Lauterbrunnen Valley
I travel quite frequently. Credit where credit is due, I would not travel as much if not for my parents. They feel the necessity for their kids to learn, explore and see the world. Most of our travel was within the U.S. and mostly along the West Coast, going up to Alaska where I have a lot of family, or traveling long road trips to national parks. They do it not only for me and my sister to learn, but also for some quality family bonding time.
Summer of 2024 was an incredible change. We would be traveling to Europe. This wasn’t much of a shock, my parents had been discussing it for a while, but to actually know it would be happening was an exciting change.
My parents planned for each of us to choose a place to visit. My mom opted for Barcelona, where she had gone before and wanted to go back. My dad went with Scotland, where he found out most of his ancestry was from. My sister chose Northern Ireland because of the show Derry Girls. I struggled initially, as there were many places I wanted to go, but finally I settled on Lauterbrunnen Valley in Switzerland, the place J.R.R. Tolkien is said to have gained his inspiration for the elven valley of Rivendell in The Lord of the Rings and other inspirations for his works.
“I journeyed on foot with a heavy pack through much of Switzerland, and over many high passes. It was approaching the Aletsch that we were nearly destroyed by boulders loosened in the sun rolling down a snow-slope. An enormous rock in fact passed between me and the next in front. That and the 'thunder-battle' – a bad night in which we lost our way and slept in a cattle-shed – appear in The Hobbit.”
- J.R.R. Tolkien
Made up of 72 waterfalls, Lauterbrunnen is a fitting name for the valley as it derives from the German words “lauter,” meaning “pure” or “many,” and “brunnen,” meaning “springs” or “fountains” – a direct reference to the many waterfalls the valley has.
My family flew into Geneva, Switzerland, from Edinburgh, Scotland. We then planned to travel by train to Lauterbrunnen. I say planned because things did not go according to plan. On our travel day to Lauterbrunnen a massive storm hit and our train was delayed and later cancelled entirely. We received word that there were fallen trees and flooding, making it impossible to make it through the pass. We were stuck in a lakeside village called Spiez. Fortunately, buses came for us, though it took around three hours. It wasn’t all bad though, as during that time we were stuck at the train station, I saw a rainbow, and perhaps the most stunning view of my life.
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| View From Train Station in Spiez |
When we finally arrived in Lauterbrunnen, it was night, and so there was not a whole lot to see. However, when looking closely I could just make out where the cliffs met the sky. We stayed at an AirBnB that was 731 Swiss Francs a night or $929 USD. A spendier option, Lauterbrunnen Valley has many areas to stay. Unfortunately, all places to stay in Lauterbrunnen are expensive, with the least expensive being hostels around $150 and the average price around $350-400 per night.
Lauterbrunnen Valley is only a small section of an even greater area, located in the Bernese-Oberland area of the Swiss Alps. Lauterbrunnen Valley exists within the municipality of Lauterbrunnen. The municipality of Lauterbrunnen contains several villages, including Gimmelwald, Mürren, Wengen and Lauterbrunnen (the village not the valley or the municipality). Lauterbrunnen Valley, is a great glacier carved valley surrounded by towering peaks of the Swiss Alps, the most notable of which are Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau.
While Eiger and Mönch don’t have a lot to offer aside from incredible views, Jungfrau has an incredible glacier — Aletsch — that tourists can walk through. Called the “Ice Palace,” this area has incredible tunnels filled with carved ice sculptures. While entrance to the Ice Palace is free, tickets to the Jungfraujoch are not, and can cost around 200 Swiss Franc’s or $256 USD.
While my family opted not to go to Jungfraujoch, we did choose to visit Schilthorn. Gaining most of its fame in 1969 after starring in the James Bond film “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service,” atop the summit of Schilthorn at 2,970 meters (9,744 feet) sits Piz Gloria. Made up of a rotating dining room, an observation deck and a James Bond museum, Schilthorn truly has it all.
Between Schilthorn and the valley floor is yet another activity—The Thrill Walk. This short walk, takes you along a steel walkway riddled with thrills from glass panels you can walk on to cable tunnels you can crawl through. There is no reason to be scared though as the structure is securely fastened with plenty of safety precautions.
Back on the valley floor, after arriving the previous night, my family was greeted by the wonderful sights of the landscape. The most notable of which was undoubtedly the most famous and notable waterfall, Staubbach Falls. This 297-meter (974 feet) waterfall is located right by Lauterbrunnen Village and paints the already magnificent landscape in a fairytale way.
My family didn’t have any set plans while we were in Lauterbrunnen, though by far the best purchase was for the Berner-Oberland Pass. For only 240 Francs ($306 USD) you can get the full fair and three days of travel. This pass allows full travel around the region on almost all forms of public transportation. With all of the buses, trains and cable cars, it is almost necessary to explore the entirety of the region. There is another option as well, only slightly less expensive at 210 Francs ($268 USD), the Jungfrau Travel Pass allows the same benefits, however, it keeps you confined to the Jungfrau region. Either pass is worth it though to explore the full extent of what the valley has to offer.
“I left the view of Jungfrau with deep regret: eternal snow, etched as it seemed against eternal sunshine, and the Silberhorn sharp against dark blue: the Silvertine (Celebdil) of my dreams.”
- J.R.R. Tolkien
My family took one of the many gondolas up from Lauterbrunnen Village to Grütschalp station, where we opted to hike to the nearby village of Mürren. The hike was a remarkable sight as we went through the green valley surrounded by snowcapped peaks, green forests and towering cliffs. After stopping for a short lunch in Mürren, we opted to head back down to the valley floor and make our way back to Lauterbrunnen via bus. On the way we stopped by Trümmelbach falls, the underground waterfall that was a short convenient stop along the way.
The next day we made use of our Berner-Oberland Pass and traveled around the valley taking time to go by train from Lauterbrunnen Village to Wengen, and then from Wengen we traveled by gondola to Grindelwald passing through Männlichen a short station along the way to swap from one gondola to another.
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| View From Männlichen |
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| Kleine Schiedegg Express |
It just goes to show how great Lauterbrunnen truly is.
I have traveled a lot around the U.S. With family in Alaska I thought I had seen some of the greatest mountains there are. I have been to Denali, and my uncle has a property that overlooks a lake and the Wrangell-Saint Elias Mountain Range. There is nothing though that quite compares to the beauty of Lauterbrunnen. With its breathtaking waterfalls, snowcapped peaks and green valley it is truly a wondrous place. I find myself taking inspiration from it, and it is no wonder that generations of authors before me have taken inspiration from this remarkable valley.
At a Glance:
Where: Lauterbrunnen Valley, Switzerland.
What: Travel the Swiss Alps, exploring the amazing sights Lauterbrunnen valley has to offer.
Best Way to Get There: Fly into the Zurich airport and then travel by train to Lauterbunnen
Where to Stay: A hotel, hostel or airbnb in Lauterbrunnen Valley
Official Website: https://lauterbrunnen.swiss/en/
What Rick Steves Has to Say: https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/switzerland/lauterbrunnen-valley
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