Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Gimmelwald has two good eating options.
Mountain Hostel Restaurant
is open for lunch and dinner and comes with fun,
mountain-high energy and a youthful spirit (15-SF plates, popular 17-SF pizzas, daily
12:00-21:00). You can eat inside or with breathtaking views on the terrace.
Pension Gimmelwald Restaurant
has a good, simple menu featuring local produce
served in a rustic indoor dining room or on a jaw-dropping-view terrace. The atmosphere
here is a little more jazz-and-blues mellow (13-22-SF main dishes, daily in summer
12:00-15:00 & 18:00-21:00, bar open until 23:00).
Picnic:
Consider packing in a picnic meal from the larger towns. Mürren, a five-minute
cable-car ride or a 30-minute hike up the hill, has good restaurants and a grocery (see “Eat-
ing in Mürren,” later). If you need a few groceries and want to skip the hike to Mürren, you
can buy the essentials—noodles, spaghetti sauce, and candy bars—at the Mountain Hostel's
reception desk or the little Honesty Shop at Pension Gimmelwald. Farmers post signs to
sell their produce. Farmer Erika sells meat, cheese, and eggs—and sometimes bread and
milk—from her picturesque hut on the town's main lane (see “Self-Guided Walk,” earlier).
Pleasant as an alpine resort can be, Mürren is traffic-free and filled with cafés, souvenirs,
old-timers with walking sticks, employees enjoying incentive trips, and snap-happy tourists.
Itschaletsareprefab-rustic.Withhelpfromacliffsidetrain,afunicular,andacablecar,hik-
ing options are endless from Mürren. Sitting on a ledge 2,000 feet above the Lauterbrunnen
Valley, surrounded by a fortissimo chorus of mountains, the town has all the comforts of
home (for a price) without the pretentiousness of more famous resorts.
Historic Mürren, which dates from 1384, has been overwhelmed by development. Still,
it's a peaceful town. There's no full-time doctor, no police officer (they call Lauterbrunnen
if there's a problem), and no resident priest or pastor. (The Protestant church—up by the
TI—posts a sign showing where the region's roving pastor preaches each Sunday.) There's
not even enough business to keep a bakery open year-round (bread is baked down in Laut-
erbrunnenandshippeduptothe“bakery,”whichisopenin-season only)—aclear indication
that this town is either lively or completely dead, depending on the time of year. (Holiday
population: 4,000. Permanent residents: 400.) Keep an eye open for the “Milch Express,” a
tiny cart that delivers fresh milk and eggs to hotels and homes throughout town.
