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Isenfluh

In late June I stayed in Murren and Luzern. I provided a trip report at the Switzerland Q&A page. This post elaborates on my experience in Isenfluh. I'm a little reluctant to mention it because it's a hidden gem that is very untouristy.

Isenfluh is a hamlet at the northern end of the Lauterbrunnen valley. It can only be reached by vehicle or foot. I took the yellow Postal bus from the Lauterbrunnen station. It takes about 10 minutes. If you take the bus, board early. It has about 12-15 seats. One trip had 27 passengers. Part of the drive is through a spiral tunnel inside a mountain. Going down my GPS indicated a change from 133 to 116 degrees, or a change of 343 degrees. I would hate to make the drive in winter.

Isenfluh has better views of the "famous three" than Murren or Gimmelwald. There's one hotel and a restaurant. There are some good walks from there. A small cable car goes to Sulwald. It holds eight people "or one cow." I was the only one who bought a round trip ticket, so the station manager showed me how to operate the cable car.

Sulwald has great views too. Everyone else went there to take a walk. A popular destination is the Lobhorner. If you've been to Wengen you've probably seen it; it looks like five fingers sticking up from the ground. The Lobhorner hut looks popular.

I successfully operated the cable car to get down. Basically, it's only necessary to push two buttons. One opens the door and the other signals the station operator that the car is ready to go. After signaling that I was ready I let in a Swiss woman who couldn't open the door. The cable car is really controlled by an operator at the lower level station.

In sum, Isenfluh has great views and walks. It has few tourists. I recommend it as a day trip.

P.S.,

If you have a Swiss Pass, going to Chillon castle in Montreaux is a reasonable day trip on a rainy day.

Posted by
1717 posts

Hello lleinaweav. I appreciate your thoughts about Isenfluh and Sulwald. I think my next trip to Europe will be to Switzerland.

Posted by
11294 posts

Thanks to your recommendation in the other thread, I went to Isenfluh today. Thanks for the tip!

It makes me think of what Gimmelwald must have been like decades ago. when Rick first saw it.

Just one warning. The bus only goes from Lauterbrunnen to Isenfluh once an hour, and shortly after lunch there's one hour when the bus doesn't run. In other words, if you're not careful you could have to wait 1 to 2 hours for the next bus. Of course, I saw it pulling away as I was about 5 minutes uphill from it, and had a snack in the cafe while waiting.

Also, the cable car from Isenfluh to Sulwald currently costs 8.40 CHF one way (I walked down, so I don't know about round trip). It does not give any discount for having the Swiss Travel Pass or Half Fare Card, but you do get a reduction with the Berner Oberland Pass, the Jungfrau Pass, and some others. I got 2 CHF off with my Lauterbrunnen Visitor Card, which I got from my Lauterbrunnen hotel.

I walked down the paved path also used by Super Trotti bikes. I didn't encounter any of these, but there was one car and some service vehicles. This walk is mostly through pine forest with only occasional views of the mountains. I had had a tiring morning, so this was perfect for my afternoon, but those looking for scenic views while walking should investigate other routes.

That's all I have to add now. Thanks again for your original thread.

Posted by
440 posts

A nice little gem you have found there. Lets hope it stays that way

Posted by
11799 posts

I've looked at going there the last three times we were in Lauterbrunnen! Next trip!