Adventure sports in Switzerland

My only experience- if you walk out onto the parade grounds in Interlaken during the day, every few minutes or so, a paraglider lands. I assume some company in the area organizes these jumps... try doing a google search of paragliding in Interlaken or Berner Oberland.

There is quite a bit of paragliding in the Interlaken and Lauterbrunnen Valley areas. I've seen them coming off the Shilthorn somewhere above Gimmelwald and Muerren. CLICK HERE for a pretty neat website on the subject.

Because of the tragedies a few years ago the Swiss Government has effectively banned a lot of this activity. As Tom mentioned Paragliding is still doing a brisk business. It seems you can't go anywhere in Switzerland without seem them in the skies:)

My son, 16 yrs old in '06, went paragliding from Muerren down to the valley floor. He loved it, it was the highlight of our trip for him. And one of the highlights of his whole life! He can paraglide here, we live 5 miles north of San Francisco, but paragliding in the Alps is much more thrilling. When you paraglide you go tandem with a very experienced person, you don't go alone. The training to become licensed in Switzerland, and here, is extensive. Paragliding, of all the thrill sports, is the safest. If you don't go in bad weather, or try dangerous stunts, there's really nothing to worry about. You are in a sitting position and you just glide, very gently, down. I am a protective mother, but I felt that my son was very safe. We made the arrangements at the hotel we stayed at in Muerren. I think it was about $150 and it took about 20 min to go from Muerren down 5000' to the valley floor. If you have the desire to do something fun like this, I say Go For It!

Bryan,

I also went Paragliding from Murren during my stay in Gimmelwald. As the previous post mentioned, it was a Tandem flight with a licensed Pilot, and lasted about 20-minutes. It was one of the highlights of my entire two month trip!

I asked the Pilot if he had a backup Parachute as well. He said it wasn't required by regulation, but it made sense so he did have one (which was very reassuring).

Once airborne it was incredible to reach the edge of the cliff, and suddenly be looking several thousand feet straight down! I had my dSLR Camera with me and got some great photos of Gimmelwald from the air. The Pilot also had a customized bracket & Camera for taking photos of himself and the passenger during the trip.

Visitors were also taking flights from the Schilthorn (10K ft.) which is about a 1-hour ride and of course more expensive. Next time I'll try that one!

I'm not sure which firm offered the flight, as it was arranged by the people at the Pensione.

If you are having a hard time finding some general information about adventure sports you might take a peek at the Lonely Planet guides. They tend to offer more information outdoor and adventure activities.

There were a couple of companies that operated out of Interlaken that ran many activities.

http://www.alpinraft.ch/index_en.cfm should give you an overview of what is available for the area.

I think there is/was at least one other

Not sure when you are going but Hotel Lötschberg is closed until mid April for removations (new kitchenettes and a new heating system). But maybe they could still help you with the activities/sports. Best of luck!

Hi Brian

Paragliding is easy, everybody can do it. For longer flights book between 11.00 and 14.00 when thermic starts. After 16.00 in summer depending on weatherconditions thunderstorms could develop. If weather ist stable great eveningflights around 16.00.
Morning flights till 11.oo are not turbulent but shorter. I recomand hiking around Schilthorn, Rotstockhütte during the day and fly from Mürren to Stechelberg. You can also use mt bikes from Interlaken to Stechelberg 60 Min/8 miles one way and roll back to Interlaken in the evening. As a tip, I offer sFr. 20.--/person discount when you stay at Susis or Hotel Lötschberg in Interlaken and bikes are free. Since the canyoning accident in 99 most of the companies have a safety-label. You can book all adventures at your hotel/hostel or along mains street in Interlaken. Dont book ahead.Watch the weather report, plan your day and call the evening before, so you dont mess up a hole day waiting for clear or dry weather.

To everybody, have a fantastic stay in the bernese Oberland.

Fritz Hutmacher
www.lotschberg.ch