Interlaken & Mountain First

A lovely family trip to the most astonishing Swiss mountains… Enjoy the beautiful landscape!

Another weekend, another adventure. Since it’s my last proper summer holidays, my family and I decided to seize all opportunities and go see the Swiss mountains together. All week long the weather forecast looked quite pessimistic, indicating upcoming storms, and we were going forth and back about the trip. The last thing we wanted, is to be stuck in a storm somewhere in the mountains! One day before travel, the storm seemed to have magically moved directions, so we packed our stuff and started driving early the next morning…

Day 1 Heidelberg -> Interlaken, 390km, 5,5h

Our starting point was Heidelberg and it took us around 5,5h with breaks to reach Interlaken. On the way, we passed the absolutely beautiful lake ‘Thunersee’, where we had sat down for a bit and enjoyed some coffee & cake.

We drove on the northern route (through towns such as ‘Vorderdorf’) and passed by several parking opportunities with free parking for up to 24h!

For the next two nights, we had a cozy stay in the hotel ‘Gasthof Schönegg’ which is situated outside Interlaken city in the neighbouring town Goldswil. It has everything you need, friendly staff and offers a great view down on Interlaken (opposite side of river ‘Aare’ )

Day 2 Goldswil –> ‘First’, 2164m, Grindelwald

We woke up to a bright & sunny day and enjoyed breakfast on the terrace before driving out.

Todays agenda led us to the region ‘Grindelwald’, more specifically mountain ‘First’. We took a gondula ride both ways and although the tickets were pretty pricy (~50€ up&down p.p.), it was worth every penny! Even the parking lot had a beautiful background:

We saw the most incredible landscape and it only got better!!

The hike from the mountain station ‘First’ to ‘Bachalpsee’ takes around 45min and follows the same trail forth and back. It starts with a decently steep incline, but afterwards you follow a meallow up and down (202hm in total). The official difficulty level is ‘easy’, but I’d say that it could be problemtic for people with e.g. knee problems, due to the first part. The entire trail is wide, open and offers breathtaking panorama views!

We stayed a total of 4h on mountain ‘First’ and loved every second of it! A lot of mental and physical images are kept!

To be continued…

Interlaken & ‘First’, thanks for having me!

My tips/thoughts:

‘First’ also offers more adventerous options for the way down: Mountain Cart, First Glider, First Flyer,…

Mountain ‘Jungfraujoch’ is right next to it and, according to other people, absolutely worth a visit. It offers a different view due to the superior height (3463m) & snowy glaciers, but also comes in at a different price (~150€ up&down by ‘Eiger Express tricable gondula’). It also accomodates the highest train station in Europe!

Staying in Interlaken region can give you price reductions on gondulas in the Jungfrau area :)

Remember to dress/pack in layers, since the mountain climate is so unpredictable!

Another practical tip: Exchange your money at the bank ‘Raiffeisenbank’. They’re trustworthy and the best option we found!

Interlaken region is THE capital for adrenaline junkies in Switzerland. You can find anything from paragliding, helicopter skiing to Glacier Canyon :D

Until next time!
Love, Karin