Up high on the Jungfrau in Switzerland

The Jungfrau is the highest point you can reach by rail in Europe. It’s over 11,000 feet up high in the stunningly beautiful mountains, which are a vision in white.

It was almost overwhelming standing at the top of this force of nature, on the Sphinx observation terrace (which we reached by Switzerland's fastest lift - taking just 27 seconds to reach the height of 3,571 metres). I had wrapped up really warmly for the occasion, so was pleasantly surprised by how hot it was. I guess we were nearer the sun by being so high up! Mind you, I think we were lucky and I can imagine how cold it could get when the wind whips in. The average temperature across the year is -7.9C.

[caption id="attachment_2624" align="alignnone" width="1200"] View of the Aletsch Glacier[/caption]

The Jungfrau is beautiful, and also (you won’t be surprised to hear) very popular. That’s understandable, for who wouldn’t want to enjoy the views over the Aletsch Glacier (the longest Alpine glacier, at 23km), and of the Jungrau, Mönch, Schilthorn and Eiger? When the sun is shining, the vista stretches on and on and you can see the Vosges in France and Black Forest in Germany, but cloud cover can change that in an instant (and sunglasses are a must to avoid snow blindness).

You would expect a place like this to be full of other tourists (over a million of us last year), and it is, but that doesn’t mean you don’t get space to enjoy the surroundings. Despite all the people, I found being outside and enjoying the views utterly wonderful, and very, very special.

However, I was less taken by the added extras which make this such an “experience” for visitors.

[caption id="attachment_2625" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Some of the ice sculptures[/caption]

Some of this is great, and I did appreciate the ice sculpture palace with its slightly eerie, blueish sculptures, and the Alpine sensation with its story of tourism in the region (for example: it was Italian labourers who did most of the work on constructing the railway), but others – such as a very crowded Lindt chocolate shop – are less appealing.  There are also numerous shops and places to eat, including a Bollywood restaurant and the Restaurant Crystal, which serves traditional Swiss cuisine, including fondue (of course).

If the weather is good, you can also hike your way over the mountains, and also take part in skiing, snowboarding and ziplining, which would be terrific fun.

[caption id="attachment_2627" align="alignnone" width="675"] At the top of the Jungfrau[/caption]

A huge part of your Jungfrau visit will be how you get there, and the rail journey (in fact, there’s more than one) is spectacular, with the highest railway station in Europe nestled between the Jungfrau and Monch, at a height of 11,333ft.

We went via Interlaken to Kleine Scheidegg and then started our ascent via the Lauterbrunnen valley, with its beautiful scenery and waterfalls, although we came back via Grindelwald. I’d recommend trying both routes out, as it means you see more of the area.

I loved the views of the mountains and took far too many pictures, although the second part of the trip, from Kleine Scheidegg (which is already 6,762 feet up) to the Jungfraujoch is mainly in the Eiger tunnel, which lasts for 7km. Somehow this is still impressive – what a feat of engineering - and it was lovely to stop off twice on the way – at Eigerwand and Eismeer  - to get used to the altitude and also enjoy the view from some great panoramic windows. The snow looked incredible from Eismeer, while Eigerwand gives you the chance to look at the north face of the famous Eiger.

[caption id="attachment_2628" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Coming down the Jungfrau, via Grindelwald[/caption]

All the trains were, as you would expect, extremely comfortable and such a lovely way to travel. Be warned, however, that they do get very crowded – we were fortunate to get seats on the way back – and we needed to sit down and recover from our alpine exertions!

My only negative about this whole experience was the cost. The rail journey is extremely expensive, around 200 Swiss Francs per person for a return trip (around £156) although there are reductions if you have a Swiss Pass (well worth it if you are going to travel elsewhere). You really need to see it as the experience of a lifetime – and budget accordingly.

More on fares and tickes here.

Read more on Switzerland with:

A day in Interlaken

Read about my trip to Meiringen and the Reichenbach Falls!

Disclosure: I was fortunate to visit Switzerland as part of a wonderful Great Railways Journey to the Jungfrau, which meant all my travel was free (including the train up to the Jungfrau). However, none of the establishments had any input into this blog post.

A day in Interlaken, Switzerland

[caption id="attachment_2531" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Me on the viewing platform at Harder Kulm, at the top of Interlaken[/caption]

I fell in love with Switzerland via the written word. As a child, I was a huge fan of the admittedly old-fashioned (they were dated even then) Chalet School books by Elinor M Brent-Dyer, and Switzerland was a major character.

The school was located in all sorts of places, from the Austrian Alps to Guernsey. But in one stretch, the girls attended school in the Bernese Oberland and such exotic sounding places as Interlaken and Lake Thun became surprisingly familiar to me.

So, I was thrilled to be given the chance to visit these places, to see them in reality.

Interlaken is a resort town on the Aare River, and has an incredibly dramatic setting: between two very blue lakes, Thun and Brienz. This positioning is known as being on an alluvial plain and goes back thousands of years (once upon a time, the lakes were joined together). It is really beautiful – especially when you go up, via a funicular, as we did, and view it from high up in the mountains at Harder Kulm (which has a terrific glass walkway, for those, like me, who aren’t afraid of heights, as well as a charming restaurant where I sampled some traditional Swiss noodles with apple sauce).

Interlaken is also right in the heart of the Jungfrau mountain region and you can travel from here to see the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau (and go up the Jungfrau, the highest point you can reach by railway in Europe, too, but that’s another story).

[caption id="attachment_2532" align="alignnone" width="1200"] A view of the city, from the restaurant at the Metropole hotel[/caption]

I arrived there by boat, which was a lovely and extremely scenic form of transport, but there are trains with excellent connections too, and they go all over.

The city is a great location for an outdoors holiday, surrounded by railways, cable cars, the lakes and mountains, all ready to be explored, by bike, train or hiking. In the summer, the lakes are so mild, that you can swim in them too, or scuba dive, windsurf or canoe.

Interlaken is also easy to navigate, full of shops and restaurants, and with a field right in the centre which is used as a landing pad for the many paragliders. I know my son would absolutely love doing this, although it did sound very expensive (over £100 a go). To be honest, Switzerland, although gorgeous, is pricey, but it’s also clean and beautiful!

[caption id="attachment_2535" align="alignnone" width="1200"] We went up to this viewing platform at Harder Kulm[/caption]

Interlaken is really lovely to get around, with a large promenade, the Höheweg, dissecting the city and with shops, cafes and more on either side. You can also go off the main thoroughfare, walking past the river and into the old town, where more restaurants and businesses await.

[caption id="attachment_2536" align="alignnone" width="1200"] And the views from the top were incredible![/caption]

I enjoyed mooching around the shops (especially the chocolate ones) and was disappointed not to have time to take part in a chocolate making workshop which I saw in the window of the wonderfully named “Funky Chocolates Club Switzerland”. It has daily hour long workshops for those interested.

For those who like their chocolate, the Grand Restaurant Schuh puts on a daily “chocolate show” which I’m very sorry to have missed.

I would also recommend a visit to the Metropole Hotel, which may surprise you as, from the outside, it is pretty ugly! Inside, however, it’s a four star establishment and it has a terrific panoramic restaurant with beautiful views of the city. I very much enjoyed the drink and cake I sampled there, and was impressed that the price didn’t seem to have been bumped up too much for the view! (I paid around 8 Swiss Francs)

[caption id="attachment_2533" align="alignnone" width="1200"] The Friendship Garden by the Hotel Interlaken[/caption]

Interlaken is very well served with hotels, including some which look spectacular. One of the oldest is the Hotel Interlaken, located on Höheweg Street. The first Japanese garden in Switzerland, the “Garden of Friendship” which symbolises friendship between this city and  Otsu in Japan, is right next to it.

Interlaken Castle is right in the heart of the city and is known for its collection of more than 100,000 tin figures. I’m afraid we didn’t make it to see these, but enjoyed walking nearby and hearing the story of the city’s monastery which apparently had a secret path connecting it to the convent!

[caption id="attachment_2534" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Can you see the face in the mountain?[/caption]

The legend of the Harder Man is about a monk who is said to have attacked a young girl who jumped off the mountains to die. His punishment was to have to look down on the scene of his crime – and indeed it does seem as if there is a face carved into the mountainside.

There are festivals and events in the region all year round, including the Interlaken Classics music festival (Easter time) and the Open Air Festival from June to September. There’s also an International Trucker & Country Festival each summer, while the centre of Interlaken is transformed into an ice rink from December to February.

All in all Interlaken was a lovely place for a day out and I’d have very much liked to have stayed longer and enjoyed all it had to offer – beauty, fresh air, outdoor activities and that chocolate!

Read about my trip to Meiringen and the Reichenbach Falls!

Disclosure: I was fortunate to visit Switzerland as part of a wonderful Great Railways Journey to the Jungfrau, which meant all my travel was free (including the use of the funicular up to Harder Kulm). However, none of the establishments had any input into this blog post.

Sherlock in Switzerland: Meiringen and the Reichenbach Falls

[caption id="attachment_2508" align="alignnone" width="900"] The dramatic Reichenbach Falls[/caption]

Sherlock Holmes and Switzerland are not an obvious connection, until you think about Professor James Moriarty and a certain very famous waterfall. That’s why I was so excited to be invited onto a trip to Meiringen in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland. It meant I would see the Reichenbach Falls, where, in Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Final Problem, Moriarty (and apparently Holmes...) fell to their deaths.

PLEASE WATCH MY VIDEO TO SEE THE FALLS IN ACTION!

[kad_youtube url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHeP7jMnzsk" width=200 height=100 ]

 

Meiringen is a small town, which is easy to walk around and well served by a rail station which can take you all over the country. It is in a valley, surrounded by beautiful mountains and waterfalls, including of course the Reichenbach.

[caption id="attachment_2509" align="alignnone" width="1200"] A room with a lovely view - at the Parkhotel du Sauvage[/caption]

I was fortunate enough to stay at the Parkhotel du Sauvage, which is just five minutes walk from the station, and where Conan Doyle himself, author of the Sherlock Holmes stories, used to reside when he came to Switzerland. It is a four star hotel, built in 1880 in an art deco style, which I really liked. I was happy with my large, clean room, though it was quite sparse. That didn’t bother me, as I was content to admire the view, which included a lit up Reichenbach Falls and silhouette of Sherlock at night. However, I was a bit bothered when the curtains didn’t pull together completely (and that you had to pay extra for Wifi!).

Still, I enjoyed staying there and found the staff friendly and the food enjoyable. I was especially delighted by a delicious plate of desserts on the first night of my stay...

[caption id="attachment_2510" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Delicious desserts at the hotel[/caption]

Meiringen is a fine base for walking, or travelling further afield to the cities of Lucerne or Interlaken, or a trip up the Jungfrau mountain. The village itself is said to be where meringues were first made, but I have my doubts about this. Still, it boasts a lovely bakery which has not quite as lovely prices, and a local supermarket which proved rather more to my wallet’s liking (Switzerland is very expensive).

There is also a local museum (but not with information in English), a small fortress and the wonderful St Michael’s Church which has its own archaeological excavations which go back 1,000 years (just walk down the stairs at the back of the church to see these).

[caption id="attachment_2511" align="alignnone" width="1200"] A statue of Sherlock Holmes with the museum in the background[/caption]

The Parkhotel is literally next door to the Sherlock Holmes museum. There is a lovely garden area to walk through (complete with Sherlock illustrations) and then the museum itself, which was first opened in 1991, on the 100th anniversary of the death of the famous detective. It is small, but beautifully done – especially downstairs.

All visitors are given an audio guide which is genuinely interesting. As you walk down the stairs, don’t miss the pictures on the wall. One has a report card from Conan-Doyle’s school days, and you can see that a certain Master Moriarty was in the same form as the author himself!

The room downstairs has memorabilia to look at but the centrepiece is a lovely re-creation of Holmes’ and Dr Watson’s living room at 221b Baker Street. This has some wonderful touches, from the pipes hanging on the wall to the violin on the sofa. However, it is somewhat weird to see all this in Switzerland.

[caption id="attachment_2513" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Re-creation of Sherlock's study - see the violin in the background![/caption]

I very much enjoyed my visit to the museum, but, if you’re a Sherlock fan, the highlight of your visit to Meiringen has to be taking the funicular to the Reichenbach Falls (actually a series of waterfalls) where you can see the Hasli valley below you.

[caption id="attachment_2514" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Taking the funicular up to the Reichenbach Falls[/caption]

The funicular was built in 1899 and you ride up in an exact replica of the original wooden wagon, which runs every 15 minutes. It doesn’t take long, and drops you off just a minute from the 120m high waterfall, truly a remarkable sight, which shows the power of nature – and lets you hear it too.

[caption id="attachment_2515" align="alignnone" width="1200"] The Reichenbach Falls[/caption]

Whilst there, you should walk up the steps and follow the footpath around the woods – eventually you come out to look at an even more impressive view. You can also keep on walking and cross over the falls at a small bridge, then go on for a coffee at the cafe.

The Falls are stunning, even though I was a bit baffled as to how Holmes and Moriarty fell into the swirling waters. There is a star which marks the point of their fight, and it is not really anywhere near the actual falls.....Mind you, maybe I’m over-thinking all this. It is fiction, after all...

The funicular costs 10 Swiss Francs per adult (return) and 8 per child. It is open from mid may to mid October this year. The Sherlock Holmes Museum (which is open from 29^th April to 31^st October 2016) costs 4 Swiss Francs per adult and 3 per child. One Swiss Franc is worth around 70p.

The hotel costs around 190 Swiss Francs (around £140)  per night, including breakfast, for a double room. More on their rates here.

Disclosure: I was fortunate to be hosted by the hotel for my stay and also to have my visit to the falls and Sherlock Holmes museum given to me on a complimentary basis as part of a wonderful Great Railways Journey to the Jungfrau. However, none of the establishments had any input into this blog post.

Read about my trip to Interlaken in Switzerland

Read more on Sherlock Holmes and our visit to the Sherlock exhibition at the Museum of London.

More on beautiful mountains and lakes - from our holiday to Austria