Berner Oberland Region in Switzerland

Murren is expensive, but may be one of the most beautiful areas of the world. Gimmelwald is very close by but has very little except a hostel

Is it difficult to get to other areas from Murren? If necessary, I will pay more per night.

If you want to see everything in the Lauterbrunnen Valley (the B.O. is a much larger area), the most convenient base of operations is Lauterbrunnen. I highly recommend the Hotel Silberhorn which is 500 feet from the train station. Many will recommend the Hotel Staubbach which is less expensive and a bit further from the train station. From Lauterbrunnen, you can easily visit both sides of the valley including the two famous mountaintops Jungfrau and Schilthorn. You can also easily train back to Interlaken.

All of that being said, Muerren is the most beautiful (IMHO). At 5,300', it's everything you would want to see in a Swiss alpine village. Gimmelwald and the Schilthorn are on that side of the valley and both are one gondola stop away (on different gondolas). It's a very easy trip by the cog train/gondola down to Lauterbrunnen to go to the other side of the valley to visit Wengen, Kleine Scheidegg and the Jungfraujoch. It's very easy to return to Muerren.

Frank, I have to disagree with TC in terms of the lodging choices in Gimmelwald. In addition to the Mountain Hostel, Esther's Guesthouse has a number of rooms (it was expanded in the fall of 2006). AFAIK the Pensione is still closed (it was the only restaurant) but if you want something a bit rustic, there's also Walter's Hotel Mittaghorn (several people I spoke with there wouldn't consider staying anywhere else, so it must have benefits). Check Rick's books or the Gimmelwald website for all the listings. I'm also a "solo traveller" so would consider either the Mountain Hostel or Esther's for my next visit. Gimmelwald is essentially a small farming community, so there's not a lot to do at night, except relax and enjoy the location (the Hostel is probably the centre of activity at night).

Murren is the next village up from Gimmelwald and has more lodging choices, as well as restaurants and the usual amenities. However, I suspect that staying there or Lauterbrunnen might be a bit more expensive. Again, check Rick's books for all the listings and I'm sure you'll find something that appeals to you.

July could be busy in that area, so you might want to get a reservation locked down as soon as possible.

Happy travels!

Several years ago we spent three nights in Lauterbrunnen and loved it. From there you can go to Wengen and Kleine Scheidegg or the Jungfraujoch, Gimmelwald, and Murren. We hiked and rode trains and trams. We stayed at Hotel Staubbauch with a view of the falls that was superb. An evening on your private balcony spent people and waterfall watching was hard to beat. Avoid staying in Grindelwald (not to be confused with Gimmewald) as it is VERY touristy.

I'm astonished that no one has mentioned Chalet Fontana, rated #1 for Murren on Tripadvisor.com, as being the best bargain in the alps. www.chaletfontana.ch

Frank, we stayed at Hotel Alpina in Murren several years ago. Had a beautiful room with a view of the Jungfrau. We enjoyed this peaceful, car-free town. Quaint but large enough to have a small grocery store and several restaurants. There's a cable car at the one end of town that takes you up the mountain. Check it out on www.muerren.ch Have fun.

Anyone see RS TV show on Gimmelwald? We stayed where Rick stays, with Maria and Olle Eggimann. They are the village teachers. We had a wonderful appartment in their home with such beautiful views. We hiked to Murren to grocery shop and bought food from Esther and cooked in our little kitchen. Don't know what the price is now, but you can check at [email protected]

They are listed in RS Switzerland 2005 book.

We stayed at the Hotel Alpina in late May (I think it literally had just opened) in Murren. I had read some not so good reviews and took a chance. I have to say it was absolutely wonderful. Yeah, the rooms aren't super modern in decor but who really cares with the type of view you get. It was clean and had more than enough than we needed. The breakfast was very good (and similar to all breakfasts we experienced in Europe). We paid $140 a night but I know that rate goes up. I would have paid a lot more for what we got. Compared to other places in Europe we stayed at I felt this was one of the better ones and cheaper.

Having explored Lauterbrunnen and Gimmelwald and done a significant amount of hiking around this area...we'd stay in Murren again. (In fact, I think we are taking family back there next May.) We didn't get up to the Schiltorn or Jungfrau because of high winds but we didn't care.

After walking the valley floor in Lauterbrunnen we decided we wouldn't be happy sleeping down there. The view from Murren is just that spectacular and worth the extra you'll spend on the cable cars. We did a bunch of hikes down (and saved on some cable cars).

Gimmelwald is very cute but for us we were happy in Murren for that time of year because it had the store (for picnics - it had pre-made sandwiches and everything) and restaurants. Gimmelwald was pretty quiet in late May.

My wife and I just returned from staying three nights in the Berner Oberland area. Our thoughts...

Lodging in Murren and other mountain towns is great if you only have one a back pack for luggage and your plans call for spending time in walking and enjoying the scenery.

For us we had five bags and did not want to lug them around in the required trains to travel from the valley to our hotel. We stayed at the Silberhorn in Lauterbrunnen and traveled to both sides of the valley easily on the train system.

We paid over $200/night for a small but scenic room with a balcony. I can not help you in finding less expensive rooms, but you should consider paying a few dollars more for a good balcony view.

Our stay in the Berner Oberland area was the highlight of our European trip. Enjoy the trip We did.

I'll throw in my 2 cents for the Hotel Alpina as well. The balcony views were spectacular, and the service was excellent. Roger and his mother were great hosts.