Hello,
I'm trying to secure lodging for my family of five arriving in early August (2 adults and three smallish adult-sized teens; the two boys can share a bed if needed). This will be leg #3 (and the last leg) of our 15-night trip to Europe this summer. We'll be travelling by train from Paris. We will stay 3 nights in the Berner Oberland and then will need one night in Zurich before we depart by plane. We are open to Lauterbrunnen, Murren, Wengen or Grindelwald. We are open to apartments or two hotel rooms. We plan on doing the Schilthorn and maybe one of the Grindelwald-First activities. Maybe 1-2 short/medium hikes, time-permitting.
We have a more flexible budget for Switzerland lodging, since we have fewer nights, but will try to stay under 400 swiss francs per night (300-350 swiss francs would be better). We generally try to stick with budget-friendly hotels so we have more to spend on experiences, more travel, etc. We mostly just sleep in our hotel rooms, so comfortable beds and two bathrooms would be our main priorities.
My husband and I travelled here in 2004, and we stayed in Murren. I cannot remember where we stayed, though. This was our favorite place in our multi-country trip to Europe, and it was important to us to bring our kids here some day, so we've tacked it onto the end of a trip where we start with big cities and end in beautiful mountains.
I will check out the Chalet Fontana as one option. I am a little concerned about the ongoing construction that I believe will be happening in Murren - more for inconvenience reasons (could some transportation options be closed/delayed?) than for the noise. What would others recommend for options in Murren, Wengen or Lauterbrunnen for budget-to-moderate hotels (2 rooms) or apartments for a family of five?