Things to do at Lake Brienz

Lake Brienz sits at the eastern end of the valley, reached by a 20-minute train from Interlaken Ost or by the boats that leave from the same station roughly every one to two hours in summer. The turquoise colour is glacial flour suspended by meltwater from the Aare and the glaciers feeding it, and it is more pronounced than on Lake Thun because less silt settles before it enters the lake.

Villages on the north shore, Iseltwald, Giessbach and Brienz itself, stay quieter than Interlaken's centre and have limited parking, so the boat is the easier approach. Water temperature rarely climbs past 20°C even in August, and there is no lifeguard cover at the informal swimming spots.

At 564 metres above sea level, Lake Brienz is around 5 metres higher than Lake Thun and noticeably less developed along its shoreline.