The Storybook Village of Lauterbrunnen Switzerland

 I've long been a fan of Rick Steves, the travel guru with countless books and a PBS TV  show. He started traveling to Europe in his teens to visit family and it turned into a business for him. One in which, up until Covid put everything on hold, he would travel for 100 days every year in Europe. So I take his advice seriously when I'm planning an international trip. It was no different when I planned our European Road Trip/ Oktoberfest trip. Rick said that the Lauterbrunnen/ Wengen/ Grindelwald area of Switzerland is one of his favorites - since we were flying into - and out of - Geneva, well, it seems the choice was made. And boy oh boy, am I glad we did!

Sitting in the famed Bernese Oberland, the Jungfrau (at 13,642 feet elevation, the Jungfrau hosts the highest railway station in Europe) looms over Lauterbrunnen creating incredible scenery. It's a town of Swiss chalets, a train to take you to the top of Europe, restaurants serving fondue and rosti, a flower laden cemetery, cows with bells grazing on the hillsides and a legendary waterfall that is a quick walk from anywhere in town. 

All of this scenic beauty doesn't come cheap - Switzerland is one of the most expensive countries to visit. We managed, as usual, to splurge a little and save a little. Here's what we got up to:

Staubach Falls

Upon arrival we checked into our hotel and then walked just a few blocks to the famous Staubach Falls, the largest free-falling waterfall in Europe.  Located on the edge of town, there is a semi-paved trail which will lead you behind the waterfall with views of Lauterbrunnen. It's free to visit the waterfall and the town provides walking sticks - just pick one up to use and leave it when you head back into town. It took us about an hour and a half to do the waterfall - and we took our time - and it was a fantastic experience. I could have stayed all day to drink up the scenery and gaze at the cows with bells on. Just like a fairy tale.

Take a Train Ride to Wengen

For a mere $200 you can take a train from Lauterbrunnen to the Jungfraujoch, the highest train station in Europe. We decided that the price was quite steep and our time was limited so we took the train to Wengen, the city above Lauterbrunnen, and walked it's quaint pedestrian-only streets. We realized that we hadn't purchased any Swiss chocolate yet so we went into the little grocery store and bought our chocolate bars to take home.

Ride a Cable Car to Mannlichen

 Once in Wengen we paid to take the Wengen-Mannlichen aerial cableway up to Mannlichen, a mountain in the Swiss Alps, at a more reasonable rate of $32 return (at the time and with a discount by staying in the area) and enjoy all that the mountain had to offer - hike the summit which is known as the Royal Walk, a beer and hot chocolate while watching kids play on the Herdsmen playground and all the incredible views of the famous three peaks - the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau. A really special afternoon - and thank goodness for clear weather!

Enjoy Swiss food

One of the most famous foods to come out of Switzerland is Swiss fondue - dipping meat or bread (or even fruit) in a pot of melted cheese. It's usually a communal food, shared amongst family and friends. It's available in Lauterbrunnen but was quite expensive (this is Switzerland after all).

 We chose to go with a meal of Swiss rosti - a cross between a potato pancake and hash browns with plenty of cheese - and we ate outdoors at our hotel, Hotel Schutzen. It was delicious! Later on, we enjoyed hot chocolate seated on our balcony at the hotel covered in blankets - there was a little chill in the air as it was September in Switzerland.

Where We Stayed

We booked Hotel Schutzen on booking.com as one of our "splurges" as it was over $100 per night. Each couple had their own room with balcony overlooking the mountains and town. The pros: It was in a Swiss chalet style, included a restaurant (breakfast was not included in the rate though) and was close to everything we needed to get to. The lady working at the front desk was very helpful in telling us about the area. The cons: It was shoulder season and it appears they were understaffed. Food at the restaurant was good but service was extremely slow - I think the manager/owner was cooking and serving. But, quite frankly, we weren't in any hurry.  The rooms were nothing to write home about but sufficed for what we needed - and we weren't in our rooms that much anyways. Lauterbrunnen is small, very small, so there aren't many choices for lodging. But you can also look into staying in Wengen or Grindewald or even Interlaken and do day trips.

Visiting Lauterbrunnen was quite the magical experience. I'd go back again but I might stay in one of the other towns that we didn't get to visit - time is always so short!

 If you want to visit and stay in a Swiss town complete with flower boxes on chalets, towering mountains all around you and a waterfall within walking distance, well, then Lauterbrunnen is for you. And here's a little tale about the magic of Lauterbrunnen - Upon returning home from our trip I had a dentist appointment. I was chatting with the dentist about our trip and he said that he had also visited Lauterbrunnen (on Rick Steve's advice too) He loved it so much that he immediately thought he should move there and actually looked to see how many dentists they had! Lol. He said his fingernail marks are still on the door there as his family was dragging him out.

How about you? Have you been to Switzerland? Or Lauterbrunnen?

Linking up with: My Corner of the World at Photographing New Zealand!