Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Boat Trips
“Interlaken”isliterally“betweenthelakes”ofThunandBrienz.Youcanexploretheselakes
onalazyboattrip,hoppingonandoffastheschedule allows(freewithSwissPassorEurail
Pass but uses a travel day, schedules at TI or at travel center in West Station). The boats on
Lake Thun (5/day in summer, 2/day spring and fall, 5-hour round-trip, 68 SF) stop at the
St. Beatus caves (30 minutes away, described next) and two visit-worthy towns: Spiez and
Thun. The boats on Lake Brienz (5/day July-Aug, 2-4/day off-season, 3-hour round-trip, 48
SF) stop at the super-cute village of Iseltwald and at Brienz (near Ballenberg Open-Air Folk
Museum; easy bus and train connections back to Interlaken from Brienz).
The
St. Beatus caves
on Lake Thun can be visited with a one-hour guided tour (18
SF, 2/hour, April-mid-Oct daily 9:30-17:00, closed mid-Oct-March, tel. 033-841-1643,
www.beatushoehlen.ch
). The best excursion plan: Ride bus #21 from Interlaken (1-2/hour,
25 minutes, 5 SF, departs West Station at :17 and :47 past the hour, direction: Thun); tour
the caves; take the short, steep hike down to the lake; and return to Interlaken by boat (30
minutes, 13 SF one-way).
Adventure Sports
High-Adrenaline Trips
For the thrill-seeker with money, several companies offer trips such as rafting, canyoning
(rappelling down watery gorges), bungee jumping, and paragliding. Costs range from
roughly 150 SF to 200 SF—higher for skydiving and hot-air balloon rides. Interlaken's
two dominant companies are
Alpin Raft
(tel. 033-823-4100,
www.alpinraft.com
)
and
Out-
doorInterlaken
(tel.033-826-7719,
www.outdoor-interlaken.ch
)
.Othercompaniesaregen-
erally just booking agents for these two outfits. For an overview of your options, visit
www.interlakenadventure.com
orstudytheracksofbrochuresatmostTIsandhotels(every-
one's getting a cut of this lucrative industry).
Several years ago, two fatal accidents jolted the adventure-sport business in the Berner
Oberland,leadingtoamoreprofessionalrespectfortherisksinvolved.Companieshavevery
highstandardsofsafety.Statistically,themostdangeroussportismountainbiking.Enjoying
nature up close comes with risks. Adventure sports increase those risks dramatically. Use
good judgment.
Indoor Climbing
K44
is a breathtaking indoor climbing facility where you can snack or enjoy a nice cup of
hot chocolate while watching hotshots practice their gravity-defying skills.
Cost and Hours:
Free entry for viewing, 39 SF for one hour of climbing; open longer
hours in bad weather: Mon 16:00-22:00, Tue-Fri 9:00-22:00, Sat 9:00-20:00, Sun
