Interlaken, Switzerland For Backpackers and Cheapskates: Two Days in the Alps

The Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau peaks - snowy in August!

Let me start by clarifying two things:  One, no trip to Switzerland is really going to be "cheap" when compared to other areas of the world, unless maybe you have free lodging and free use of a car and hike thousands of feet everywhere instead of using the wonderful but expensive transport systems.  Second, two days is definitely not enough time to fully explore all the region has to offer--both because the villages around Interlaken are larger than they look on the map, and getting from place to place takes longer than you might think.  That being said, there certainly are easy ways to save money, and if you are in decent physical condition and skip long meals at restaurants, you can really squeeze a lot into 2-3 days. 

This section of our 2018 backpacking vacation required the most amount of research and planning--luckily, most of the answers to my questions could be found online after digging through a few websites:

First, in order to get to explore the fantastic mountains, valleys, waterfalls and ride the cable cars, cog trains and zip-lines of the Bernese Oberland, you'll need to get to Interlaken (and then to wherever you are staying).  Interlaken has two main transit hubs for trains and buses: Interlaken West and Interlaken Ost (East), with Ost being the larger of the two.  Connections to surrounding towns and other cities around Switzerland are frequent, and you can research times and prices easily here:  https://www.sbb.ch/en  Note that the fares default to Half-Fare discount--change this option if needed.

Most likely you'll want to get close to (if not on top of) the famous Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau peaks--getting close enough to take some amazing photos isn't difficult or expensive, however reaching the peaks IS.There are lots of printed timetables for all modes of transport, and I recommend you grab one at the train station, but you should also learn how to read the timetable in advance AND get an idea of some of the prices for activities that interest you:  https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/prices-and-brochures/

Now you're probably wondering, goodness how am I going to afford all of this??  Well the Swiss have a few options for tourists, which can save you time and money.  One is the Half-Fare Card, which gives you 50% off the price of MOST transport tickets in Switzerland--note that you still have to buy your tickets as well as this pass, so it won't really save you any time.  However for $120 you get a month of savings--this is a necessity to making the trip more affordable, and is perfect for folks staying in Switzerland longer than a few days AND not going between many larger cities (e.g. Zurich, Basel, etc.).  There is also the Jungfrau Region Travel Pass, which covers MOST routes in the Interlaken area only--this is a great option if you're using a car to get to/from Interlaken.  The last option is the Swiss Travel Pass, which covers 100% of the price for MOST transit tickets (and museums!) within Switzerland, but only 50% reduction on tickets to Italy, and 25% off the price of some of the more expensive cog-trains in the mountains.  I would only recommend the Swiss Travel Passes if you are jamming a lot into a few days including traveling between larger cities--also you won't have to buy tickets before boarding trains, buses etc.--for a stay longer than a week or one without stops in other Swiss cities outside the Interlaken area, the Half-Fare Card is probably best. The specifics of what is and isn't covered by these passes is VERY tricky--if you like crunching numbers, the folks at
https://www.myswissalps.com/forum are super helpful and even have formulas to help you figure what will save you the most money.   Note that you cannot buy a Travel Pass more than two months in advance, you must specify the consecutive dates you will use it, and if you want to reserve a seat on an inter-city train it will cost you $5 extra at the station. 

For our trip, we purchased a four-day Swiss Travel Pass ($270/person) that covered a day-trip from Basel to Luzern (and back), train from Basel to Interlaken and two days in the region, and finally an afternoon train to Milan via Domodossola. Alone, these train tickets without any discount would have totaled roughly $190/person, not to mention the shorter trips around Interlaken (usually $10-15/person-each way).  Ultimately the Half-Fare Card probably would have saved us about as much money because we didn't get to some of the museums and side activities that we hoped to do, but we did enjoy the ease of not having to buy tickets for any of the transit rides. 

Like I said--pretty complicated!  Lower-priced lodging in the Interlaken area is sparse, and hauling your luggage up-hill in the mountains can be quite the task, so this is another area where research and planning are necessary.  Also note for the summer that most places will not have A/C--usually an open window is sufficient at night, but they do have occasional heatwaves.  We found a great AirBnB in a town next to Interlaken called Unterseen, not far from Interlaken West station--remember to check your AirBnB's fees, they're not as cheap as they seem at first glance.

Interlaken itself is a pleasant, if touristy, city that is worth walking through if only to see one of the cleanest most beautiful cities in the world that can be called 'touristy'--a stroll between the two main stations will reveal lots of shops, a large open park, the Casino, and grocery stores where you can grab fresh affordable food. 

There is so much to see and do in this region, it would take weeks to do everything!  Unfortunately, most of the 'attractions' close or are unreachable at 6pm (some bus/train routes stop), despite plenty of daylight in the summer evenings--some things are also dependent on good weather, like the First-Flier zipline, and you might not get a great scenic view on the mountains if it is a very cloudy/rainy day.  From the mountain peaks to paragliding down the valley,  numerous small towns around the lakes Brienz and Thun, plus seemingly infinite hikes with gorgeous scenery, you really need to prioritize a list of what you'd like to accomplish in your visit, with the caveat that you probably won't be able to do it all.  TIP:  Bring a backpack with a rainjacket, layer(s) for colder temps on the mountains, a water bottle and plenty of snacks for the day--and if you see a grocery store, go in and get something to eat even if you're not hungry right then, as they are few and far between!

We began our day traveling from Interlaken Ost to Lauterbrunnen via train--this is a lovely decent size town with cafes, shops and a Coop grocery store, so take advantage of what's available!  Continuing past the Coop store, we took a gorgeous easy ~1-hour hike to Winteregg, and you can get some great shots of the valley and mountains on this walk.  We took another short train from Winteregg to Murren, a similar town to Lauterbrunnen, and again there's some cafes and a Coop grocery.  From the Murren Schilthornbahn station you can take some great cable car rides including one to the nearly 10,000 ft. elevation Schilthorn peak (fare included with Travel Passes!), and the Thrill Walk in Birg--be aware that the cable cars to the peaks stop before 6pm (we got there too late 😣).  We took the cable cars to Gimmelwald and then to Stechelberg, and while they are a little crowded, the cable car ride is pretty fun.  From Stechelberg we caught bus line 141 to the stop for Trummelbach falls, and got there just in time before they closed.  The funicular here will take you past the first several viewpoints of the falls, but we recommend using it if you are planning to visit the top fall because the walk up is STEEP!  Trummelbach and the nearby Staubbach falls (30 min walk) should definitely be on your itinerary if you want to experience the natural wonders of this area--their size and power are immense. 

Our second day started with a train ride to Grindelwald, and a quick walk through this mountain-side town.  Soon we where whisked up to over 7,000 ft. via the Grindelwald-->First cable car.  We took the First Flyer zipline-ride, and there are other activities along the way up to First such as biking and carts, or you can just hike back down.  Being Floridians, the swift climbing cable-cars made us a little queasy--we took a short break half-way to allow our bodies acclimate to the elevation.  The lines for the activities here move slowly (we waited about 1 hour), so don't assume you'll hop off a cable car right onto these activities, but it was totally worth the wait. 

We had to rush in order to get to our next stop--the St. Beatus cave!  From Interlaken Ost, bus line 21 is the fastest way to get to the base of the mountain entrance--note that you'll have a long, steep walk up to the actual cave entrance, but the scenery is absolutely beautiful so take your time (if you can).  It's about $15 to enter the cave, group tours are available but not necessary, and don't forget your jacket because it always around 50*F inside.  Walking through it is amazing, and we highly recommend visiting--just make sure you don't miss the last bus or boat ferry back to Interlaken!

On our last morning in Interlaken we hopped a train back to Grindelwald to take a fun ride on the Pfingstegg toboggan--you can get there walking or catching the bus line 122 to Pfingsteggbahn, where you'll take a fun cable car ride up a short distance.  Neither the cable car nor the toboggan is included with a Travel Pass, but it is worth the cost (especially for kids, I imagine)--we did a similar ride in Germany, but this was a little longer and offers incredible views on the way down.

                

Though it is a somewhat physically demanding place to visit, and the transit is tricky, Interlaken and the numerous towns around it offer so much beauty and a variety of experiences, you will no doubt enjoy your time here.  Our trip took us from Basel to Interlaken via train, and then from Interlaken on to Milan, Italy again via train, from where we experienced another look at the Alps around Lake Como, Italy--this itinerary worked great for us, and you can easily continue your journey around Europe or (in our case) back the USA from Milan.  We would love to return to this area of Switzerland one day, and stay for a longer time so we can do more activities and explore more towns around the lakes.  Specifically, we would have loved to ride the funicular up to Harder Kulm, taken the funicular to Wilderswil and walked around Schynige Platte, and taken a ferry boat to the city of Thun for a little exploring on foot.  One day...

Thank you very much for reading about our trip, please comment with any questions below, and travel safely!