What Swiss Alpine village should I choose?
 

I took a trip to Zermatt and loved it. I'm hoping to recreate that trip with my wife and we're looking to see if there are any other Alpine villages I should look at? We're going to rent a house / apartment for a week during the summer.

We're looking to have an outdoorsey focused, active vacation (hiking, cycling, maybe something like river rafting) while eating great food in a small village in the Alps. I thought we should look at ski-resort towns, as they would have beautiful scenery and all the activities we could ever want in addition to good restaurants.

We are trying to avoid purpose-built ski towns. We prefer charm to glitz. And it doesn't have to be a ski town although the trams / funiculars found in those regions enable great day hikes. I suppose it doesn't have to be Switzerland either, could be Germany or Austria (or France / Italy).

Aside from Zermatt, what are your favorite Swiss Alpine villages for a summer vacation?

Having some water close by is a plus, either a lake or river.

The Berner Oberland area--look at Wengen or Kandestag or Lauterbrunnen.

Wengen. We liked it much better than Zermatt. You may too.

Have to agree with pja1 Wengen, Kendersteg is a very very quiet village and Lauterbrunnen is on the valley floor and can be claustraphobic for some.

Wengen, not too far from wonderful walks, the lakes either side of Interlaken and the other side of the Lauterbrunnen valley Murren and the Schilthorn

Hi ABC,

Jumping on the bandwagon here -- Wengen fits. It's another car-free village nestled on a mountainside; I wouldn't be surprised if you liked it even more than Zermatt because it's smaller and less crowded.

Lakes Brienz & Thun are nearby.

More info

www.mywengen.ch

Have fun!

s

Guarda, Scuol, Sent or any of the other Unterengadin villages.

Thanks to all for the replies.

We've had great success renting villas / apartments in Europe and I've already found some good options in Wengen.

Wengen is fine, but I don't recall it having any great places to eat. OTOH, if you rent an apartment or chalet, you can whip up some great meals at home.
This is Fodorite heresy, but we like Gstaad a lot better than Wengen, at least as a holiday base. It doesn't have the dramatic vistas of the Eiger/Lauterbrunnen area (you could do a day trip there), but the scenery is still first-rate and the walking/hiking opps are too. The food is a lot better than in Wengen. Despite its glamourpuss reputation, Gstaad is not at all snobby. We find the people there relaxed and friendly. http://www.gstaad.ch/en/index.cfm

I second the idea of Scuol, Sent and Guarda. Just want to add Sils and Pontresina (as you're asking for lakes/water).

Check www.interhome.ch for rental apartments/houses.

"Wengen is fine, but I don't recall it having any great places to eat."

Although I don't remember the names of the places we had dinner, I don't recall having a bad meal during our 4 night stay in Wengen.

Paul

I didn't either, it was mostly the usual standards for that part of Switzerland, but the OP specifically said they wanted to eat "great food". I've been to Wengen a fair number of times and can't think of any restaurants there serving memorable meals.

Use Lauterbrunnen as your base and you can easily visit Schilthorn, Jungfrau, Interlaken, Wengen, Grindelwald and Murren. Good choice of accommodation and restaurants.

Well, I guess I'll join FoFoBT on the Fodors's heresy and say that I, too, preferred Gstaad to Wengen. To me, the lower rolling hills are more beautiful than the dramatic peaks around Wengen, and the chalets covered with flowers are more cosy. And not only do I prefer the walking/hiking there, but the cycling is top-notch.

Yes, it's great for excursions -- nearby to Chateau d'Oex, Rougemont, Gruyeres, Bulle, to the west to Lake Geneva, or to the east to Lake Thun.

In addition, if the OP really does want good restaurants, then Gstaad would have to be it. Because the rich 'n famous (David Niven, Roger Moore types) have been calling it home since the 1950s, it has more gourmet restaurants than its size warrants.

However, because so many folks have heard so much about Wengen, and because it's car-free, I do often recommend Wengen as a base for a first-time or second-time visitor.

Anyway --

s