The first time you walk from the train station up to Lauterbrunnen the beauty of the surroundings will leave you speechless. This Swiss village is something out of fantasy. The river running through with the sheer cliffs on each side and the quaint Swiss architecture makes this place feel unreal. Not to mention Staubbach falls dropping nearly one thousand feet from the cliffside into the village. There is truly no other place on earth that feels or looks like Lauterbrunnen.
First things first, you’ve probably seen this image all over social media. So, how do you actually get there? Let me walk you through the steps that we took to get there. We flew into Zurich, Switzerland. Most of the European airports are very close to their main train stations. Zurich is no exception. After going through customs, we headed to the main train station (Zurich HB). There are many ticket kiosks, but they can be a challenge if you haven’t used them before. Feel free to speak with an employee of the train station and they can get you headed in the right direction. Don’t worry many of them speak English!
After purchasing our train tickets, we headed to Lauterbrunnen via Interlaken Ost. This is the only train that goes directly to Lauterbrunnen. It was about a two and a half hour to three hours train ride. There are around 29 trains that run daily from Zurich to Lauterbrunnen, so if you miss one there will be another. Don’t stress!
As a side note, not all trains in Europe are created equal. In Switzerland they have two types of tickets first-class and second-class. The cost of the first-class ticket is about 30% higher, and you really don’t get much for your money (different seats, slightly more comfortable and stylish). The train cars are also labeled with a ‘1’ and ‘2’ to designate. I would recommend the second-class ticket as you probably won’t notice much difference.
Upon arrival to Interlaken Ost, change platforms to board the train to Lauterbrunnen. That is the last stop for that train. Depending on where your accommodation is Wengen, Murren, Gimmelwald, or Lauterbrunnen. They all have separate, trains or cable cars to get you to your home for your stay. If you are staying in Wengen, change platforms in Lauterbrunnen and board the cogwheel train. For Murren, take the cable car up to the cogwheel train. The cable car is easy to access from the train station. For Gimmelwald, this is primarily connected by the route to Murren, and you must take a cable car from Murren to get there. All of the cable cars and cogwheel trains require separate tickets. I would highly recommend the Jungfrau pass which I will talk through in my next post, as well as how to access Gimmelwald.
Now back to Lauterbrunnen. After exiting the train station, take the path up to the main road through the village. Quickly you will be able to see Staubbach Falls off to the right. To get to the little white church, and the best photo op, take the main road to Fuhren street, turn left, and take this road to the end. At the end, look right for the money shot 🙂
In my opinion, this location is worth the time it takes to get there. This area of Switzerland is absolutely breathtaking. I have been here twice and plan to take my kids in the near future!
Until next time, keep adventuring! XO Joanna
Leave a Reply