One of the best last minute decisions I have ever made, was to book a trip to Switzerland only a week in advance. I’m still adjusting to the new European holiday schedule and didn’t realise there was a long weekend coming up, so we went for it! In three days we were able to explore Interlaken, Lauterbrunnen and Oeschinensee. How? Well let me break it down for you. 🙂
Day 1: Land in Switzerland, head to Interlaken
We chose to take an early flight into Basel, Switzerland on Friday morning – picked up the rental car and were on our way! The drive from Basel took about 2 hours to the town of Lauterbrunnen where we were staying. It was the cutest and roomiest Swiss chalet apartment. There was a balcony directly facing the famous Staubbach waterfall! Check out the listing on Booking here. (And $20 off your next booking here)
After we dropped off our luggage we headed to Interlaken (about 15-20mins away) for some lunch. We ate at the restaurant in Hotel Interlaken and had some… fondue duh! On the way there we saw a brochure for paragliding, decided to go for it and booked flights for later that evening. But first, we headed down the street to go up to Harderkulm the “top of Interlaken”. You can either hike up (~2 hrs) or take the funincular. Either way you’re in for some beautiful views.
Paragliding Interlaken, Switzerland
If you are in Interlaken, I SUPER DUPER recommend that you do this activity. Granted it is pretty pricey at 170 Euros for a 15-20 minute flight, but I promise you will never forget the experience. I know because I still dream about it hehe. We flew with Skywings and all the jumpers are super fun and cool!
Day 2: Oeschinensee Lake, UNESCO Site
On day 2 of our Swiss adventure we decided to visit a lesser known UNESCO Site, Oeschinensee Lake. I originally found this area because I wanted to ride the Rodelbahn (or bobsled). It winds down the hill with jaw dropping views of the Swiss Alps. Be aware the slide is not open in the winter, so check the opening dates here before you plan a trip there. The slide is great because it is one of the cheaper activities we did but it was also shorter than I originally expected. So we bought a 5 pack of tickets, which ended up being a good thing since I went SUUUPER slow the first time haha.
To get to the bobsled you have to ride a gondola to the top of the mountain, and from there you have access to multiple activities including the bobsled, hiking trails and boat rentals to go out onto the lake. We chose to do the bobsled first because it’s cheaper and also no wait to ride it! Once we finished we walked down to the lake and hiked the Panorama Ridge Trail (~10km). Be careful if you go while there is still snow melting because you will have to cross some icy/ snowy areas and there are snow chunks falling. One got me on my knee so hard I had a bruise! :O It’s super worth it though, I mean – check out how blue it is.
Map of Oeschinensee
Day 3: Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald
On our last day we decided to wake up and walk around Lauterbrunnen before the hustle and bustle of all the other tourists. Walked up along Staubbach Falls and pet some cows, it was great. However be careful of the fences, my friend got a little shock when she leaned on it haha.
In the afternoon we said goodbye to our cute apartment and decided to check out the town of Grindelwald (about 15 minute drive from Lauterbrunnen). Why did we pick Grindelwald? Well obviously because we’re Harry Potter fans haha!
Grindelwald, Switzerland Activities
We honestly didn’t have any expectations about what to do there and once we got there we found out there were so many more activities. Check them all out here! The best way to tackle this is to buy the package deal which includes, round trip gondola tickets and passes for 2 activities. And on the plus side, the Cliff Walk is free so basically its a 3 for 2! We did the Cliff Walk, First Flyer and Mountain Carting.
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Switzerland was such a fun trip, full of so many firsts. First time paragliding, first time on a bobsled, and first time mountain carting. It is such a beautiful country and I can’t wait to explore more of it in the winter as well! Hope you guys are liking my summer adventures so far, and if you’re looking for a beach vacation check out my Mallorca, Spain post here!
Hope this inspired you to visit Switzerland soon! Till the next adventure 🙂