Interlaken is one of the places that has been on my wish list for an awful long time. I remember taking breaks in between coursework research in my uni room and flipping through pages on the internet looking for the places I’d love to visit one day. Just a few weeks before I left for my trip to Switzerland, I was cleaning my old laptop and discovered the folder where I had saved the photos from all those places younger me wanted to visit. And there it was, a beautiful picture of Interlaken, long forgotten and impatiently waiting to be replaced by my own photo of this gorgeous place. Now I can happily say that this mission is accomplished.
I didn’t really have a plan when I got to Interlaken. I had the weird feeling that for this place, I didn’t really need one. Somehow I knew I would fall in love with the town and I wanted to just go with the flow and enjoy Interlaken just like I have been dreaming about. To my surprise, I came to realise that actually there is quite a bit to do in and around Interlaken. Having said that, no trip to this fairy town will be complete if you miss on any of these cool things to do in Interlaken.
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Explore the old town
Put your most comfy shoes on and go outside to explore the old town of Interlaken. I was really lucky because I stayed in a hotel very near the Interlaken West station which also meant near the center and old town. So as soon as I left my bag in the room, I was out and about chasing after the mountain freeze and the beautiful views of Interlaken. You can join a walking tour but my advice would be to do this solo. The old town is so incredibly picturesque, peaceful and relaxing that you’ll really want to just take your time and not rush to catch up with the group. This part of town is hiding the unique architecture of old Interlaken and is a really great contrast to the posh side of town. Basically if you want to avoid the talk about luxury Swiss watches, fancy clothes and super pricey hotels and restaurants, definitely head over to the old part.
Take a selfie with the cute wooden bridges
You probably know that the Swiss are pretty well known for their traditional wooden bridges. You’ve seen photos from the one in Lucerne, right? Luckily, I was able to discover that Interlaken has not just one but two wooden bridges which provide the perfect background for a selfie with the Aare river and of course the mountains. Surpisingly when I went to Interlaken (end of April) although the weather was absolutely beautiful, there were barely any people walking around in the middle of the day so I spent pretty long time just taking in the views. I just couldn’t quite believe how a place so beautiful could be that quiet, clean and unspoiled by mass tourism.
Boat tour on lake Thun
Interlaken is nested right in the middle of two gorgeous huge lakes, lake Thun and lake Brienz, and it’s almost unthinkable to visit Interlaken and not sail along one of them at least. I personally opted for a boat tour on lake Thun. In fact that’s how I got to Interlaken. I took a boat from Spiez to Interlaken which was the moment I really appreciated how good my decision was to get the Swiss travel pass.
From Spiez to Interlaken it took about 1 hour and 20 minutes and although it might sound like a bit too long as you’re reading this post now, trust me … you won’t feel that way the moment you get on the boat. It was the most incredible hot day in late April. I was super lucky that I got 25 degrees of pure sunshine with not a single dense cloud to obstruct the views. Being so huge, lake Thun is home to some of the most amazing views I had ever seen on a boat trip and you really don’t want to miss that! But take your suncream with you, I underestimated the hot weather and burnt like a cookie 😀 (as evident from the photo above)!
Harder Kulm
If you have time to do only one single thing in Interlaken, this is it! Interlaken is beautiful from the ground but it’s absolutely phenomenal from the top. When you step foot in Interlaken, you instantly realise that the mountains are all over and immediately one would think, how do I get up there? And Harder Kulm is the answer. Soaring at 1,322 metres overlooking Interlaken, Harder Kulm offers the most spectacular views over the town, lake Thun and lake Brienz. Not only that but it’s the place where you can get a tiny bit closer to admire the three Swiss sister mountains spreading right in front of Harder Kulm – the Eiger, Mönch, and the famous Jungfrau mountain. If you stick to budget whilst in Interlaken, take everything else out and budget to get a seat in the funicular ascending towards Harder Kulm. This will definitely top your list of things to do in Interlaken, just like it did for me!
Insider tip: The funicular takes 6 min to the top and it costs 32 CHF for a return ticket. Extortionate, right! But luckily if you get the Swiss travel pass, you’ll only pay 50% which still isn’t cheap but it’s 100% worth it! Oh, and you don’t have to pre-book.
Harder Kulm at sunset
I had to separate this out into a new section because honestly, seeing the views at sunset is a totally different experience. I had spent about 2 hours on the viewing platfrom, just chilling, engraving the views in the memory and taking so many photos, it’ll be pretty shocking to even disclose 😀 . It was about 7pm when I figured it’s time to head down and explore more of Interlaken, when I realise that the sky was starting to change colour. The sunset was about to put on a show! In a place so peaceful, with very little movemement happening around, instantly everyone was rushing to get a spot on the platform to capture the stunning sky turning pink. It was simply incredible! I couldn’t believe how much the feel for the place changed in just one rapid change of color. So if you can, time it! Go up the Harder Kulm just before sunset and don’t leave until you see views similar to the ones I managed to capture.
Insider tip: Whether you go in time for the sunset or not, have a drink at the little cafe at the top of Harder Kulm and just enjoy the moment. A drink would cost around 5 CHF but the experience is priceless.
Stroll along the river
Interlaken is a tiny place. It probably takes about 2 hours to stroll along the entire town but my most favourite place for a casual walk was definitely along the river. I’m not a huge fan of the main busy streets wherever I go so instantly I went on search to find a cosy alley to walk along the river. And when you look you discover and so I did. When you get to the casino (a flashy, posh building you can’t possibly miss to spot), turn left and you’ll reach the Aare river. To get the best experience, stroll from the left side of the river toward Harder Kulm funicular. That way you get to stroll, casually looking to the left to indulge in the views over the river and the town. For me, that was the most amazing way of reaching the Harder Kulm so my search 100% paid off. I hope it will for you too.
Picnic in the town park
A few restaurants in town, however fancy, can beat a relaxing, non pretentious picnic in Interlaken’s main park. For the small place that Interlaken is, it has a pretty spacious park full of flowers, freshly cut grass (or so it seemed) and amazing views over the town church and of course the mountains. On a beautiful warm day, this is just the perfect spot for some people watching too. If you have a thing for air sports, unless you can have a go yourself, here you can also watch paragliders landing back from their exciting adventure which I thought was pretty awesome. Next time I go I’ll be the one landing down 😀 !
Paragliding and hanggliding
It turned out that apart from home to beautiful mountains, gorgeous river with the purest water I’ve ever seen, Interlaken is also home to a lot of adventure activities. If you’ve always wanted to try paragliding or hang-gliding, when you get to Interlaken, you’ll have your chance. The cost of course is as high as the mountains 😀 , but a local I met there had just driven from Lucerne to come specifically to Interlaken for a few minutes of paragliding so the experience must be mesmerizing. Sadly, I didn’t give it a go this time but next time I visit Interlaken, it’ll be on my hit list even before Harder Kulm.
If you’ve already booked your trip to Interlaken, get excited! because regardless of how much you’ve traveled already, this place will amaze you. I hope the above ideas for the top things to do in Interlaken will make up for a memorable trip. But regardless of how much or little you have time for when you visit Interlaken, my one advice would be to just enjoy it! Interlaken is within the few places that you can enjoy even without doing much so take in the views and have fun. 🙂
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Indeed very helpful! Thank you so much! I am travelling to Interlaken and I really loved your post
Aaaw I’m so glad you found the post useful, Nikki. You will have an absolutely wonderful time in Interlaken. If you have the time, do hop on the train to explore some of the villages near Interlaken as well. There are very few places that can beat the charm and tranquility of the Swiss countryside so exploring even a tiny bit of it will totally make you fall in love with it! Have a wonderful trip 🙂