[JoeyA]

24 August 2018 at 10:23:09 #818047

Hi all, thanks again to those who helped with info in advance of our trip. We have just returned from 5 nights in a great apartment in Wengen. We were a group of 9, including 4 kids aged 10-15. Firstly I have to highly recommend Wengen as a base. Not only is it absolutely beautiful, with breathtaking views, but it’s quiet and felt very safe to let the kids roam about (no cars). As it’s already in the mountains you also can get to many places before they get busy as compared to when we have stayed before at Interlaken. My husband and I had Swiss half fare cards and we had a Swiss family card for the kids. We did the following:

Day 1) Arrived in the evening and just chilled out around the village (town?), went out for dinner and then kids played around on the free public table tennis table and slack line.

Day 2) Made packed lunches and then headed up on the cable car from Wengen to Mannlichen. Everyone apart from me sat on the open air balcony for the journey (an extra 5CHF). (Just to add I didn’t sit in the open as I am terrified of heights, not because it was an extra 5CHF!). Walked up to the top from the cable car station though loads of friendly cows with bells. Spectacular views all around. Walked down to Kleine Schiedegg where we sat in a field and had a picnic looking out over the north face of the Eiger and the Monch, Jungfrau mountains. More cows with bells. The walk was nice and easy with so much to see. We had planned to get the train back to Wengen here, but everyone was keen to walk more, so we decided to walk back down. This walk is even more amazing – firstly walking alongside the mountain range, then you join up with the Lauberhorn men’s downhill ski run (this is so steep, it’s a bit hard on the toes but worth it). Stopped at Allmend for a drink then finished up back at Wengen. I would say with all the stops for lunch, drinks and taking in the scenery the whole walk from top to bottom took 4 hours.

Day 3) We all awoke with slightly achy hips from the downhill walking! Checked weather forecast was clear for the next day and bought tickets for the Jungfraujoch. Then headed off by train to First (gondola from Grindelwald via Kleine Scheidegg). The gondola ride up to First is beautiful and peaceful. Once at First we had a more ‘adventure’ day, with some/all of us doing various activities including the cliff walk, the ‘Glider’, the airbag, and the mountain carts. A great day, the cliff walk is free and the airbag is only 3CHF per jump, but the other stuff is quite pricey but we considered it worth it.

Day 4) Up early onto first train to Jungfraujoch. We had bought ‘Good Morning’ tickets, which are considerably cheaper, but mean you have to take one of the first two trains up. We had no problems with crowds or queues at this time and I would seriously recommend making the effort to get up and out to avoid the masses. We didn’t feel rushed at all at the top. The busiest bit was the Sphinx Observatory, which seemed to be where everyone headed first. We went straight to the Plateau which meant we were the only ones out there which was great. Headed down just before lunch and didn’t have to queue for the train. Note with the Good Morning ticket the last train down you can get is just after 1pm. Had sausage and rosti outside for lunch at Kleine Scheidegg with the mountains as our back drop. Can’t get enough of these views! Spent the afternoon in the lido at Wengen which must surely be a contender for the pool with the most stunning backdrop in the world! Kids are free.

Day 5) Got the train down to Lauterbrunnen and walked along the valley to the Trummelbach falls. This is a lovely easy walk (We had a paddle in the river that is fed by the falls on the way – amazingly cold!!). The Falls are well worth a visit. Take cash as they do not accept cards at the entrance (11CHF each adult), and there are no cash machines nearby. Small children (under 4 I think) are not allowed in at all.

Day 6) Home!

A great trip and we were blessed with blue skies and beautiful weather every day. Highly recommend everything we did – there was so much else to do if we had stayed longer.

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[Removed user]

25 August 2018 at 6:22:31 #894874

Hi JoeyA and thanks for the trip report!

Sounds like a great adventure for your family. These tips are great to note for other members going to Wengen. Good note on walking downhill – it can get hard on the legs!

Thanks again – hopefully you’ll be back!

[Removed user]

1 September 2018 at 21:11:08 #894875

Nice report JoeyA – glad you had such a good time and were lucky with weather. Hope you gat the chance to return and add to your experiences.

Maggie

[JoeyA]

2 September 2018 at 9:33:50 #894876

Thanks Lucas and Maggie. I have definitely fallen in love with the area and hope to spend a lot more time there in the future!