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Bernese Oberland & other Switzerland Late May 2020

Hi all,

I'm loving reading all the posts about the Bernese Oberland. I'm planning a trip for 2020 in late May (not changing the timeline for later), and I realize that is the shoulder season for this area. I may be searching for a flying unicorn here, but here's what I'm hoping for, and I'd love to hear your feedback. Our musts are a balcony with a beautiful view. Our desires are a charming village that will have enough open at that time for us to grab a coffee/picnic supplies. We plan to be in this town for about 5 days, as we want to do as many hikes in the area as will be open at that time. From the posts I've read, it looks like Wengen is our best bet. Do you agree? We plan to paraglide one day, rent ebikes one day and hike as much as we can. We do plan on buying the rail pass, so that we can go between villages as we want, and we do not plan on renting a car the whole time in Switzerland. Suggestions on best places would be much appreciated!

I should also include that we plan on doing a couple of days in small Iseltwald on the lake. We have a few other days we're trying to plan, as well, and I'd love any suggestions. We'll be flying in and out of Zurich, go to Iseltwald then the Wengen area, with no car. We want to add one more stop before heading back to Zurich. We'd love to experience a wine area or an area that we can do a chocolate or cheese experience. We prefer the more quaint villages over the larger cities. Would you suggest the Chateau d'Oex area? Gruyeres and Broc? A totally different area? I do have the RS Switzerland book, but I'd love to get your thoughts! Thanks in advance!

Posted by
8164 posts

Hotel Edelweiss Murren has balconies with mountain views. I stayed there 2 months ago. It snowed one day and melted

Posted by
399 posts

I agree with you on staying in Wengen. While I readily admit Murren has slightly better views (and is a bit more peaceful), we tend to prefer Wengen as there are more dinner and drink options, which come in handy after a full day of hiking. Also, Wengen has a lot more apartment rentals available, many of which have full kitchens and balconies overlooking the valley.

If you choose Wengen, I suggest you read up on the Berner Oberland Pass as opposed to the Swiss Pass. We try to spend a full week in Wengen and we feel the best combination of price and convenience for us is the half fare card And the BO Pass.

Posted by
272 posts

We stayed in Mürren and enjoyed a visit up the Schilthorn. We were there mid-May, and some hotels/restaurants were open. The Co-op store was great for picnic supplies. As I’m sure you know, trail availabiliy will depend on the weather. Trails at lower elevations should be open, but they probably won’t be higher up. We stayed in Montreux and saw Chateau de Chillon. We took the chocolate train tour from there to visit the Gruyere cheese factory and the Cailler chocolate factory. We tasted wine at Vinorama and saw the Lavaux vineyards.

Posted by
80 posts

I can’t offer any insight regarding Wengen. At the end of May this year we stayed at
Hotel Alpina in Mürren and had a room with a great mountain view from where we could watch the paraglders. It was a short walk to the hill where they were taking off. As mentioned above the nearby coop has picnic supplies.

Posted by
7209 posts

But Murren is slowing being overtaken by tourists just as all popular places tend to become. It used to be so much nicer before the big tour groups began descending on the village. Of course if they all could mind their manners then there wouldn’t be a problem.