When to go to Interlaken?
→ The detailed month-by-month page, with real weather records
Best time: June to September
At a glance
Why go to Interlaken?
Interlaken is not an end in itself but a hub. The town sits on a flat strip of land about three kilometres long between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, at 570 metres above sea level, and serves as the departure station for the whole of the Bernese Oberland. From its two stations, trains leave for Lauterbrunnen, Grindelwald, the Schynige Platte and the Jungfraujoch. Almost everything worth the trip lies thirty to sixty minutes away by rail, so you only need to unpack once.
The town itself boils down to a meadow and an avenue. In 1864, thirty-seven residents and hoteliers jointly bought the fourteen hectares of the Höhematte to block any building and preserve the view of the Jungfrau from the centre. The agreement still holds: the meadow is empty, the 19th-century grand hotels line one side of it, and paragliders coming down from Beatenberg land there all day long in full view of people sitting at café tables.
The massif behind is one of the densest in the Alps. The Eiger, the Mönch and the Jungfrau line up three famous north faces above the Lauterbrunnen valley, a glacial canyon a kilometre wide, closed in by 400-metre walls and streaked with seventy-two waterfalls. The Aletsch Glacier, 22 kilometres long, can be seen from the Jungfraujoch. The whole area has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001.
Map of Interlaken: what is where?
The map shows the 6 places covered in this guide, to picture the distances and plan your route.
- Interlaken
- Jungfraujoch
- Harder Kulm
- Lauterbrunnen
- Grindelwald
- Iseltwald
How much does a trip to Interlaken cost?
Switzerland is expensive and mountain transport is the biggest item: the Jungfraujoch alone costs more than €200 per person. Hostel accommodation and supermarket meals can squeeze the rest considerably. The trails, the lakeshores, Lauterbrunnen and the Höhematte cost nothing.
| Style | Per day | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Backpacker | €90-140/day | Youth hostel, supermarket meals, valley trails, a single big mountain trip during the stay |
| Comfort | €200-300/day | Hotel in the centre, Jungfrau Travel Pass, two or three high-altitude excursions, a restaurant meal each day |
| Premium | €550+/day | Grand hotel on the Höheweg, Jungfraujoch in first class, helicopter flight, private guide and fine dining |
The currency is the Swiss franc. Many shops accept euros but give change in francs at a poor rate: pay by card, accepted everywhere, even for small amounts and on mountain trains. ATMs are near both stations and on the Höheweg. Expect to spend 30 to 40% more than on an equivalent trip to France or Italy.
Is Interlaken safe?
Interlaken is a very safe town, with no notable crime, where you can walk around at night without worry. The risks come from activities and the mountains. Interlaken is one of Europe's adventure-sport capitals, with paragliding, bungee jumping, canyoning and rafting: operators are regulated by the federal law on risky activities passed after the 1999 canyoning accident in the Saxeten, which claimed twenty-one lives. Check that your provider holds the Safety in Adventures label. In the mountains, the weather turns quickly and storms often break after 2pm in summer, cable cars close in high winds and the Jungfraujoch can be clouded in all day. Finally, the altitude of 3,454 metres, reached in two hours from the valley, frequently causes headaches and breathlessness.
What to see and do in Interlaken
- Jungfraujoch
- Harder Kulm
- Schynige Platte
- Trümmelbach Falls
- Lauterbrunnen and the Staubbach Falls
- Lake Brienz and Iseltwald
- Paragliding over Interlaken
- Höhematte and Höheweg
Jungfraujoch 3 451 m
The train leaves the valley and plunges into a seven-kilometre tunnel dug through the Eiger and the Mönch between 1896 and 1912, emerging at 3,454 metres, the highest railway station in Europe. The Sphinx terrace, at 3,571 metres, overlooks the Aletsch Glacier, 22 kilometres of ice listed as a World Heritage Site. An ice palace carved into the glacier, a snow plateau and a scientific observatory complete the site. Temperatures stay below freezing for much of the year.
Harder Kulm and the Höhematte
A funicular dating from 1908 climbs in ten minutes to 1,322 metres, on gradients of up to 64%. The metal platform at the top juts out over the void, with Lake Thun on one side, Lake Brienz on the other, and the Eiger, the Mönch and the Jungfrau lined up opposite. Down below, the Höhematte meadow covers fourteen hectares in the centre of town, protected from any building since 1864 by an agreement between citizens. Paragliders land there constantly from May to October.
Lauterbrunnen and its waterfalls
A U-shaped valley a kilometre wide, carved by a glacier and closed in by 400-metre walls from which seventy-two waterfalls tumble. The Staubbach, a 297-metre free fall, dissolves into mist before reaching the ground; a tunnel cut into the cliff lets you walk behind the curtain of water from June to October. A little further on, the Trümmelbach Falls flow inside the mountain, ten successive cascades draining the meltwater of the three great peaks.
Grindelwald and First
Grindelwald lies in an open valley at the foot of the Eiger's north face, at 1,034 metres. The First gondola rises to 2,168 metres, where a walkway clinging to the cliff, the Cliff Walk, begins, followed by an hour-long trail to Bachalpsee and its reflection of the peaks. A zip line, a downhill scooter and a rail-mounted ride complete the line-up. The Upper Glacier, retreating fast, is reached through a gorge fitted with wooden walkways.
Schynige Platte
A rack railway from 1893, with its original wooden carriages, takes fifty minutes to climb from Wilderswil to 1,967 metres on an isolated ridge between the valley and the massif. The alpine garden at the top gathers some 650 species of mountain plants over eight hectares, arranged by natural habitat. An hour-long panoramic loop follows the ridge, with the two lakes on one side and the Eiger, the Mönch and the Jungfrau on the other. The train runs from late May to late October.
Lake Thun and Lake Brienz
Two glacial lakes frame the town, separated by the alluvial plain on which it is built. Lake Thun, to the west, is the larger, lined with castles, the village of Spiez and the St Beatus Caves. Lake Brienz, to the east, takes on a milky turquoise hue from glacial particles and remains wilder, with Iseltwald and its peninsula, and the Giessbach Falls and their 1879 funicular. Historic paddle steamers serve both lakes.
How many days, and which itinerary?
Three days allow for Harder Kulm, Lauterbrunnen and one big high-altitude excursion. Five days add Grindelwald, the Schynige Platte and a day on the lakes, with some leeway for the weather. A week makes sense if you are hiking for several days or want to string together adventure sports.
🗺️ Day-by-day itinerary · 📓 Free printable Interlaken guide (PDF) · 🌍 All of Switzerland
Three days in the Oberland
Day 1: arrival, a stroll around the Höhematte and the Höheweg, the Harder Kulm funicular in the late afternoon for sunset over the three peaks. Day 2: train to Lauterbrunnen, the Staubbach Falls and the tunnel behind the curtain of water, the Trümmelbach Falls in the early afternoon, back via Wengen. Day 3: the big day, the Jungfraujoch on the first train if the weather is clear, otherwise the Schynige Platte and its alpine garden.
Five days with Grindelwald
The first three days, then a day in Grindelwald: the First gondola, the Cliff Walk, an hour's walk to Bachalpsee and the descent by scooter or zip line. The fifth day is spent on the water, with a paddle steamer on Lake Brienz to Iseltwald and the Giessbach Falls, or on Lake Thun to Spiez and the St Beatus Caves. Save the Jungfraujoch for the clearest day.
Alpine Switzerland in a week
Three nights in Interlaken for the Oberland, then three nights elsewhere. Zermatt and the Matterhorn are four hours away by train, changing at Spiez and Visp. Lucerne and Lake Lucerne are two hours away, with Mount Pilatus and the steepest rack railway in the world. A Swiss Travel Pass pays for itself from four days of travel and gives substantial discounts on cable cars and mountain railways.
Getting there and getting around
From Geneva, allow 2h50 by train with a change at Bern or Spiez, around CHF 70 one way. From Zurich, about two hours. Interlaken has two stations, Ost and West, a kilometre apart: mountain trains and Lake Brienz boats leave from Interlaken Ost.
The whole regional network runs on a clock-face timetable, with connections timed to the minute. Trains to Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald leave twice an hour from Interlaken Ost and take about twenty minutes. There is no need for a car, which is expensive to park and adds nothing.
The Jungfrau Travel Pass covers the whole mountain network for three to eight days, from around CHF 190, with a supplement for the final section to the Jungfraujoch. The broader Swiss Travel Pass includes boats and gives 25 to 50% off most cable cars and mountain railways.
Two fleets of historic paddle steamers ply Lake Thun and Lake Brienz from April to October, with links to Spiez, Iseltwald or Giessbach. A full cruise takes two to three hours and costs CHF 30 to 60, free with a Swiss Travel Pass.
Where to stay in Interlaken?
Interlaken has several large hostels, at €40 to €70 a bed, a rarity in Switzerland. They are geared towards adventure sports and organise rafting, canyoning and paragliding themselves. The atmosphere is young and lively, which means noise late into the evening in summer.
Mid-range hotels in the centre range from €130 to €200 a night, often in early 20th-century buildings with parquet floors and high ceilings. Staying in Unterseen, across the Aare, or in Wilderswil, one stop further, cuts the bill by 20 to 30%.
Staying up in the mountains transforms the trip. Wengen, Mürren and Grindelwald offer hotels and chalets between €150 and €300 a night, the first two car-free, with the mountains on the doorstep and quiet evenings once the day-trippers have gone back down.
Two campsites and several family-run sites line the Aare and Lake Thun, from €25 to €45 a pitch from April to October. The town also has a few 19th-century grand hotels on the Höheweg, between €400 and €800 a night, with a direct view of the Jungfrau.
Our places to stay, stop by stop, at three budgets →
What to eat in Interlaken?
Bernese Oberland cooking is hearty: rösti with cheese and egg, grilled veal sausage, beef stewed in beer. Expect €22 to €32 a dish in town, more in mountain restaurants. Portions are generous and menus are often translated into four languages.
Half-and-half fondue and raclette are served everywhere, at around €28 to €38 per person. Several mountain restaurants, at Harder Kulm or the Schynige Platte, serve them with a view of the three peaks, which costs extra but is a genuine experience.
Meringue from Meiringen, a neighbouring village that claims to have invented it, is served with Gruyère double cream, thick enough to stand a spoon in. Expect €8 to €12 a portion. Interlaken's bakeries also sell butter plaits and fruit tarts from the Lake Thun area.
Eating out is expensive everywhere in Switzerland. Coop and Migros supermarkets, near both stations, sell sandwiches and hot dishes at €8 to €15, with seating areas to eat in. It is the simplest way to stick to a budget over several days.
Entry requirements
Schengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
Rules change: check your own government's travel advice before you go.
Frequently asked questions about Interlaken
Is the Jungfraujoch worth the price?
At around €220 return from Interlaken, it is the most expensive excursion in Switzerland. Under clear skies, the view of the Aletsch Glacier and the altitude of 3,454 metres justify the outlay for many visitors. In overcast weather there is nothing to see and the money is wasted: check the summit webcam that same morning before buying.
Where to stay, Interlaken or up in the mountains?
Interlaken offers the most choice, the best hostel prices and direct access to every line. Wengen, Mürren and Grindelwald cost a little more but put the mountains on your doorstep, with quiet evenings once the day-trippers have left. Wengen and Mürren are car-free and can only be reached by train or cable car.
Do you need a transport pass?
Yes, as soon as you string excursions together. The Jungfrau Travel Pass covers the mountain network for three to eight days from around CHF 190, with a supplement for the final section to the Jungfraujoch. The Swiss Travel Pass is broader, includes trains, buses and boats across the whole country and gives 25 to 50% off most cable cars and mountain railways.
Can you paraglide with no experience?
Yes, in tandem with an instructor. Take-off is from Beatenberg at around 1,200 metres, the flight lasts ten to twenty minutes and you land on the Höhematte meadow, right in the centre. Expect around €180. Morning flights are calmer, midday ones bumpier, and cancellations due to wind are frequent.
When is the best time to visit?
From June to September, when all the mountain trains are running, the trails are clear of snow and the days are long. July and August are the busiest and the most prone to late-afternoon storms. September offers more stable air and fewer people. In winter, the Schynige Platte closes and the valley floor is often under cloud.
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