Europe >> Central Europe >> Switzerland >> Bernese Highlands

The southern end of canton Berne includes some of the tallest and most famous peaks in Switzerland including the Jungfrau and the Eiger (right).

Cities

  • Interlaken -- a nice jumping off point for the higher ski villages
  • Spiez -- a picture postcard town surrounded by stunning scenery
  • Thun

Villages

Other Destinations

  • Kleine Scheidegg [1] -hotel and train station for highest railway in Europe.
  • The Jungfraujoch [2] is the endpoint of the highest railway in Europe, at the peak of the Jungfrau mountain. From her you can go sledding on the glacier, walk through an ice palace, or shop & dine in the train station complex built right into the side of the mountain. Along the way there, the train stops at viewstations inside the mountain and you can look out onto the glaciers.
  • Schilthorn [3] is the cheaper alternative to the Jungfraujoch, offers the same view but from the other side of the valley & minus the glacier. On the mountain peak is a revolving restaurant called the Piz Gloria, where the 007 flick On Her Majesty's Secret Service was shot.
  • The Truemmelbach Waterfalls [4] are not very impressive as waterfalls, but beautifully located in the mountains. The Truemmelbach Fall itself is not to be missed. The sole outlet for glacial melt in the area, it cuts through the *inside* of the mountain and can be accessed on foot via a lift. It costs money to view, but is well worth it. The power of the moving water is intense in such close quarters. You can reach this by bus.

Culture and History

This is probably the finest area of the Swiss Alps. Most people will come into Interlaken, sitting between two lakes, the Thunersee & the Brienzersee. From Interlaken, twin valleys go to either the resort town of Grindelwald, or the Lauterbrunnen, which has cable car connections to several stunningly located and isolated towns. Several glaciers are in this area.

Talk

While Switzerland has four main languages, this region speaks mostly German

Travel to Bernese Highlands - Visa Requirements

Most people get in to Interlaken. Trains run from most major Swiss cities. Roads run into Interlaken and up the valleys, but only so far.

Tours and Getting around Bernese Highlands

Bernese Highlands tourist attractions and sightseeing

  • The Brienzer Rothornbahn [5] train runs up the mountain overlooking Brienz, providing fabulous views of the Brienzersee. It is also the last mountain railway in Switzerland to exclusively use steam engines (although they also have one diesel unit).
  • Lake Cruises The clarity of the blue water and stunning mountain scenery make cruising on either the Thunersee or Brienzersee a great option
  • Cable cars Another great thing to do is ride the many cable cars that criss-cross the valleys, providing awesome vantage points
  • Biking Rent a bike in Murren, ride down the valley, and ride the cable car back up
  • Hiking There are countless great options, one of the best being hiking a mountain ridge parallel to the Brienzersee

Itineraries

Bernese Highlands city tours

Bernese Highlands Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive

Bernese Highlands nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs

Stay safe

Get out

  • Visit the lakes of Maggiore or Como to the south, maybe going further to where they go into Italy
  • Other resort options are in the Ticino area

Destinations in Bernese Highlands:

This page was last edited by Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. Based on work by Jim Nicholson, Nick Roux, Oliver Buchino, Jordan Mills, benimoff@usc.edu, Evan Prodromou, Elizabeth, Ryan Holliday and Jani Patokallio, Wikitravel user(s) RacingRog, Halsteadk and WindHorse, Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel and others. - Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license

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