Lauterbrunnen good base December 8-10, 2019

Do you want to see both Mürren and Gimmelwald ? My recollection is that there is a gondola from Lauterbrennen to Gimmelwald which continues up to Mürren, so you wouldn't necessarily need the train.

December is ski season and Gimmelwald is likely to be quite a sleepy town that time of year. But you can take the bus to Stechelberg and get on the cable car and Gimmelwald is the first stop. Muerren, however, should be active with early season skiers and boarders about.

We’d just like to explore the area, won’t be skiing, sleepy is fine, cable over train is AOK.
Is sleeping in Lauterbrunnen the best/cheapest option since we have a car? Or is there safe/free parking available in Lauterbrunnen and sleeping in a smaller mentioned place is fine?

Do you know of the best place in this area to try a tobaggan run?
Thanks so much!

Your plan sounds very good. That being said, if it is a good clear day you might consider going to Stechelberg and getting a ticket to go all the way up to the Schilthorn stopping in Gimmelwald and Murren on the way. The view from the Schilthorn is really great, you look across at the Monch, Eiger an Jungfrau among other things. If you do the Stechelberg option, when you get on the Aerial tram, go all the way to the back of it and look out the back window. When the gondola pulls out of the base station the whole valley unfolds in front of your eyes and it is just awesome.

As for Bern, I would take a pass on it, you will be too time constrained to make it worthwhile. Save it for next time ... like when you go back to see Lauterbrunnen in September when it is green and not too crowded. One trip there is not enough.

Park the car in the garage next to the train station in Lauterbrunnen and take the train up to Wengen and stay your 2 nights. You can explore Gimmelwald/Murren as others have suggested in this chain. We stayed in Wengen 4 nights in July 2017 and felt we made the best lodging choice between the villages mentioned here (we visited them all) - it was up on the mountain and car free with a great little "downtown".

mjm,

Staying in Lauterbrunnen sounds like a great idea, as there's parking available either at the car park by the train station or possibly at your hotel. Since Lauterbrunnen is the transportation hub for the area, it's easy to explore both sides of the valley from there.

Were you planning to visit the famous Schilthorn (which was used in the James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service)? If staying in Lauterbrunnen, you could (for example) take the gondola to Grütschalp and then the small BLM railway to Mürren. Have a look around the very scenic town, and then take the Schilthornbahn to Piz Gloria, and enjoy a fine lunch in the revolving restaurant, while images of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau glide by the window (hopefully the weather is clear that day). On the return trip, take the Schilthornbahn back to Mürren and then down to Gimmelwald, and do a bit of a walkabout there. Finally take the gondola down to Stechelberg and take the Post Bus back to Lauterbrunnen (it's only a short trip, about 15 minutes as I recall).

I agree with a previous suggestion to skip Bern this time. You'd have to leave your luggage in the car while you're touring about, which could lead to theft (not as common in Switzerland, but it could happen).