Murren, Wengen, Laterbrunnen and cars

There is a parking garage at Lauterbrunnen station and also a lot at Stechelberg cable car station if you want to take that to Muerren.

Thank you!

I would do additional digging into this--I had seen it mentioned that the lots in Lauterbrunnen are sometimes full, which I guess may be more likely at certain times of year. This is one of those things I consider worth trying to avoid if at all possible.

Ok thank you! There's doesn't seem to be a whole lot of lodging in Lauterbrunnen... am I missing something?

What are your dates? Lodging does fill up many months in advance. Did you look at Murren and Wengen?

We'll be there Sept. 16 - 22 of this year. We are looking at Wengen and Murren which is better, but we feel like we "need" a car, which is why I was wondering if we could park one in Lauterbrunnen.

Wondering why you "need" a car. Switzerland is one place in the world where you don't really need a car. Those parking garages are not free, and as you have learned, a car is a burden in many places.

Mind if I send you our itinerary and you can let me know what you think in terms of cars?

if you put some of it or most or it here publicly we can give you answers from different perspectives. Several of us know the area like the backs of our hands....

I've been to Switzerland three times and have never had the need for a car. The Swiss transportation system is world class and a joy to use. It is clean, comfortable, and on time to the second. The Swiss actually don't make it easy to have a car, as the government encourages the use of public transportation. The train stations are in the center of most towns; the parking garages are often outside of town.
How many are in your party?
Enjoy this incredibly beautiful country. Safe travels!

Thank you both! There are 2 of us and below is a very basic itinerary. Wanted to fit in Zermatt, not sure if we can, we only have 6 days here then are going to Tuscany (Train? Plane? Not sure yet). Open to any and all suggestions!

Based out of Lauterbrunnen w/ car
Day 1 - Stoos Ridge Hike
Day 2 - Paragliding in Interlaken, then Lucerne
Day 3 - Grindelwald First
Day 4 - Murren
Day 5 - Wengen

I thought maybe you were going to share something about you or your party that would make a car something to consider--there is nothing about this plan that would make me want to use a car.
You will need to sort out the transport route to Italy and that is time consuming, but a car won't help with that.
I would advise to pick one village, stay there and do everything you can by train/lift/on foot. It is one of the few places on earth where it is really this easy!

Okay just talked to traveller #2 :). Her concern and reason for wanting a car was to get to some of the hikes on the early side because she heard that you'll have a much better chance of a clear view in the AM. Thoughts on this? How early do trains run and how early do we need to start our day?

If you stay in one of the village, then you will already be there--just set off however early you like. If you have a car to contend with, you are going to be driving to another place with a parking lot--not to a trail head.

and the trains and cable cars and gondolas start before breakfast and are very frequent.

Awesome, thanks all! So much more helpful than Reddit :)

One last question... any opinions on taking a train vs. flying to Florence? Seems a little quicker to fly, but only by 2 or so hours, thinking the train might be better bet for the scenery?

You can research transportation times (all types; trains, gondolas, busses) on the SBB website:

https://www.sbb.ch/en

When you're actually in Switzerland, you'll want the SBB app. It's an awesome tool to tell you exactly how you need to get anywhere. We used it multiple times a day when we were there; it was so easy and we never felt like we needed or wanted a car.

Have a great trip!

Thanks DebVT!! Getting married at Sugarbush :)

So many of the great hikes are from car-free villages. Using the gondolas and cogwheel trains to move around the Berner Oberland is part of the adventure. And - paragliding from Murren sounds like heaven! Enjoy!

Ah, my favorite place to ski! What a lovely setting for your wedding.

Congratulations, Josh!

To respond to your train vs plane to Florence question…..

Where would you fly out of? If you’re staying in the Lauterbrunnen area, you’ll need to factor in your time to transit to the airport (Zurich?), arrive 2 hours early, then the flight time plus transit from the airport in Florence to your lodgings.

Train is usually more direct (typically city center to city center) with less “wasted” time getting to/from the airport.

All things being relatively equal, I always opt for the train, even if it’s a little more travel time. I like being able to get up, move around, get a coffee from the cafeteria, look out the windows. I can’t comment on the particular route you’d be taking (never done it), but I’d almost certainly choose the train. Beats the airport security hassle and wait time, in my opinion.

Day 1 - Stoos Ridge Hike
Day 2 - Paragliding in Interlaken, then Lucerne

Can i assume you are flying into Zurich? Are you paragliding in interlaken, then going to Luzern?
Stoos Ridge is closest to Luzern, with a train to Schwyz, then a bus to the Stoos funicular, then the ride up to Stoos, the a lift up to the ridge.

Train Lauterbrunnen - Stoos (Klingenstockbahn) = 4h 35 min (add more time if you are staying in Wengen or Mürren).

Compare with driving from Lauterbrunnen, which is about 1h 50 min.

Driving Interlaken - Luzern is about 1 hour, train 1hr 51 min.

That is not to say that driving is better, but it can sometimes be much faster than taking the train. This is helpful if it is more about the destination than the journey for your specific outing.

Car or not, I would go as early as the first lift of the day if you can (though for Stoos, this would be more challenging due to the travel time required to get there).

Mountain weather is always unpredictable—sometimes it's better in the morning, but not always. However, what you can count on is fewer people on the hike. You're visiting incredibly popular areas, and starting early can make the difference between walking in a crowded, mule-train fashion or having personal space to fully enjoy the experience.

I think for some of these ideas, there could be a closer alternative, but the experts would have to weigh in on that. I would still opt for one base and do all of the things I could close to it rather than long day trips--by any conveyance.

Yes, valadelphia is correct, there are other options. If you are looking for a ‘Gratweg’ (Ridge Path) there is one on Schynige Platte. It is level T2, while Stoos Ridge is T3.

Here it is in German with some great photos

https://wegwandern.ch/wanderung/schynige-platte-panoramaweg-wandern-wanderung/

Here is a description in English

https://schweizmobil.ch/en/hiking-in-switzerland/route-345

You can also see on the German site a map with all of the Gratwege marked by location with detailed information about each one. There are certainly other T3 options if you are looking for a hike of that difficulty level.

https://wegwandern.ch/gratwege-gratwanderungen/