Interlaken in 5 days: two valleys, one summit, two lakes

Why five days, not three

Three days in Interlaken forces a choice: one summit, or the valleys, but rarely both, and the lakes usually get left out entirely. Five days is the point where the itinerary stops feeling rushed - one big mountain day, one valley-and-cable-car day, one day split between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, an easy orientation day, and a fifth day with no fixed plan at all, which this region rewards more than most because the weather changes the calculation daily.

This route treats Interlaken as a fixed base rather than a series of one-night stops. You keep one hotel for five nights, use the two stations - Interlaken Ost for the Jungfrau valley and lake Brienz boats, Interlaken West for the Hoheweg and Lake Thun boats - and day-trip out and back each morning. It is the cheaper and less exhausting way to see the region compared with shuffling luggage between Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen and Interlaken every night.

Day 1: Arrival, Harder Kulm and getting your bearings

Arrive into Interlaken Ost and check the platform board before you do anything else - it is easy to confuse Ost with Interlaken West, and they are a 15-minute walk apart on opposite sides of town. Drop your bags and walk the Höheweg past the Hohematte, the 14-hectare protected meadow where paragliders land through the afternoon; if the wind is right you will see a dozen canopies come down in the space of an hour.

In the late afternoon, take the eight-minute funicular from Interlaken Ost up to Harder Kulm at 1,322 metres. It is the fastest way to understand the town’s geography - Lake Thun on one side, Lake Brienz on the other, the Bödeli strip of land between them, and the Jungfrau, Mönch and Eiger lined up to the south on a clear evening. Go back down for dinner in town; the platform restaurant is fine but overpriced for what it is, so don’t plan a full meal around it. Our Harder Kulm guide has current funicular times and the walking-down option if you’d rather skip the return fare.

Day 2: Jungfraujoch, the highest point of the trip

This is the expensive day and it deserves the whole day, not half of it. The Jungfraujoch sits at 3,454 metres and is reached either via Lauterbrunnen and Kleine Scheidegg, or via Grindelwald and the Eiger Express gondola to Eigergletscher - both routes meet at Kleine Scheidegg’s cog railway up through the tunnel blasted inside the Eiger, opened in 1912. Book the first reasonable morning departure: cloud tends to build over the glacier plateau after late morning, and a day trip from Interlaken to the Jungfraujoch that leaves Interlaken Ost early gives you the best odds of a clear Aletsch Glacier view from the Sphinx terrace.

Budget three to four hours at the top, including the Ice Palace and the walk out onto the snow plateau if conditions allow - it is genuinely cold up there even in July, so bring a proper layer regardless of the season.

If you’d rather not manage tickets and connections yourself, a Jungfraujoch overnight package at 3,600 metres is worth considering if you want sunrise over the glacier without a 6am start from the valley - though it roughly doubles the cost of the day. Full route detail, current fares and the maintenance-closure calendar are in our Jungfrau Railway guide and the dedicated Jungfraujoch guide.

Day 3: Grindelwald First and the Lauterbrunnen valley

Split this day so the morning covers Grindelwald and the afternoon covers Lauterbrunnen - they sit on opposite sides of the same rail junction at Zweilütschinen, so the connection is quick either direction. From Interlaken Ost, the train to Grindelwald takes about 35 minutes. Ride the gondola up to Grindelwald First at 2,168 metres; the Grindelwald First attraction ticket from Interlaken covers the return gondola, and you can add the First Cliff Walk or the First Flyer zipline on top if that appeals. Our Grindelwald First guide has current combination prices.

By early afternoon, head back down and take the train to Lauterbrunnen. The valley holds 72 waterfalls on a good count, and you don’t need to hike far to see the best of them - the 297-metre Staubbachfall is visible from the village street, and the Trümmelbach Falls, ten glacier-fed cascades inside the mountain, are a short bus or walk from the station (entry is payable on site).

If you’d rather cover the valley floor by bike, an e-bike tour to Lauterbrunnen and Isenfluh is a relaxed way to see the valley without committing to a full hiking day. The full walking route is in our Lauterbrunnen valley waterfall walk. If time allows, ride the cable car up to Mürren for twenty minutes - one of the region’s car-free villages, cars left behind at Lauterbrunnen or Stechelberg for good.

Day 4: Two lakes, two boats

Today has no mountain component, which after two lift-heavy days is deliberate. Start at Interlaken West and take a boat out onto Lake Thun - the paddle steamers and modern catamarans of the Bernese Oberland fleet call at Spiez, Thun and the lakeside villages, and a single loop takes most of a morning. Full timetables and which sailings use the historic paddle steamers are in our Lake Thun boat trips guide.

Cross back to Interlaken Ost after lunch and switch lakes: Lake Brienz’s water runs a distinctive turquoise from glacial rock flour, most obvious on the crossing to Iseltwald or Giessbach. This lake is also the quieter of the two, with fewer stops and shorter crossings, so it suits an unhurried afternoon better than a packed itinerary. Buy tickets per crossing rather than a combined day pass unless you’re doing four or more legs - the maths rarely favours the day pass on a single afternoon.

Day 5: The day with no plan

Keep this day genuinely open and decide the morning of, based on the forecast - it is the single best insurance against the region’s two real risks: a closed lift and a wet afternoon. Options worth having ready:

If the weather is…	Do this
Clear and you haven’t had enough altitude	Schilthorn or Schynige Platte, both lower-key alternatives to a second Jungfraujoch trip
Clear and you want low-effort	A flat walk around the Bödeli, or a swim in Lake Thun or Lake Brienz
Wet or grey	Ballenberg open-air museum, or one of Interlaken’s indoor options
Wet and you came for a thrill	Indoor skydiving or a covered adventure activity - see our rainy-day guide

For the wet-weather fallback in more detail, see things to do in Interlaken when it rains, and for the full list of what’s free on a tight final day, Interlaken free things to do.

The lift budget for this itinerary, and where to cut it

Switzerland is not a country to visit on a shoestring, and the honest number for this five-day route, per adult, without a discount pass, looks like this:

Item	Approx. cost (CHF)
Harder Kulm return funicular	32
Jungfraujoch return from Interlaken	200-230
Grindelwald First return gondola	80-90
Trümmelbach Falls entry	14
Lake Thun + Lake Brienz boat legs (combined)	60-80
Total lifts and boats, per adult	roughly CHF 400-460

That figure drops meaningfully with a Half Fare Card if you’re staying a week or more, or with a regional Berner Oberland Pass or Jungfrau Travel Pass if most of your days stay inside this region - work the exact saving against your own itinerary in our Swiss Travel Pass guide and Jungfrau and Berner Oberland Pass guide.

If the total still doesn’t fit the budget, cut Harder Kulm first - it’s the least essential item on the list - before touching the Jungfraujoch or the Lauterbrunnen valley, which are the two days this itinerary is actually built around. For a fuller breakdown of what a week here costs beyond the lifts - food, accommodation, local transport

• see Interlaken travel costs, and for more day-trip options once you’ve done this core route once, day trips from Interlaken.

Interlaken 5-day itinerary: frequently asked questions

How much do the mountain excursions cost in total on this itinerary?

Budget roughly CHF 200-230 per adult for the Jungfraujoch return from Interlaken (less with a Half Fare Card or a regional pass), CHF 80-90 for the Grindelwald First gondola, and CHF 30-40 for Harder Kulm. The two lake boat trips add another CHF 60-80 combined if you buy point-to-point tickets rather than a day pass.

Is five days enough for Interlaken and the Jungfrau region?

It is enough for the core: one summit, both valleys, both lakes and a rest day. It is not enough to also do a day trip to Bern, Lucerne or Zermatt at a comfortable pace - those need a sixth or seventh day, covered in our 7-day itinerary.

Which lift ticket should I cut if the budget is tight?

Drop Harder Kulm before you drop anything else - it is the cheapest and most skippable, and the view from the Hohematte and the lakeshore already gives you the town’s layout. If you need to cut further, skip Grindelwald First and keep the Jungfraujoch and the Lauterbrunnen valley walk, which costs nothing beyond the train fare.

What happens if the Jungfraujoch is closed by weather or maintenance?

The line to the Jungfraujoch closes for scheduled maintenance in spring and autumn for several days at a time, and individual trips get cancelled or delayed by wind and whiteout even in season. Check the day’s forecast and lift status the evening before, and keep Grindelwald First or the Schilthorn as a lower, often clearer, back-up.

Do I need a car for this itinerary?

No. Every stop on this route - Interlaken, Lauterbrunnen, Grindelwald, the Jungfraujoch, Harder Kulm and both lakes - is reachable by train, boat or cable car, and Wengen, Mürren and Gimmelwald are car-free by design. A car adds parking costs and no time saving on these connections.

Which pass is worth buying for five days?

If this Interlaken week is your only Swiss travel, a regional Berner Oberland Pass or Jungfrau Travel Pass usually beats a nationwide Swiss Travel Pass, since most of your days stay inside the Jungfrau region and don’t need country-wide rail coverage. Run your own itinerary through the ticket prices first - the maths depends on how many peak trips you take.

Where should I stay to make this itinerary work?

Interlaken itself is the practical base: both stations are within walking distance, and you avoid re-packing for one-night stops in Grindelwald or Lauterbrunnen. Staying in Grindelwald or Wengen instead cuts a little travel time to the mountains but adds it back on the lake and Harder Kulm days.