Staying in Hésingue (France) put us in close proximity to northwestern Switzerland. After studying the routes and drive times, along with watching a helpful episode of Rick Steves’ Europe, we put Lauterbrunnen and Schilthorn in the Bern region on our itinerary. The lush valley is surrounded by steep peaks and dozens of waterfalls. As soon as you reach Interlaken, the scenery shifts from rolling hills to snow-capped mountains in the clouds.
This is Mürrenbachfall, which is at the base of the Schilthorn gondola ride in Mürren.
The gondola ride — which was fantastic and totally worthwhile — was our most expensive activity of the whole trip. Even if we’d researched the fees ahead of time and saved ourselves from sticker shock, I think we still would’ve done it.
The gondola had three stops on the way to the top: Gimmelwald, Mürren, and Birg. Each required we unload and reload into a different gondola. Chuck kept track of the altitude as we climbed.
Of course, once we reached the top at Schilthorn, the view was incredible.
The summit put us at 9744 ft. with 360-degree views of surrounding mountains and way above the clouds. One of the more interesting facts about Schilthorn is that it was a filming location for the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. There were James Bond references everywhere, including a small museum with artifacts from the set.
Jackson really enjoyed the world map of filming locations for all the James Bond films. (I think only info about No Time to Die was missing.)
At Birg (one stop below the summit) there was an incredible thrill walk, which four out of five of us enjoyed.
The stairs, walkway, and fencing allowed us to scale the cliff side safely while also giving us a staggering view of the expanse below.
The clouds moved constantly, so new views surfaced every minute or so. Sometimes we could see straight down, but other times we could see nothing but fluff below.
(I recorded time-lapse videos of the gondola ride, which are saved in a highlight on Instagram.)
Gimmelwald is a charming, foot-traffic-only town that visitors are welcome to explore.
If you were really adventurous, you could glide off the mountain instead of ride down it.
Look at this good boy who enjoyed his gondola ride!
Once we were safely back at the base of the mountain, we walked over to the waterfall for a few photos.
We stopped in Lauterbrunnen for a quick walk-around. Charming, charming, charming.
My photos don’t do the mountains justice.
With a two-hour drive back ahead of us, we finished our day in the Alps with a quick stop at Lake Thunhersee for a few photos. Imagine sailing here! Wow.
Another good boy! (or girl!)
We got back to our AirBNB in Hésingue with enough daylight left for Chuck and I to walk down to Dominos to grab dinner. I cannot impress upon you enough how absolutely lovely this little town was. Over and over again I am reminded that I am a small town girl who likes a slow pace.
