Hotels in Bernese Oberland and Luzern

Chalet Fontana in Mürren is the best bargain I know in the area. A very comfortable Guesthouse with a nice breakfast provided by your welcoming hostess Denise. Rooms in the Guesthouse share a bathroom, or for a bit more you can book the apartment and have a private bathroom and a kitchen. Restaurant meals in Switzerland are quite expensive ( in comparison to, say, Italy or Germany), so having a kitchen helps a lot with the budget.

Mürren offers great views and hiking right from the village. Plus you have direct access to the Schilthorn cable car, which will be fully covered if you have a Swiss Pass and a free Family Card for your son. I would recommend the Schilthorn over the Jungfrau for you, especially if you watch the James Bond movie before you go.

The Jungfrau is indeed very crowded, as well as expensive ( even with a Swiss Pass), and a long section of the train ride ( like 30+ minutes) is in a dark tunnel through the Eiger, with no views. They do stop once to let you peek out the "windows" carved in the rock, but that isn't all that interesting.

Also, to answer your question on the other thread about using a Swiss Pass on the trip from Luzern to Paris:

You will change trains in Basel and catch the direct train to Paris. Your pass will take you as far as Basel, but you must have a ticket from there to Paris. You can save a lot by buying this about 3 months in advance. You can buy onnthe Swiss train site SBB.ch and it will figure in your Pass discount. Choose "GA 2.cl" for yourself from the drop-down menu where it asks for a pass, and "Junior Card" for your son. If you have a Half-Fare Card instead, there is a choice for that as well. Your son will still be free with the Family Card.

I just checked a random date 3 months away ( June4) and here are the prices I found for one adult:

Normal price for Basel to Paris, 199 CHF

"Special offer" price either 42 or 49 CHF, depending on the degree of flexibility you prefer.

As you can see, this is quite a saving and well worth the effort of booking in advance; just remember the tix are non-refundable and good only on the train you book.

You could also just book Basel to Paris ( leaving out the Luzern leg), and use your passes to get to Basel, but I found the Special Offer prices to be higher that way (66-73 CHF).

You can check trainline.eu as well to see if there are better prices, or if you have trouble with your credit card on SBB.ch

https://www.thetrainline.com/?redirected=true

Some people have reported problems with their American Visa cards on various European train websites. American Express seems to work fine, at least for me on all the different train sites so far.

Having taken my each of my teens to the region, I think I can speak for what they'll like.

Reichenbach Falls is fine, and so is Jungfraujoch/Top of Europe, but they are time consuming and will use up a half day each. Instead, think about walking the trails in the area to take in the fantastic views.

If you click on my name, you'll find a link to our dozen favorite trails in the area, with maps and pics. My kids are now adults, and they've returned to the exact same trails, so I think I can say they've been "teen-approved".

Also, you'll want to get room reservations done soon as places are filling up. All those villages you mentioned are fine, though I have a slight preference for Lauterbrunnen as it is a transportation hub.

Shoe, it looks also like a bit of a trek but would you recommend taking a day trip to Fiesch and the Altsech Glacier? (if you have been). I think we will have plenty of time in Lauterbrunnen/Murren to make the effort, especially as not planning right now to do the Jungfraujoch.

And thank you Lola, great advice I would not find anywhere else

Personally, I wouldn't take a day to see a glacier when there are so many other sights closer by.
There's enough trails and other sights nearby such as Aare River Gorge in Meiringen or Harder Kulm to keep one busy for 2 weeks. (See Tips on my site.)

Jess,

A few thoughts......

• If you're concerned about "budget", I wouldn't suggest staying in Grindelwald or Wengen, as they tend to be a bit more "upscale". Both those locations are not as efficient for touring in the area.
• Lauterbrunnen is the most efficient place to stay as it's the transportation hub for the area so easy to get anywhere.
• the absolute cheapest accommodations in Lauterbrunnen will likely be the Valley Hostel - they have two bed rooms starting at 38CHF (I believe that's PP). I'm sure your son won't mind sleeping on the top bunk - http://www.valleyhostel.ch/Hostel.php
• Mürren is a big favourite with many here, and Chalet Fontana gets consistently good reviews. I vaguely recall that some of their rooms had a shared bathroom. Not sure if that's still the case?
• That area is going to be dreadfully crowded in July, so pre-booking accommodations would be a good idea.
• the Jungfraujoch is somewhat unique but it's also very expensive and it will be very crowded in July. If you do decide to go there, be sure to check the weather to make sure it will be clear that day.
• if you want a fun splurge, your son might enjoy the trip to the famous Schilthorn, where one of the James Bond movies was filmed several years ago. The cable car ride is spectacular and it's great to sit in the revolving restaurant and watch the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau glide by the windows.
• the trip to Reichenbach Falls will take at least a half day (and probably a bit more). You'll probably want to ride the Funicular up the mountain to see the spot where the famous but fictitious battle took place, and that will take an hour (more if you want to do some hiking uphill from the funicular terminal). While there you'll want to visit the small Sherlock Holmes museum, which is located in an old Church. It's small but has some interesting exhibits. And of course you'll probably need to have lunch there.
• For lodgings in Lucerne, I'd recommend Hotel Stern - https://www.sternluzern.ch/en . It's an easy walk to the river or the station from the hotel, and the rooms are very comfortable. As I recall, they don't have air conditioning but they'll provide a fan on request. In July that could be a concern, so you'd have to contact them.

Switzerland is an expensive place to travel so be sure to budget accordingly.

I did an AirBnB in Lauterbrunnen Valley. Loved it and found it reasonable, especially since we did some cooking in the unit. Transportation was easy. In Luzern, we found Drei Koenig to be reasonable, with an extensive breakfast and good, helpful staff. https://www.drei-koenige.ch/de

When I went to Mürren, I stayed at the Hotel Edelweiss: https://www.edelweiss-muerren.ch/en/

In Lauterbrunnen (different trip), I stayed at the Hotel Silberhorn: https://www.silberhorn.com/en/

In Luzern, I stayed at the Hotel des Alpes: https://www.desalpes-luzern.ch/en/welcome

A friend is going in June, and he found these hotels pricier than he liked. So, I had him look at apartments, and he found these to be much cheaper. And of course, you can save a lot of money by not eating all your meals at restaurants (Swiss restaurants are very expensive, while Swiss supermarkets are not). I cannot speak to any of his apartments directly, except to say they're in good locations.

For Mürren, he's staying here: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/22631429?euid=8406bb1b-68e3-d741-0bad-12ad0976cb20&s=22&user_id=4819103&guests=1&adults=1

and in Luzern, he's staying here: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/7166202?euid=98955166-fb06-5046-9f0c-a1d245808dd6&s=22&user_id=4819103&guests=1&adults=1

The Aletschgletscher is stunning and the hikes above and alongside it are my favorites in Switzerland. It is totally different from anything you will see around the Lauterbrunnen/Mürren area.

It would be 2-3 hours by train and cablecar each way, depending on where and how you want to hike. You can leave the train at Betten and ride the cablecar up to Bettmeralp, and hike up to the Birg saddle and along the ridge for great views, or hike or ride the gondola up the Bettmerhorn for an even higher view.

Or stay on the train to Fiesch and take the cablecar up to Fiescheralp (aka Kuhboden) and either hike up or ride the lift up the Eggishorn. On this peak you are right above the elbow bend in the Glacier, and can see down the Glacier to the west as well as up (north) its origin at Konkordiaplatz, below the Jungfrau ( which you can also see from here).

There is a rocky ridgetop trail which connects the Bettmerhorn and Eggishorn, but we have not done that. We like the trail that traverses below the Bettmerhorn and above the Glacier, reaching the small Marjelensee hut. Just before the lake you can leave the trail and scramble over the rocks to a point beside a blue pool formed by melting ice that fell from the Glacier. The ice towers 5-6 stories above you at this point ( or did the last time I was there). Do not approach too closely.