Interlaken travel guide
Interlaken
Interlaken sits on a flat strip of land called the Bodeli, between Lake Thun to the west and Lake Brienz to the east. The town's name comes from the Latin inter lacus -- 'between lakes' -- a description, not a marketing slogan.
The Bernese Alps rise directly south of town: the Jungfrau, Monch and Eiger peaks feed the glaciers that carve Lauterbrunnen's cliffs and Trummelbach's underground falls, and give Interlaken its identity as Switzerland's adventure-sports hub, paragliders and all.
A first visit usually centers the town itself, Harder Kulm's viewpoint and a lake cruise. A longer stay adds Lauterbrunnen Valley, Trummelbach Falls and a first paragliding flight, and a full trip sets aside a genuinely full day for Jungfraujoch and, separately, the Schilthorn.
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Top experiences
Top experiences in Interlaken
Jungfraujoch (Top of Europe)
At 3,454 metres, Jungfraujoch's railway station is the highest in Europe, reached by a rack railway that Adolf Guyer-Zeller conceived in 1893 and that took 16 years to tunnel through the Eiger and the Monch, opening in 1912.
Best for: Travelers willing to commit real time and money to the highest point reachable by train in Europe · Area: Reached via Grindelwald/Eiger Express or Lauterbrunnen/Wengen
Plan for A standard return ticket from Interlaken Ost costs well over CHF 200 without a discount card, and the trip runs roughly 1.5 to 2.5 hours each way; summit visibility depends on real Alpine weather that no ticket guarantees.
Schilthorn and Piz Gloria
The Schilthorn's 2,970-metre summit holds Piz Gloria, a revolving restaurant that makes a full rotation in 45 minutes; the James Bond producers of On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) financed its stalled construction to completion in exchange for filming rights.
Best for: Travelers wanting a real film-history site and a 360-degree Alpine panorama in one trip · Area: Murren/Stechelberg, via the 2024 Stechelberg-Murren cable car
Plan for The 2024 Stechelberg-Murren cable car (159.4% gradient, the steepest in the world) is the fast route up; the classic multi-stage cable car via Murren remains an option for a more traditional ascent.
Lauterbrunnen Valley
Seventy-two waterfalls drop from the valley's near-vertical cliffs, per Lauterbrunnen's own tourism board, fed by glacier meltwater off the Jungfrau massif; Staubbach Falls alone drops 297 metres, Switzerland's highest free-falling waterfall.
Best for: Travelers wanting the real, sourced number behind a genuinely dramatic glacial valley · Area: South of Interlaken, valley floor at 802m, gateway to Wengen and Murren
Plan for Many of the 72 waterfalls run seasonally and are visible only from specific points, not all at once; the valley is also the real inspiration Tolkien sketched for Rivendell after an 1911 hike.
Trummelbach Falls
Ten glacier-fed waterfalls drop a combined 140 metres inside the mountain, carrying up to 20,000 litres of water a second at peak flow; walkways and a funicular into the rock have provided access since 1877.
Best for: Travelers wanting a genuinely rare sight: a waterfall system that runs largely inside solid rock · Area: Lauterbrunnen Valley, between Lauterbrunnen and Stechelberg
Plan for The falls run at their most dramatic, and their coldest and wettest, during peak snowmelt in early summer; the site closes in winter when the access route becomes unsafe.
Tandem paragliding over Interlaken
Tandem paragliding flights over Interlaken land in the Hohematte, a 14-hectare town-center meadow legally protected from construction since 1864, the reason a landing zone this central and open exists at all.
Best for: Travelers wanting the activity Interlaken is most associated with today, understood through its real regulation · Area: Launch sites above town; landing at the Hohematte meadow
Plan for Every commercial tandem pilot must hold a licence validated through Switzerland's Federal Office of Civil Aviation and carry at least CHF 5 million in liability insurance; flights are postponed, not flown, when conditions turn unsafe.
Harder Kulm
A funicular that opened in 1908, on a concession granted in 1890, climbs 755 metres in about 10 minutes to a viewpoint over both Lake Thun and Lake Brienz at once, the clearest single vantage point on the town's 'between the lakes' identity.
Best for: Travelers wanting the region's defining view without Jungfraujoch's cost or time commitment · Area: North side of town, above Interlaken Ost
Plan for It is a genuinely faster, cheaper alternative to Jungfraujoch or the Schilthorn for a mountain view, at the cost of a lower, less dramatically glaciated panorama.
Lake Brienz boat cruise
The paddle steamer Lotschberg, launched in 1914, still crosses Lake Brienz's turquoise water, colored by glacial rock flour from the surrounding peaks, six days a week on its original coal-fired engine.
Best for: Travelers wanting a slower way to see the second lake on a genuinely working piece of 1914 engineering · Area: Interlaken Ost pier to Brienz, Giessbach and Iseltwald
Plan for The historic paddle steamer runs a more limited schedule than the regular diesel boats; travelers with a tight schedule may need to choose the modern service instead.
Lake Thun
At 17.5km long and up to 217 metres deep, Lake Thun is the largest Swiss lake entirely within a single canton; it separated from Lake Brienz only around the 10th century, when the two were still one body of water called the Wendelsee.
Best for: Travelers wanting the western half of Interlaken's 'between the lakes' geography, with real scale and history · Area: West of Interlaken, towards Spiez and Thun
Plan for Lake Thun sits about 6 metres lower than Lake Brienz, so the Aare River flows continuously between them through Interlaken, explaining the town's flat, silty Bodeli land.
The Hohematte and Interlaken's Old Town
In 1864, 37 local hoteliers and farmers, led by Hotel Victoria's Peter Ober, bought the 14-hectare Hohematte meadow for 150,000 francs specifically to keep it permanently unbuilt, a decision that still shapes the town's open center 160 years later.
Best for: Travelers wanting the real reason Interlaken's town center is an open meadow, not a block of hotels · Area: Central Interlaken, between the two train stations
Plan for The meadow's protection means Interlaken's hotel stock is concentrated at its edges rather than spread through a larger built-up center, a real trade-off against the open view it preserves.
Canyoning and Interlaken's adventure-sports regulation
Canyoning is genuine, common inventory in Interlaken today, but it carries real history. A flash flood killed 21 people on a commercial canyoning tour in the Saxetenbach gorge on 27 July 1999, and Switzerland's federal risk-activities law, requiring annual certification for commercial operators, only took effect in 2014.
Best for: Travelers who want to book canyoning or similar adventure sports with the real regulatory context · Area: Gorges around Interlaken, including the Saxetenbach and Grimsel areas
Plan for The 2014 law requires certification and annual audits for commercial operators, but Switzerland's own reporting describes the rollout as slow and initially under-enforced.
See Canyoning and Interlaken's adventure-sports regulation tours
Plan two, four or seven-plus days in Interlaken
Two to three days: the Interlaken essentials
Pick this length to cover central Interlaken, the Hohematte, Harder Kulm and one lake cruise.
All four sit within an easy walk, funicular ride or short boat trip of central Interlaken.
The trade-off This length skips Lauterbrunnen Valley, Trummelbach Falls, paragliding, Jungfraujoch and the Schilthorn entirely, so it suits a highlights-only stop within a longer Swiss trip.
Four to five days: add Lauterbrunnen and paragliding
Pick this length once Lauterbrunnen Valley's waterfalls, Trummelbach Falls and a first tandem paragliding flight all matter.
This spreads Interlaken's sightseeing across more days and adds real depth beyond the town center highlights.
The trade-off This length still leaves Jungfraujoch and the Schilthorn for the longer stay below, since both realistically need their own full days.
A week or more: Jungfraujoch and the Schilthorn, unhurried
Pick this length to fit a full, dedicated day each for Jungfraujoch and the Schilthorn without rushing either.
A week allows the full region beyond the highlights, including both major excursions at their own realistic pace.
The trade-off A shorter trip cannot fit this depth without turning one or both excursions into a rushed, stressful dash.
Sources
checked 2026-09-25. Recommendations are editorial judgements based on the cited sources below.
Choose an Interlaken base and explore nearby
Central Interlaken: a base for walkability, at the cost of higher hotel prices
Consider this base for the Hohematte, both stations and Harder Kulm all within walking distance, accepting the town's highest hotel prices.
This puts Interlaken's core landmarks within a short walk, since the protected meadow keeps hotel stock concentrated at its edges.
The trade-off Choosing this area means accepting cost and a shorter walk for landmark density and central convenience.
Lauterbrunnen Valley: a base for waterfalls and mountain access
Consider basing in the valley for direct access to Trummelbach Falls, the 72 waterfalls and the routes up to Wengen, Murren and the Schilthorn.
This puts the valley's dramatic cliffs on your doorstep, at the cost of a 20-minute train ride back into central Interlaken.
The trade-off Basing here means less immediate access to Interlaken's own lake-town amenities, a reasonable trade for direct valley access.
Basing on a lake shore: Thun or Brienz for a quieter pace
Consider a lake-shore base if a quieter pace matters more than being in the center of Interlaken's own tourist activity.
Both lake shores stay within easy rail or boat reach of central Interlaken and its excursions.
The trade-off Basing here means a short commute back into Interlaken for the Hohematte or the mountain excursions, a reasonable trade for a calmer base.
Sources
checked 2026-09-25. Recommendations are editorial judgements based on the cited sources below.
Airport, safety and getting around
Interlaken has no airport of its own. Zurich Airport (ZRH) is the real, practical main gateway: a direct train from Zurich Airport to Interlaken runs about 2 hours 7 minutes, with several direct departures a day.
Bern Airport (BRN) sits closer -- under an hour away by train -- but flies a genuinely limited schedule. As of September 2026 it serves around 11 destinations on roughly 14 flights a week, mostly leisure and charter routes, with no scheduled domestic flights at all. Geneva Airport (GVA) is a further real option, roughly 3 hours 12 minutes to 3.5 hours away by direct train.
Within town, Interlaken's two stations (Ost and West) bookend a fully walkable center; trains, boats and cable cars fan out from there to Lauterbrunnen, Grindelwald, the lake shores and the high mountain lines, so a rental car is a genuine convenience rather than a necessity.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office records a global high terrorism threat affecting Switzerland and separately, specifically flags adventure sports: it advises verifying operators are well established, carrying insurance that covers mountain rescue and helicopter costs, and never attempting Alpine activities alone.
Best time to visit
Winter (December-February)
Interlaken's coldest months average around 0C in January; the valley floor sees genuine snow while nearby ski areas around Grindelwald and Murren run their winter season.
- Crowds
- Low
Spring (March-May)
A real shoulder season as snow recedes from lower trails first; Jungfraujoch and the high cable cars remain snow-dependent later into the season than the valley floor itself.
- Crowds
- Varies by event and attraction
Summer (June-August)
Interlaken's warmest months average around 19C in July, when Lauterbrunnen's waterfalls run fullest on peak glacier meltwater and large crowds fill the Hohematte and the Jungfraujoch trains.
- Crowds
- High
Autumn (September-November)
Crowds ease from the summer peak while trails and cable cars generally remain open into September and October; the Chasteilet cheese-sharing festival in the Justistal falls in late September.
- Crowds
- Varies by event and attraction
Food and local life
Meiringen, in the same administrative district as Interlaken, is where a 1930s museum research effort in Frankfurt traced the meringue's invention to around 1600 -- credited to a pastry chef, Gasparini, who reportedly named his airy egg-white creation after the town. That documentation was destroyed in the Second World War, so the story is well told locally, not independently reproducible today.
Berner Alpkase AOP, a protected raw-milk cheese, can only legally carry that name when made on the alp itself, above 1,400 metres, in summer. The milk comes from cows grazing on wild mountain herbs -- a real, seasonal, place-bound product rather than a generic 'Swiss cheese' souvenir.
The Chasteilet cheese-sharing festival in the nearby Justistal valley, held in late September, is a real working tradition -- the summer's Alpkase wheels are physically divided among the herders and farmers who share the alp, not a staged photo opportunity.
City profile
- Population (Municipality of Interlaken (December 2020 census) -- the compact town itself, not the wider Jungfrau region or Bernese Oberland it anchors, 2020): 5,719
The site's recorded history starts with a monastery. Baron Seliger von Oberhofen founded an Augustinian canons' monastery here around 1130, and Holy Roman Emperor Lothair took it under imperial protection when it was first documented in 1133.
That monastery lasted until 1528, when the Reformation reached Bern and its lands were secularized. A village on the right bank was recorded separately in 1239 as 'villa Inderlappen' -- already, in Latin, between the lakes.
The town itself carried a different name for centuries: Aarmuhle, after a mill on the Aare river first mentioned in 1365. It was renamed Interlaken only in 1891, formalizing the descriptive Latin name tourism had already made famous.
Organized tourism took hold around 1800 and accelerated after the Unspunnenfest festivals of 1805 and 1808, early Alpine folk-culture gatherings that drew visitors from across Europe and set the pattern for the resort town Interlaken became.
Famous for:
- Interlaken is genuinely, specifically the gateway to Jungfraujoch -- at 3,454 metres, the highest railway station in Europe, reached by a rack railway completed in 1912 after 16 years tunnelling through the Eiger and the Monch.
- It is also a real, working James Bond filming location: the Schilthorn's Piz Gloria revolving restaurant was a half-built construction project the 1969 film On Her Majesty's Secret Service paid to complete, in exchange for filming rights.
- And it is Switzerland's most concentrated adventure-sports hub, specifically because a 14-hectare central meadow, the Hohematte, has been legally protected from construction since 1864 -- leaving an open landing zone where tandem paragliders drift down within sight of the train stations.
What makes an Interlaken visit worthwhile
Interlaken's name is not a marketing invention. The town sits on the Bodeli, the flat land between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, and 'Interlaken' comes directly from the Latin inter lacus -- between lakes.
Jungfraujoch, the 'Top of Europe', is a real superlative: at 3,454 metres it is Europe's highest railway station, reached through a roughly 7-kilometre tunnel blasted through the Eiger and the Monch between 1896 and 1912.
It is also a genuinely expensive, genuinely long excursion, not a quick add-on. A standard return ticket from Interlaken Ost costs well over CHF 200 without a discount card, and the journey itself runs roughly 1.5 to 2.5 hours each way, before any time at the summit.
Jungfraujoch's own operator hedges its bets on weather: a 360-degree cinema experience exists specifically because the real summit view depends on real Alpine visibility, which is not guaranteed on any given day.
The Schilthorn's Piz Gloria restaurant really was a stalled construction project until the producers of On Her Majesty's Secret Service financed its completion in exchange for filming rights in 1968 -- a real film-history transaction, not just a themed viewing platform.
Interlaken's adventure-sports identity carries real, documented risk alongside real, documented regulation. On 27 July 1999, a flash flood killed 21 people on a commercial canyoning tour in the Saxetenbach gorge near Interlaken -- the deadliest canyoning disaster on record.
Switzerland's response was slow at first: a voluntary certification scheme launched in 2000 struggled for uptake. A federal law, the Act on Mountain Guides and Organizers of Other Risk Activities, took effect only in 2014, now requiring commercial operators to hold annual certification, run risk assessments and follow sport-specific training standards.
Tandem paragliding, the activity most associated with the town today, sits under a comparably real structure. Switzerland's Federal Office of Civil Aviation validates the exams behind the professional tandem licence every commercial pilot must hold, and commercial operators must carry at least CHF 5 million in liability insurance.
- Plan by trip type
- Jungfraujoch's high railway, Schilthorn's Bond history, Lauterbrunnen's 72 waterfalls, and paragliding from a town between two lakes
- Good first stay
- 2-3 days: town, Harder Kulm, one lake cruise. 4-5 days adds Lauterbrunnen and paragliding. A week+ fits Jungfraujoch and the Schilthorn.
- Climate
- Temperate oceanic (Koppen Cfb): January averages 0C, July 19C, with rainfall year-round and a July peak
- Main gateway
- No airport of its own: Zurich (ZRH), about 2h by direct train, is the main gateway; Bern (BRN) is closer but flies few routes
Planning your Interlaken visit: FAQs
Does Interlaken have its own airport?
No. Zurich Airport (ZRH) is the real, practical main gateway at about 2 hours by direct train; Bern Airport (BRN) is closer but flies a limited leisure-charter schedule with no domestic routes, and Geneva (GVA) is a further real option at roughly 3 to 3.5 hours.
Is Jungfraujoch worth its real cost and time?
That depends on the traveler, but the numbers are real: a standard return ticket from Interlaken Ost costs well over CHF 200 without a discount card, and the trip runs 1.5 to 2.5 hours each way -- a genuine full-day commitment, and summit visibility depends on Alpine weather no ticket can guarantee.
Is paragliding in Interlaken actually regulated?
Yes -- every commercial tandem pilot must hold a professional licence whose exams Switzerland's Federal Office of Civil Aviation validates, and commercial operators must carry at least CHF 5 million in liability insurance; flights are genuinely postponed, not flown regardless, in unsafe conditions.
Is canyoning near Interlaken safe, honestly?
It carries real, documented history: a flash flood killed 21 people on a commercial canyoning tour near Interlaken on 27 July 1999, the deadliest canyoning disaster on record. A federal law regulating commercial risk-sport operators took effect only in 2014, after a slow, initially under-enforced voluntary scheme.
Are there really 72 waterfalls in the Lauterbrunnen Valley?
That is the figure Lauterbrunnen's own tourism board uses, corroborated by the wider Jungfrau region tourism site -- though many of the 72 run seasonally and are visible only from specific points in the valley, not all at once.
Was the Schilthorn really used in a James Bond film?
Yes -- Piz Gloria's revolving restaurant was a stalled construction project until the producers of On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) financed its completion in exchange for filming rights, a real, documented transaction behind the mountain's film fame.
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Latest source check: .
Show all 32 sources
- Wikipedia — Interlaken (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Jungfraujoch (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Jungfrau Railway (checked 2026-09-25)
- Jungfrau Railways — Jungfraujoch, Top of Europe (checked 2026-09-25)
- Jungfrau Railways — Prices and tickets (checked 2026-09-25)
- Jungfrau Railways — Your day on the Jungfraujoch (checked 2026-09-25)
- Switzerland Tourism — Jungfraujoch (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Schilthorn (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Lauterbrunnen (checked 2026-09-25)
- Jungfrau Railways — Lauterbrunnen, Valley of 72 Waterfalls (checked 2026-09-25)
- Lauterbrunnen Tourism — Hike in the valley of the 72 waterfalls (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Trummelbach Falls (checked 2026-09-25)
- Swiss Paragliding Interlaken — Paragliding safety in Switzerland (checked 2026-09-25)
- Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation — Pilot licences and examination (checked 2026-09-25)
- SHV/FSVL — foreign licence guest pilot (checked 2026-09-25)
- Swiss Local Adventures — The Hohematte, Interlaken's 37-farmer story (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Harderbahn (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Harderkulm (checked 2026-09-25)
- Hightide — Why Lake Brienz looks so turquoise (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Lake Thun (checked 2026-09-25)
- SWI swissinfo.ch — Safety still a question 20 years after Interlaken canyoning accident (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Saxetbach (checked 2026-09-25)
- GOV.UK — Switzerland travel advice: safety and security (checked 2026-09-25)
- Wikipedia — Meiringen (checked 2026-09-25)
- Jungfrau Region Tourism — The history of meringues (checked 2026-09-25)
- Made in Bern — Bernese specialities (checked 2026-09-25)
- rome2rio — Zurich Airport to Interlaken (checked 2026-09-25)
- rome2rio — Geneva Airport to Interlaken trains (checked 2026-09-25)
- FlightConnections — Flights from Bern (BRN) (checked 2026-09-25)
- The booking platform — Interlaken destination mapping d5011 (checked 2026-09-25)
- climate-data.org — Interlaken climate (checked 2026-09-25)
- Switzerland Tourism — Jungfraujoch (checked 2026-09-25)
Photo credits
- jungfraujoch top of europe — Pmau · CC BY-SA 4.0.
- schilthorn piz gloria — Ximonic (Simo Räsänen) · CC BY-SA 3.0.
- lauterbrunnen valley — Chensiyuan · CC BY-SA 4.0.
- truemmelbach falls — Rafael.corvalan · CC BY 3.0.
- paragliding interlaken — Tim Sheerman-Chase · CC BY 2.0.
- harder kulm — Giles Laurent · CC BY-SA 4.0.
- lake brienz cruise — marsupium photography · CC BY-SA 2.0.
- lake thun — Carsten Steger · CC BY-SA 4.0.
- hohematte old town — Leonhard Lenz · CC0.
- canyoning adventure sports — J.C.L. van der Does · CC BY-SA 4.0.
Mubboo Editorial Team · Reviewed by Mubboo Editorial Team
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