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just came back from a 6 night trip in Wengen with a group of 8… some advice i hope others find helpful:
Staying in Murren or Wengen seemed like the best choice from places that I saw there. Grindelwald would perhaps have been next choice if the family wanted a larger place. Lauterbrunnen also seems like a decent base. Personally, I would not want to stay in Interlaken.
we purchased Swiss half fare cards and also got free swiss family card for children under 16
when taking trains, look up on smart phone for train schedule: “train Zurich Flughafen to Wengen” or whatever… this will help you find platforms to change trains.
Do not plan to travel to Schilthorn or Jungfrau on cloudy days… be flexible with your schedule. Have several ideas of hikes to do. It is a waste of time and money to go to the top when it is cloudy. You can see the top on video screens before you buy tickets… be flexible here and don’t waste your time.
Airtime paragliding from Murren down to Stechelberg was great fun and is highly recommended. 15min ride down and entire trip from Lauterbrunnen takes 1.5 hours. They are based out of Lauterbrunnen, but you can meet them in Lauterbrunnen or Murren. We met them at 8:30 in Lautherbrunnun and combined this with the walk from Stechelberg to Lauterbrunnen to see the falls in between and got back to Lautherbrunnen in time for lunch.
Highly recommend riding on the top of the gondola (royal ride) from Maanlichen to Wengen or back.
A great day is going up to First… buy all 4 activities… be there by 10am to do the First Fleiger, Glider before there are lines… ride Gondola or walk back up to the top. Walk to Lake and back. Do the cliff walk at restaurant and have self service there (not amazing food). Then ride the mountain carts and Trotti Bikes down. Thats a full day and quite a bit of fun. If you skip the lake walk, at Grindelwalk, you could take gondola to Pfinstegg and do the Toboggan run.
Whether you do the Jungfrau top or not, you should find a way to grab a drink or eat at Eigergleitcher station. Such incredible views from balcony and the Rosti is very good. We combined this with the uphill Eiger walk from Alpinglen… it was difficult for our group, but very rewarding.
Also the Kleine Scheidegg restaurant at train station is surprisingly good… everything is very good. Find a way to relax and eat here at some point.
Hikes I recommend:
Maanlichen to Kliene Scheidegg
Kleine Scheidegg to Wengen down or up from Wengen
Lake Bachalpsee walk from First and back
Stechelberg to Lauterbrunnen or reverse… I have also heard from a local the walk from Stechelberg going the other direction (uphill away from Lauterbrunnen) is amazing.
Eiger trail – from Alpiglen to Eigergleitcher (most went downhill from Eigergleitscher and that may be easier)
We almost rented bikes to go from Lauterbrunnen to Interlaken and I have heard that is good… as is biking down from Murren to Lauterbrunnen… we did not do either due to time/energy, but it was recommended by our paragliding pilots.
Enjoy your trip-
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Hi Mike and thanks for the trip report! Useful tips for our members. 🙂
Sounds like a great trip with some good hikes and fun paragliding!
Interesting that you are recommending the eigergleitcher restaurant for Rosti. Hands down this was the worst meal of my entire trip last year and I’ll never order Rosti again because of it.
sorry to hear…
it is also possible my thoughts are skewed from just finishing the Eiger trail hike at that time… I thought the water was good.
However everyone in my group liked the Rosti with onions and sausage. The rest of the food was not good admittedly. The view on the balcony was amazing and worth it.
The restaurant at train station at Kleine Sheidegg was great, everything was good… so unexpected.
At Wengen, we thought Schonegg, Baeren, and Caprice were all amazing. Da Sina Pizzeria was decent. The bar there had good beer.
I wonder if that is indicative of the restaurant in general or the chef had a bad day?! Perhaps one day I’ll find out myself. 🙂
Hi Mike, We will be staying in Grindelwald September 5 to 8. My son will be with us and wants to do the paragliding. I would want to do this when I knew the weather would be good. Did you book this day before or day of? Did you buy the video? Where did you purchase the tickets? I think I read that it is about $175. Thanks.
Gail
Gail,
I did the paragliding 2 yrs ago. Went into Airtime Café in Lauterbrunnen in the morning when they opened and was able to get a tandem flight later that morning. I don’t think I’d try to book more in advance as the weather systems roll in and out quickly and it seems to be cloudy/rainy more so in the afternoons.we just beat the rain on my flight. I HIGHLY recommend the paragliding. It was spectacular! And I’m so glad I was able to buy the video, as my go pro died just after we drifted over the cliff. I think it was about 200 chf with the video. And my best birthday present ever!
Leah
Gail,
agree with hannahsmom… they had told us that the mornings are generally always better than the afternoons due to wind. Although I would call them and check availability as they can also get pretty busy.
We originally had an afternoon booked, but later had to switch to a morning due to winds possibly not allowing our younger/smaller riders to go.
We booked with Airtime, which was recommended due to the amazing ride over the cliff wall. Base jumpers sometime use this wall from Murren to Stechelberg, and it is incredible… with waterfalls, etc. We booked an 8:30am from Lauterbrunnen and took the 8:03 train from Wengen to be there on time. You will take a short van ride to Stechelberg, meet up with the pilots and ride the Gondola up to Gimmelwald and then continuing up to Murren. From there it is a short walk up a hill, and then a 15min ride down to Stechelberg.
We then did the hike from Stechelberg to Lauterbrunnen to see Trummel falls and it was a nice walk. They also give you a free drink ticket at Airtime cafe, which also has some good simple food, although limited menu.
The price was 170, plus 40 for pictures and video. For a group rate, they may discount the pictures/video. The pictures and video were great and everyone purchased.
Incredible experience… everyone in our group loved it… age 13 to 46. This will be the highlight of the trip and everyone wanted to go and do it again right away… I almost tried to book it again, but it was our last day.
Note I am sure you can do this closer to Grindelwald, but Airtime over the Murren cliff was amazing and highly recommended to us by some locals.
From Grindelwald, you will want to go to Pfinstegg for the toboggan run multiple times as it is short… and especially the activities from First. I recommend all 4… doing the flyer and glider early before lines. But the most fun was really the mountain cart and scooters down. If you had to skip 1, skip the flyer… but it really works well to do all 4. Kids and adults will love this… it was much more memorable to the kids in our group compared to the hiking (also the cliff walks at First and up to Schilthorn if you get a clear day).
Mike
Gail,
if you choose to Paraglide directly from Grindelwald-First, you could use this company:
http://www.paragliding-jungfrau.ch/wp/tandemf lights-grindelwald/
Thanks for the information Mike and Leah. I will check the weather and definitely look at doing one of these two paragliding recommendations! Not sure about the scooters down the mountain–I would be using the brakes the entire time!
Gail
Thank you for your input after cancelling reservations in Interlacken we are staying in Grindewald for two nights. I am still unsure what we should do because although we are active and healthy we are in our sixties and have never paraglided or riden bikes down a mountain. What do you think is best for this two days for our group of four ? Should we travel by train to other town should we try going to Lauterbrunnen?
MimiG,
In addition to the more adrenaline fueled activities, I would suggest riding the gondola up to First and do the thrill walk. It’s easy and safe with great views. There’s a hike up there, also, to lake Bachalpsee.
I’d also ride up to Mannlichen and do the hike to Kleine Scheidegg and take the train back down to Grindelwald.
Definitely see Lauterbrunnen valley. It is beautiful with the cliffs and waterfalls. Easy path to walk up behind Staubach Falls. Trummelbach Falls is further down the valley towards Stechelberg. Cable car/train to Murren, Funicular to Allmendhubel. Hike back down to Murren. Have lunch at one of the many restaurants perched on the cliff with amazing views. From Lauterbrunnen you can also take the cogwheel train up to Wengen.
Just riding the cable cars, gondolas and trains around to the mountain villages is great. The views are spectacular, everywhere you look!
I’ll be landing in Zurich in a week, and so excited to return to this unbelievably beautiful country!
Enjoy your trip!
Leah
Thank you Hannahsmom! Your sucgestions are just what I needed to understand what ti do. It is hard to know distances and choose options. Next suggestion is besides a half fars card is it a good option to buy a flex train ticket for the days between Lucerne and Grindewald for all our travels or a Bernese Oberland Pass which appears less expensive with the half fare card and takes you from Lucerne up to Grindewald and back plus everywhere around bernese oberland. Thanks
Hi MimiG,
I’d refer you back to your first post in April for both help in choosing the best rail pass and things to do in Bernese Oberland. https://www.myswissalp s.com/forum/topic/what -to-do-if-using-lucerne-as-a-base-3-days
You’ll need to plan out each day’s activities first before you can figure out the best rail pass. This is if you want to know 100% which is the most economical pass.
The Swiss Travel Pass Flex is not often the most economical option for people. A Swiss Half Fare Card and Regional Pass Bernese Oberland (or Jungfrau Travel Pass) is a popular combination and could work for you as well.
I personally liked the Berner Oberland Pass. It covers from Lucerne and Bern into the region. And covers more mountain lifts than the others. Compare the Area of Validity for the different passes. I liked the ease of use, not having to buy tickets everywhere. I wouldn’t recommend buying online in advance from my own personal negative experience. I tried to save time doing this…they sent the wrong tickets…I had to mail them back, and now I have to pick them up at the airport and hope they’re the right ones and that they’re actually there. More stress and waiting in line for me that I had hoped to avoid by buying in advance. Live and learn!
Leah
MimiG,
Hikes I recommend:
Mannlichen to Kliene Scheidegg (or reverse, it is a flat, scenic hike)
Kleine Scheidegg down to Wengernalp or up reverse
Lake Bachalpsee walk from First and back — flat walk and easy from Grindelwald (also make sure to do the free cliff walk at First)
Stechelberg to Lauterbrunnen or reverse… flat walk in valley and will pass by Trummelback falls, which is nice to do
Going up to Jungfrau or Schilthorn only do if it is clear up top, check out videos
If you don’t go to Schilthorn, you still may enjoy having a lunch and view around Murren.
likewise, if you don’t go up to Jungfrau, you would enjoy food at Kleine Scheidegg train station… and the views and drinks at Eigergleitscher
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activities I didn’t do, but I think would also be good for you:
renting bikes or walking from Lauterbrunnen to Interlaken and back… or you could also ride to Interlaken one way and take bikes back with you on the train to Lauterbrunnen if you prefer.
Schynigge Platte hike
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some day ideas…
— ride to Wengernalp, then hike from there back up to Kleine Scheidegg, stop for lunch, then either ride up to Eigergletscher for a drink and view and/or on up to Jungfrau only if its clear (this is always crowded and not worth it if cloudy)… but definitely hike from Kleine Scheidegg to Maanlichen for amazing views and an easy walk. From there you can take the gondola back down to Grindelwald… it stops around 5pm.
— hike from Lauterbunnen to Stechelberg and do the Trummel falls… Gondola up from Stechelberg to Gimmelwald and on to Murren… ride up to Schilthorn if its clear… if not perhaps hike to Grutschalp… and then head back at your leisure
— head up to First and do the lake hike and cliff walk. Can go to Pfinstegg and do the Toboggan run, although its very short.
I enjoyed reading everybody’s contributions to this thread. This is a goldmine of very useful information and it would be nice to see more of this sort of thread. I haven’t been up in the Oberland for years and this is encouraging me to go back soon !
Hi Peterli
I agree with you – there are a lot of good ideas, tips and suggestions in this threads -interesting to read and helpful for future travellers. So thanks everybody.
Maggie
Hi Maggie and others following this thread,
I’ve had the attached photo for a while now, trying to figure when would be the most opportune time to post it, and so here goes. Perhaps you have seen the top part of Swiss flag on the Jungfrau near the end of a day. One of the treats of viewing the Oberland Bernois from off to the west.
Attachments:What a fabulous photo Peterli! Thank you for sharing it with us.
Maggie
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