When we were planning our holiday to Switzerland this year, we had planned to stay in the car free town of Wengen, on the other side of the valley from Murren, which would in deed be closer to the very famous and much visited attraction…Read More

When we were planning our holiday to Switzerland this year, we had planned to stay in the car free town of Wengen, on the other side of the valley from Murren, which would in deed be closer to the very famous and much visited attraction of the Jungfraujoch, the highest railway station in Europe, bringing you to the 'Top of Europe' as it is widely advertised as. What made us stay in Murren however were the reviews of a fabulous little chalet (Chalet Fontana) in Murren, which was very reasonable value in a very expensive country like Switzerland.

We were travelling by train, so getting to Murren wasn't particulalry troublesome for us, in terms of finding the right place to leave your car. There are two main ways of getting to the little town starting from Lauterbrunnen at the bottom of the valley. We opted for the BLM, the mountain railway system, which in fact is composed of two parts - a large cable car which takes you part of the way up, which then coordinates (time wise) with the train which takes you the rest of the way up. hte other way to get to Murren, is to take the train from Lauterbrunner across the valley floor to Stechelberg, and then get the cable car up to Murren. Both are very easy to use and regular. These cable cars are large in size, and if you are carrying luggage, you can simply wheel it on board. The two arrival points in Murren are at either ends of the town.

There are two main streets in Murren, an upper one and a lower one. Our hotel was on the lower street, which is the busier of the two. If you arrive by train, it will approx a 5 to 10 minute walk before you are really in the heart of the town, as it is quite spread out for such a little place. There are ample amounts of cafes offering rosti's (a large hash brown style dish) cheese fondues, as well as other cuisine (including a chinese) along the lower street, and most of the larger hotels have their own restaurants as well. Prices range from reasonable to expensive in terms of both lodgings and eateries.

There are also plenty of little shops in the town, most of them selling winter skiing gear, but also some small souvenir shops (a little tacky), as well as a COOP supermarket and bank.

It may be a car free town, but you still need to be careful as you walk around. There are plenty of little electric vehicles buzzing around, although you really do feel as if the air is so pure and clean in the town, especially being so high up in the mountains.

One of the best thigns about the town, are unsurprisingly, the views. Not matter where you are in the town you can't get away from the amazing views of three great peaks of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau. Nowhere else in the world would you be able to either stay in reasonable priced lodings or have a reasonably priced dinner with those amazing views. You would usually be charged an arm and a leg for views like that on your doorstep. There are obviously therefore, numerous places in the town from which you can photograph these great views.

Murren is also a haven for walkers, nearly every other person in the summer season has a walking pole (or poles) in their hand. This is a big place for hikers, and understandably so. There are numerous trails to follow, all well signposted, depending on both yoru fitness, you available time, and what you would like to see. It is also worth asking the locals, as our accommodation host was able to tell us additional paths to take us past some other wonderful sights.

I suppose the difficulty with Murren comes when the weather isn't so good. We were incredibly lucky, and blessed with two hot, sunny days with pure blue skies, and so we could choose whatever we wanted. However, if you arrive in cloudy, wet weather, you won't get the views, so it is hardly worth paying to go the Jungfraujoch or schilthorn, and you might not want to walk as much, without the stunning scenery. There is a town swimming pool which you can use, and apart from a little bit of shopping, it may be a struggle to fill your days. There is little to be done however, and we read someone that the locals are very knowledgeable about the weather conditions because their livelihood depends on it, so it is worth asking them.

If you want to get away from everything, and be somewhere with complete peace and quiet, fresh clean air, spectacular views, walking trails and just relaxation, then you should head for Murren. It is really the image that many have of Switzerland and the Swiss Alps, and it comprises everything anyone who visits the Swiss Alps wants.Close

Mürrenbahn station in Lauterbrunnen is not a train station – from here two funiculars ride up and down, cresting the west wall of the valley and serving Grütschalp, from where a two-cars train gives you one of the most scenic rides in Switzerland…Read More

Mürrenbahn station in Lauterbrunnen is not a train station – from here two funiculars ride up and down, cresting the west wall of the valley and serving Grütschalp, from where a two-cars train gives you one of the most scenic rides in Switzerland along the cliff-edges to Winteregg (what a lovely name!) and Mürren.

Mürren is a marvelous mountain village (7km from Lauterbrunnen, 1638m, 363 inhabitants). It lies on a sunny terrace at the foot of the Schilthorn mountain (with its famous revolving Pitz Gloria restaurant). There may be other Swiss mountain villages that are equally pretty, but none of them enjoys views like those from Mürren across the deep valley to the dark rock faces and white-and-blue glaciers of the Eiger (3970m), Mönch (4029m) and Jungfrau(4158m) - simply breathtaking.

Total travel to Mürren takes 28 minutes. First take the Lauterbrunnen-Grütschalp funicular, which comes every half hour (for example, at 11:02, 11:32, 12:02). The entrance is right across the Lauterbrunnen train station. The ride is 10 minutes long. From Grütschalp take the BLM train to Mürren The funicular and the train are well connected. They basically share the same mini-station. The train departs two minutes after the funicular arrives. The ride to Mürren is 16 minutes long. Grab a seat on the left side for the breathtaking panorama of the Alps. You will need a map of the area. If you did not have the time to pick up a free map at the Grütschalp station, you still have a chance to do it in Mürren – at the station you will find plenty of the local maps and brochures.

Mürren itself was "discovered" by the British in the 1840s, and has a long tradition both of winter sports and of hospitable gentility – some of the first competition skiing in Switzerland was done on the slopes around Mürren. It was in Mürren that the British more or less invented modern skiing. Sir Arnold Lunn organized the first ever slalom race here in 1922. Some 12 years earlier his father, Sir Henry, had persuaded the locals to open the railway in winter so that he could bring the first winter package tour here.

Trains from Mürren goes back to Lauterbrunnen at 14:30–14:58; 15:00–15:28; 15:30–15:58; 16:00–16:28. Cable car Mürren-Gimmelwald–Stechelberg 14:25–14:35; 14:55–15:05; 15:25–15:35.

Local co-op supermarket is open Mon–Fri 8–12, 13:45–18:30; Sat 8–12, 13:45–16.

On a sunny clear day, you have a constantly changing beautiful view of the alpine range as well as the hills you are hiking through. One of the paths leads down to Winteregg where we sat at the cafe and had berry cake (delicious) iced…Read More

On a sunny clear day, you have a constantly changing beautiful view of the alpine range as well as the hills you are hiking through. One of the paths leads down to Winteregg where we sat at the cafe and had berry cake (delicious) iced tea and ice coffee (strong and sweet with lots of whipped cream). From Winteregg the path to Grutschalp is very scenic, easy and beautiful (much more scenic than the path from Winteregg to Murren, along the train tracks).Close

If you take the cable cars up to Murren, it's all downhill from here! All the way back down to Trummelbach Falls. Great walk, exceptionally beautiful views of the entire area. Mountains and waterfalls at every turn!…Read More

If you take the cable cars up to Murren, it's all downhill from here! All the way back down to Trummelbach Falls. Great walk, exceptionally beautiful views of the entire area. Mountains and waterfalls at every turn!Close