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Where to stay in Berner-Oberland: Lauterbrunnen vs Murren

We plan on spending 3 days in the Berner-Oberland in August and are looking for a home base. I know this is probably splitting hairs, but trying to decide between Lauterbrunnen and Murren. I'm looking for advice on the Pro's and Cons of each place.
Thanks
BT

Posted by
279 posts

Lauterbrunnen if you want quick access to train station to travel about
the area.

Posted by
9436 posts

I like Murren 1000 times better than Lauterbrunnen. For me, Lauterbrunnen is dark, full of cars and people. After traveling so far to be there, I’d rather be up in the Alps, not looking up at them.

We’ve stayed in Murren twice for 4 nights each visit and wished we had more time. We went way out of our way to stay there a 2nd time because we love it so much.

Murren is 5,000 ft up and enveloped by the Alps with mind blowing views. It’s a charming, car-free town with the perfect Alps experience imo.

It’s very easy and quick to get down to Lauterbrunnen on the cable car.

Posted by
14 posts

I'm going to Murren in May for three days. It's because my wife has to go to Germany constantly for work (it's a German company) and she has to be there for two weeks in May for company meetings (Essen Germany). So, I'll meet her in Zurich and then we will train our way down to Murren for a few days. We did this same thing a few months ago but chose Amsterdam.

In the end, it's going to be great.

Posted by
8967 posts

Lauterbrunnen is at the bottom of the mountain, in the valley. Mürren is halfway up the mountain, from Lauterbrunnen. You can see one from the other. I think it would depend on if you are planning to do mostly stuff that is in Mürren and above (like the Schilthorn, Gmmelwald) you would stay there. If you're planning to do stuff all over the valley area (like Jungfraujoch) it would be more convenient in Lauterbrunnen because it takes time to get down from Mürren. But if you just want to stay where it is most beautiful and enjoy the view, Mürren.

Posted by
11776 posts

We have stayed in both and prefer Lauterbrunnen as it is the transportation hub of the Jungfrau Region. It is a cute village. Yes, there are cars but it is not exactly downtown Paris! You do not need nor want a car there, BTW. We get an apartment down past the church, about 1km from the train station, where it is very peaceful and we can see mountains and cliffs. We can accesss either side of the valley (Muerren or Wengen) easily as we usually hike on both sides. I hope by “3 days” you mean you have 4 nights and therefore 3 FULL days! You’ll love it!

Posted by
174 posts

Exactly the info I needed. We have yet to finalize exactly what things and towns we want to see, so this this is helpful in making those decisions.
Thanks !
BT