From Grindelwald, what is the best itinerary to visit the major Bernese Oberland attractions?:

We'd love to see:

Schilthorn
Jungfrau
Trummelbach Falls
Schynige Platte

(Wengen and Murren if there is time).

In just 2 days you cannot physically possibly do all that - if you delete Schynige Platte you can spend one day doing the Jungfrau and one day doing Schilthorn, thru which you must pass Murren en route - Wengen is a nice town but a paucity of things to see from a touristic aspect.

check out these sources for more on trains and conveyances you will use in this area - www.swisstravelsystem.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com. If traveling anywhere else in Switzerland by public transit check out the Swiss Pass, which passes not only on trains but lake boats, city buses and trams and the iconic postal buses and also gives free entry to 400+ Swiss museums. If just going to the Jungfrau Region then investigate more the Jungfraubahn Pass, valid on all the transits you list.

That's ridiculous.

It only takes about 10 minutes to go up to the Schilthorn on the gondola from Murren.

You can travel from Grindelwald to Wilderswil by train in the morning. Transfer to choo-choo to Schynige Platte. Spend a few hours up there. Walk up to the panoramaweg to see lakes Thun and Breinz.

Come back down then travel to Murren via Lauterbrunnen in the afternoon. Go up to the Schilthorn.


However, one of best walks is from Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg.

You can reach Mannlichen by gondola from Grindelwald.

Thin

Thank-you for the information! Yes--I've read many comments saying that the Mannlichen-Kleine Scheidegg walk is one of the best.

Any opinions as to what sights should be at the top of our list? It's our first time in the Bernese Oberland! We're trying to prioritize in case we can't see everything.

for just two days you yes have to prioritize - I guess the highlight has to be the Jungfraujoch trains - the world-famous train to Europe's highest train station and a sea of ice in the top of the Aletsch Glacier, which you can walk too - plus the ice grottoes and spectacular views down over Interlaken to the north and the long Aletsch Glacier stretching far to the south.

You can twin the Jungfraujoch excursion easily with the Kl Schiedegg-Mannlichen hike - the best hike for many folks as it is relatively easy (folks with baby strolleers do it!) and you can nifty views over both the Lauterbrunnen Valley and Grindelwald amphitheatre from this ridge walk.

From Mannlichen - a celebrated viewpoint for its eagle-eyed views down over Interlaken, lovingly wedged between the two lakes that bookend it, you can take aerial cable ways either to Wengen or Grindelwald - to me Grindelwald is a must - not for the town itself but for the wondrous views of its huge bowl-lie valley back dropped by sheer cliffs.

I don't like Grindelwald; I think it is too touristy. Too many souvenir shops and traffic.

Wengen an Murren are car-free towns.

Be careful of Schilthorn if you suffer from vertigo or motion sickness. Gondola ascends too quickly and this causes vertigo/altitude sickness in many people.

I would rather go up to the Schynige Platte than Schilthorn.

Thin

It only takes about 10 minutes to go up to the Schilthorn on the gondola from Murren.>

misinformation - it takes a lot longer than that on what I have seen referred to as the longest aerial cableway in the Alps. A lot longer than 10 minutes - are you sure you rode the gondolas from Murren to Piz Gloria?

Um, I have the photos to prove it.

Keith and I had coffee in the revolving restaurant.

Went into the gift shop.

Thin

Trip Advisor says trip to Schilthorn is 30 minutes.

10-30 minutes. Still more than enough time for trip.

Now that I think about it I am pretty sure the gondola stops midway for 5 minutes. I don't remember why tough.


Thin

Yes the gondola stops - if I recall correctly you may have to change gondolas midway - not sure but the trip always takes 32 minutes all told according to Schilthorn's official site.

It's not forbidden to guess. But people who want to know it really have a look at the timetable:
Muerren - Schilthorn: 17 min
Stechelberg (Lauterbrunnen Valley) - Schilthorn: 32 min
Lauterbrunnen - Stechelberg - Schilthorn: 52 min