One of the benefits of our children’s hockey games is that we sometimes get to revisit places we already know. But since these have so much to offer visitors, we can also discover new attractions. This was most recently the case when our Dominik had a hockey game in Grindelwald in the Jungfrau region. The players are always on-site almost an hour and a half before the game, so we always try to make the most of this time (sure, I could sit down in a local restaurant for that time, have a quiet morning coffee, but you know me! 🙂 ). The original plan to take the cable car to the top of First and hike from there to Bachalpsee fell through due to bad weather, so we were looking for a “plan B”. And we found it: a visit to the glacier gorge aka Gletscherschlucht.
Arrival
The Grindelwald Gletschschlucht is located in the Jungfrau region (Gletscherschlucht 1, 3818 Grindelwald), which is easily accessible by car or bus.
By car: from Bern, take the A6 motorway in the direction of Interlaken. Take the Wilderswil exit and keep right. Continue in the direction of Grindelwald. You will then pass through the village, turn right in front of the church and follow the brown signs that read “Gletscherschlucht”. Once you see the Gasthof Gletscherschlucht restaurant building, you are there. There is a large free car park to the right of the restaurant building.
By train: it takes 34 minutes from Interlaken-Ost to Grindelwald Station (not Grindelwald-Terminal!). From the station, you can either take bus 122 to the Gletscherschlucht stop (bus only runs once an hour, always at .16) or walk. It’s a pleasant walk that takes about half an hour.
Opening hours and entrance fees
This year, the canyon is open from May 1 to November 14, daily from 9:30 am to 6 pm.
Admission for an adult is 19 francs, children under 16 are 10 francs, and children under 6 are free. If you’re staying in Grindelwald, with a guest card you can get in for 17 francs.
It is possible to rent a jacket ( for 7CHF) at the cash desk. Even in the summer, it is always much colder in the canyon, so keep that in mind before you visit 🙂 .
Glacier gorge
The gorge, once covered by glacier ice, is accessible by footbridges and tunnels in the rocks. The route is less than a kilometer long. When you reach the end of the gorge, you turn and follow the same route back. On the way, you can also taste the pure water from the Eiger glacier, that pours from a spring in the rock.
The roar of the water is absolutely exciting – we went in August and the water flow in the Lütschine is really fast, powerful, and almost deafening.
Along the route, you will find information boards (in German and English) where you can find out many interesting facts. Pictures of disappearing glaciers will make you think.
“Spiderweb”
The highlight of the visit to the canyon is the 170m2 net which spans the canyon seven meters above the roaring river. Nothing for the faint-hearted, but as you can see, I’ve outdone myself for you 😀 Children under 5 years old are not allowed on the net (their feet could slip through the mesh and they could lose a shoe).
Canyon Swing
In 1996, a platform was built in the ravine at a height of 90 m above the ground. Adventurous visitors can pay 149 francs and jump (with safety gear, of course) into the abyss and then rush down the narrow glacial gorge at speeds of up to 120 km/h.
Summary
- The Gletscherschlucht is an attraction of interest to those who have never seen anything like it before, walking through the canyon is really impressive.
- Like everything in Switzerland, it’s not a cheap affair. Some would say it’s a rather expensive trip when you spend less than an hour (40 minutes to 1 hour) at the site.
- On the other hand, it’s a good place to visit in bad weather or on a very hot day.
- Strollers and wheelchairs are allowed.
- You can find more of our gorge hikes (which are not glacier hikes, but are totally free!) on the blog under the “gorge” category here.
