time, including withdrawing your consent, by using the toggles on the Cookie Policy, or by clicking on the manage consent button at the bottom of the screen.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. If you don't agree, some parts of the website might not work properly.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.