Mountain Villages of Switzerland: Interlaken, Lauterbrunnen + Murren

Interlaken, Switzerland

This is the fifth of a series of 5 blog posts dedicated to Switzerland.

When I check my bags at curbside in Phoenix I told the attendants where I was going. “Are you going to Interlaken?” the woman asked. I said, “Yes!” and she squealed. I now completely understand why.

This is a must-go in Switzerland and I cannot wait to show you why!

Interlaken

There is a west and east side of Interlaken the train takes you to both sides. I forgot which side we stayed but we explored both! I loved that the stores stayed open past 6 pm, they closed around 9 pm if I recall correctly. Most everything in Europe closes at 5 or 6 pm, it kind of makes me sad but I like that Europeans don’t work as hard! That’s probably why they have less stress.

Can you just see the joy on my face?

Harder in Interlaken

A little train takes you from the base of Interlaken to Harder, the top to enjoy magnificent views of the popular Jungfrau area, Interlaken, and the two lakes on both sides.

Here’s one side:

Here’s the other side!

Again, it was packed with people but then everyone disappeared and we were stuck because the train stopped working. They said we might have to get helicoptered down and I got so excited – you know how much people pay for those helicopter rides? haha! So while everyone was eating saying warm I told Jackie we had to get outside to get our photos – that was our chance!

And, that’s how we lucked out yet again with no one in our epic shots.

St. Beautus Caves

The St. Beautus Caves in Interlaken was on our must-see list, only I have to say, Jackie and I both agreed you can totally skip it! The photos online look amazing but Jackie and I thought the photos really sold it and it was just ok. I do have some hilarious video we took in it so I’ll need to add that to our personal video I’m editing. I mean the outside is sort of impressive but it looked so much better in the photos online, so good job photographer (see the power of photography)!

It just reminded me of the limestone caves we saw on field trips in Nor Cal. It was also a very long cave (not as cold as you’d think) and it all looked the same LOL. This isn’t to say that this still isn’t magnificent to see for $16. It’s an ancient cave with a waterfall running thorough it for crying out loud.

And that’s about it. You’ll have to wait for the video.

Murren

Jackie planned a night in Murren nestled between those mountains, to get some real Switzerland mountain town scenery. And so, we did. We had to get up there by train and also a gondola! I think Murren is quite sleepy and just hotels but it’s so relaxing. Our view was ridiculous!

Breakfast was pretty darn cute too. I packed that Swiss flag bread in my backpack and ate it later in the day when we were walking. A tip – take snacks with you, even from the included breakfast. Better yet, bring some ziplock bags for it!

Gimmelwald

Jackie wanted to walk down to Gimmelwald, another spot she read about from Rick Steves. It’s another little town just down the mountain, similar to Murren. Small, quaint, slow and a nice walk on a sunny day. We took the cable car back up to our hotel in Murren to get our luggage and head back down to explore the last town.

^^ Did you catch it? “Haus Diana” Yeahhhhh! Why didn’t we stay there Jackie? Hmmmmm.

We walked and saw sheep, horses and a donkey sun bathing. At first we thought maybe the donkey was dying but I remembered my friend Rachel saying if there’s no predators around they will lie down.

She said they like to sunbathe and the donkey eventually got up as we continued walking which made me feel better about taking and posting this photo.

^^ Is this real life? I have the most incredible video of these sheep and their bells. It was like a wind chime sound, and just dreamy. I got a lot of comments on my Instastories about it and I can’t wait to include it in my video!

Lauterbrunnen

At the base of the mountains, in this little valley is Lauterbrunnen, a spot with lots of waterfalls, 72 says my notes Jackie gave me ;) The name Lauter Brunnen means “many fountains” isn’t that cute?

And this is when I say, “I’m not ready to go home yet!! I LOVE THIS WEATHER!”

But, all good things must come to an end, including European vacations. Because I cannot afford to eat out everyday in Switzerland when a mediocre burger is $20+ and $60+ at a nice restaurant. Sheesh. I could however, live off the chocolate and cheese, that’s not a bad diet, right? ;)

Now if you excuse me, I have to wrap up a quick video tour of Switzerland for you and put these images to life! My favorite part is editing my videos, especially when I am able to take one of these epic vacations once a year! Thanks so much for reminiscing my vacation with me! What an adventure and a big thanks to Jackie, who I have known since sophomore year of college for being my travel companion, adventure seeker, entertainer, and photo taker. xx

Switzerland Post Series:

• Traveling around Switzerland by Train
• Zurich Photo Tour
• Mount Pilatus in Lucerne Switzerland
• Berne + Montreux + Lausanne
• Video tour of Switzerland
• A Guide to Discovering Switzerland (our 10 day itinerary in 9 cities/towns)