Wengen or Murren?

Wengen to Mürren:
Train Wengen to Lauterbrunnen,
Cable car across the street to Grutschalp,
Train from Grutschalp to Mürren.

Not difficult to do, maybe about 40 minutes total.

As far as views: we’ve stayed in Mürren which many hotels have rooms facing Eiger/Monch. Lovely.

We visited Wengen which had nice views of mountains and Lauterbrunnen Valley.

If you’re strictly looking for views, I’d vote for Mürren.

Wengen and Mürren are half way up mountains, on opposite sides of a valley.
Both car free, the road ends in the valley bottom. Both reachable by cable car or train.

• Click here for a photo of Mürren. The cable car is going up to Schilthorn (the mountain above Mürren). You can see Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau, the mountains above Wengen.
• Click here for a photo from Wengen. Lauterbrunnen down in the valley bottom. Mürren is on top of the cliffs on the other side of the valley. From Wengen you can see Schilthorn (the mountain above Mürren).

As you can see, they are opposite sides of the same valley, personal choice.
You get from one to another by going down to Lauterbrunnen, and up the other side.
Gimmelwald is a small village near Mürren.

I have been to both Wengen and Murren and given my druthers, I would stay in Murren, It is smaller and has a more cozy atmosphere and a much more scenic location. If you ride on the right side of the train goin up to Wengen, the view is quite scenic. If you ride in the back of the gondola on the aerial tram from Stechelberg to Murren the view is simply breathtaking. If you walk to the right spots in Wengen, there is a spectacular view down the Lauterbrunnen Valley. When we stayed in Murren we had a valley side room at the Hotel Alpina. It was a small room and I had to move a chair to get the door open to out little balcony but the view was simply flat out awesome ... straight down over 1500 ft. to the valley floo or, straight across the valley at the Eiger, the Monch and the Jungfrau. Seriously, a valleyside room at one of the hotels in Murren that is on the edge is something you won't forget.

Actually, having done the room with the fantastic view once, we find it more convenient to stay in Lauterbrunnen where you have lots of scenic views and easy access to Wengen, Murren, Gimmelwald, Grindlewald and all the other places of interest in the area.

If you are in Mürren and look straight across the valley, then look left and down, you see Wengen below you. Wengen is at 4,180 feet. Mürren is at 5,374 feet.

Thanks so much for all of your detailed answers! Your help is much appreciated.

"There seems to be more hotel selection in Wengen then in Murren?"

Wengen is larger, but there is a variety of accommodation choices in Mürren as well, so I wouldn't let that be the deciding factor. Wengen also has a larger supermarket with longer hours, but the one in Mürren gets the job done.

I don't think you can go wrong with either one. So, if a particular hotel or apartment appeals, choose based on that.

While Lauterbrunnen is at the base of the valley, and thus convenient for either side, you don't get the car free atmosphere or elevated views.

The one I wouldn't stay in is Gimmelwald, due to the very small size and lack of food options. But it also has its fans. As I always say, any of the four can be great. As long as you don't stay in Interlaken, don't worry too much about which of the four Lauterbrunnen Valley villages you choose.

Of the two places you listed, my choice would be Mürren. It's a bit smaller than Wengen but more "quaint" (IMO). If staying in Mürren, it's also very easy to take the easy hike down to Gimmelwald for lunch, or take the Cable Car to the famous Schilthorn for a fine meal in the revolving restaurant. Those two locations are less accessible from Wengen, and will add time and cost.

It's easy to get anywhere in that area, so you can absolutely get to Mürren and Gimmelwald from Wengen.

I’m planning a dream trip to Murren for 2020, and wondering about apartments vs. hotels. What’s the best way to compare choices? It’s important to me to have a balcony with a memorable view. I think we will stay 5 nights (maybe more or less).

Thanks!
Laurie

The Hotel Edelweiss Superior Murren has balconies with mountain views. I stayed there in May 2019

This is truly a flip of the coin. I personally prefer Wengen because the the shops, restaurants and markets are all more compact in one area. I personally find the shops, restaurants and markets in Murren a little strung out along its main walk/street. However, the views in both places are phenomenal and access to hiking in both places are great. As others have said, you can explore the whole region from either. You can get to Gimmelwald from Murren more easily if that is a priority for you. I find Gimmelwald interesting, but probably overrated. I definitely would not consider it a base for exploring the area. Enjoy.

I am curious why the OP would choose Wengen on the basis that there is a wider selection of hotels. All you need is one good one.

We are hikers and also enjoy hotels or apartments with nice views and balconies. We stayed in Wengen once, but much prefer Mürren, both for the views and the access to some great hikes. So we have stayed in Mürren five times now.

My favorite views are from the upper road in Mürren near the far end of the village. We rented an apartment there, it the nearby hotels, Hotel Jungfrau and Hotel Bellevue,mwould have the same view--- the dramatic ridge of the Jungfrau massif across the valley, in silhouette against the sky. I keep a photo of the snowy peaks at sunset on my Nixplay so I can enjoy it every day.

Of the two hotels in that position, I would recommend the Bellevue. Hotel Jungfrau is more of a budget option and I don't know that they even have rooms with balconies. Hotel Bellevue does have balconies facing that view, and also has two well-regarded restaurants in-house. If we feel like going out to dinner in Mürren I nstead of cooking, we go to the Jäegerstübli at Hotel Bellevue. Or we head to Tham's Asian restaurant and get take-out.

You can see examples of the view on the Hotel Bellevue webpage:

https://www.bellevuemuerren.ch/english/

Note that the photo with a bench is from higher up, on one of the trails.

Murren - hands down for us. It is the most magical place i’ve ever been. Stunning views that are hard to believe. As others have said, cozy, quaint, charming - and far less tourists than Wengen.

To me they are not equal at all - Wengen is very touristy, has tourist shops, is more “polished” for the sake of tourists, is not quaint or charming, and it’s location does not have the stunning views that Murren has.

I prefer Murren over Lauterbrunnen as well. Murren is 5,000’ up and enveloped by the Alps, whereas Lauterbrunnen is on the valley floor and you have to look up to see the Alps from below. It is darker, has a busy train station and is full of cars.

If i’m going to travel all the way from SF to the Berner Oberland, i only want to stay in Murren.

My friend who lives in Switzerland advised me Wengen. She says it’s her favorite place to ski. So I booked an Airbnb and we are headed there in March. The pictures of both look great so I doubt you can go wrong!