World Country Guide

Central Switzerland

The Berner Oberland, with Interlaken and the Jungfraujoch, as well as Europe’s highest railway, is a major tourist area; its spectacular scenery includes famous peaks, mountain lakes, alpine streams and wild flowers. Adelboden, Grindelwald and Lenk were already famous with the European nobility and artists in the 19th century. Interlaken, situated between the lakes of Brienz and Thun, is a renowned climatic health resort and the gateway to the Berner Oberland. From here a network of roads and mountain railways such as the narrow-gauge Berner-Oberland-Bahn (BOB) serve the resorts in the Jungfrau region. Jungfrau (4158m/13,642ft), Mnch (4099m/13,448ft) and Eiger (3970m/13,024ft), whose dangerous, nearly perpendicular northern ascent was first climbed in 1938, are three of the most famous mountains in Switzerland. Their names mean the ‘maiden’, the ‘monk’ and the ‘ogre’; together they are known as the Finsteraarhorn Group. Finsteraarhorn (4275m/14,026ft), the highest peak of the Berner Alps, is dominated by glaciers which stretch from the upper Aare and the Rhne valley to Lake Geneva. Also in the region, excursions up the Schilthorn mountain by funicular (made famous by James Bond in the movie Her Majesty’s Secret Service); to the waterfalls at Giessbach and Lauterbrunnen: to the Reichenbach Falls (where Sherlock Holmes fell to his fictional death); and to the Swiss Open-Air Museum at Ballenberg, with its charmingly preserved houses from all regions of the country displaying traditional crafts and trades, are all recommended. The popular winter resorts of Adelboden, Lenk and Zweisimmen are reached from Spiez on Lake Thun. The castle at Thun, with its historical museum located at the top of the Altstadt (old town), should not be missed.
The popular year-round resorts of Grindelwald, Mrren and Wengen thrive during the winter ski and snowboard season (mid-December to late-March). Grindelwald is quite old-fashioned and quiet in the evenings but with excellent skiing, ideal for intermediates and beginners, and off-piste activities including tobogganing and winter walking trails. The ski network links up with the scenic ski village of Wengen, popular with British skiers, and with lots of long, gentle runs, ideal for intermediates. Nearby tiny, traffic-free Mrren counts among Switzerland’s more rustic resorts, with limited but challenging skiing including the famous Schilthorn run where the British invented modern-day skiing. The quiet resort of Kandersteg is a good base for cross-country skiing.
This ancient capital (known as ‘Berne’ by Switzerland’s French-speaking citizens) provides opportunities for sightseeing and shopping in the 11th-century arcaded streets. The backdrop is provided by the Jura in the northwest and the south is dominated by the Alps and their foothills. The medieval city centre is located on the Aare River between the 13th-century clocktower (Zeitglockenturm) and the striking copper spire of the Nydegg church (Nydeggkirche). Across the Nyddegg bridge are the ancient medieval bear pits (Brengraben), a reminder of the city’s ursine emblem seen throughout the town in the form of flags, statues, stained-glass windows and souvenirs. There are daily vegetable and flower markets here in summer, and a celebrated onion market on the fourth Monday of November.
Luzern (known as ‘Lucerne’ by the country’s French-speaking citizens) is located on the edge of a sizeable lake, the Vierwaldstttersee. Its medieval old town (Altstadt) remains intact; important buildings include the Hofkirche, the old Town Hall (1602-1606) and the famous Lwendenkmal, a memorial to the city mascot the ‘dying Lion of Lucerne’, carved out of a cliff. Spanning the River Reuss, the 170m- (558ft-) long, covered wooden Chapel Bridge, was the oldest in Switzerland (1333) until it was destroyed by fire in 1993. It has since been reconstructed. Luzern also houses the Richard Wagner Museum and the Swiss Transport Museum. An international music festival is held here every year.
The Lucerne region, with its mountains, lakes, pine forests and meadows, is traditionally a very popular tourist area. Ferries on the Vierwaldstttersee service the tiny villages surrounding the lakes and connect with various mountain railways and cableways. Cablecars, passenger lifts and cogwheel railways provide transport to the Gtsch, the Pilatus and the Sonnenberg and other mountains. South of Luzern, near the small town of Engelberg, the world’s first revolving cable car ascends Mount Titlis, the highest lookout-point in central Switzerland. Historians should visit Schwyz, one of the three original cantons, the country’s namesake and home to the Museum of the Swiss Federal Charter and the Forum of Swiss History.
The main ski areas near Luzern include the attractive, traditional village of Andermatt with reliable snow and challenging skiing, and Engelberg, with a small ski area suitable for all abilities.