Rent a car and Riding up Schilthorn

Does the 113 cost to go up Schilthorn include the hanging cable ride from the mountain down to Lauterbrunnen valley?

I took the same route last summer the 113 CHF includes Lauterbrunnen gondola cable ride to Grutschalp.
Train from Grutschalp to Murren. Gondola or Cable car all the way to the top of Schilthorn. This is roundtrip
Start at 7:30 am it is less likely to be foggy and there will be less people there by the time you reach the top.
Your hotel should have a monitor of the conditions on top so you should check that the morning of to see if things are foggy.
I have heard people that have spent the money to go all the way to the top but could not see much because of the fog.

I think you need to be aware there are 2 routes to the Schilthorn, and I'm not 100% sure which route you think you're taking after reading your question. Here are the 2 routes:

1) Lauterbrunnen ->Grutschalp->Murren (walk to Schilthornbahn) ->Schilthorn
2) Stechelberg/Schilthornbahn ->Gimmewald->Murren->Schilthorn

Stechelberg is a tiny blip at the far end of the Lauterbrunnen Valley. The gondola (hanging cable car) is from Lauterbrunnen->Grutschalp on route #1. There is also a gondola on route #2 but not the SAME gondola as route #1.

Route #1 is a combination of gondola and train
Route #2 is gondola the entire way

From Stechelberg, its all cable car up the mountain, with a change in Gimmelwald. You can buy a one way (single) ticket, but I think your number is for roundtrip (return).

Did you consider taking train all the way from Colmar to Lauterbrunnen? Unexpected costs might include the Swiss vignette, high Swiss fuel costs, parking, and high drop off fee if you're not returning the car to France.

Totally easy to do in one day. In fact, it will take you less than that if you are starting from Lauterbrunnen.

True there are two ways up/down: one starting in Lauterbrunnen, one in Stechelberg. You could park at either end and come down the way you came up, OR you could do the circle tour: go up from Lauterbrunnen, down to Stechelberg, and take the regular and cheap post bus from Stechelberg to Lauterbrunnen.

Yet another option, and highly recommended if you are the least bit into hiking, is take the cable car up to Schilthorn, but on the way down, get off at Birg, Murren or Gimmelwald and hike down to a lower station, or all the way to Stechelberg. The first time I went (foggy, boo hoo), we got off at Gimmelwald and hiked down to Stechelberg; incredible views of the entire Lauterbrunnen valley. The second time, we got off at Birg and hiked down to Gimmelwald; take the trail that goes BEHIND the Sprutz waterfall.

Agree with the suggestion that you go up as early as possible. Less chance of fog, plus there is an incredible brunch in the Piz Gloria revolving restaurant at the top of the Schilthorn.

Thank you Tim!

Stan - I am renting a car in Zurich. Drive to Colmar. Then drive from Colmar to Lauterbrunnen. then return the car back to Zurich. :)
Do you know how much is a gallon for gas in Switzerland? Thank you! Hannah

@darrenblois - Could you please describe in detailed your route including cable and hiking? How long is the hike? I think I like your the combination. I am greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Hannah

Glad to. The hiking map and route descriptions are here: http://www.gimmelwald.ch/e/activities/summer/hiking.htm.

The Gimmelwald-Stechelberg hike I described is #17 on the map, to the left of Gimmelwald. Its described as 1 1/2 hours from Murren, but we did it from Gimmelwald in about that time (I'm told these time estimates are done by groups of Swiss senior citizens, which is frightening!).

The Birg-Gimmelwald hike we did is described as Hike 3 "The Strenuous" on the descriptions (but we only started at Birg); or a combination of #11 and #3 on the map. It was far from strenuous, barely moderate. From Birg, we walked by Grauseeli, along where you see the "11", down the spine of the Wasenegg ridge from "2280" to "2155", then down along #3 into the Schilttal and down the creekside to Spielbodenalp and onto Gimmelwald. For some reason I can't see Sprutz waterfall on the map, but it is between Schilttal and Gimmelwald. I think we spent about 4 hours on this hike, but that included stops at several places to relax and see the alps, but some looking around in Gimmelwald. The map says the entire #11 hike down from Birg can be done in 3 hours. We wanted to start at the peak, but even in late June there was still too much snow that high up for safe hiking.

Happy hiking!

PS: the hiking trails are incredibly well marked. You cannot get lost. You will see signs like this every half km or so: https://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/photo/yellow-hiking-signposts-on-an-alpine-pasture-below-royalty-free-image/523068103

Just for clarification.....

If you take the cable cars from Stechelberg there are four segments, which require a change of cars for each one.....

• Stechelberg - Gimmelwald
• Gimmelwald - Mürren
• Mürren - Birg
• Birg - Schilthorn

Here's the official website, which has the timetable and tariffs - https://www.schilthorn.ch/

anhquaranta, a quick google shows fuel cost in Switzerland around 1.5 CHF per liter, so roughly 6 CHF per gallon. Thats about 6.3 USD today.