Grindelwald: a dream destination between the giants

You guys know by now that currently I am spending a lot of time in the mountains. Often this is purely about riding the snow, but there is so much more to love for mountains than just the slopes.

Now with all this mountain activity I am not so often super impressed anymore (call it luxury issues I know I know ), but Grindelwald literally blew me away with its beautiful surroundings.

Getting there

With a 2,5 hour trainride from the city of Luzern or a 90 km drive by car this town is perfect for a weekend getaway in Central Switzerland. I would definately recommend taking public transport as this gives you a perfect view of how massive the mountains are getting around you. Behind every corner there is a new giant waiting for you.

3 Giants

Now the reason that most people know Grindelwald (or maybe Interlaken which is better know internationally and just a 20 kms away is) is because of the 3 high peaks that are located in this beautiful Jungfrau region. The Eiger (3970 m), the Monch (4107 m) and the Jungfrau (4154 m) are all located in this glacier region and are so high that I can see them on a clear day from Luzern, even while they are 90 kms away.

These 3 peaks really define this impressive region. The glaciers on itself are already a reason why so many people also visit this place in the summer, but in winter on a clear day these giants are really breathtaking and a reason to make you feel small and humble again. The sun reflects the light on the blue ice and also it makes you wonder when these gigantic pieces of ice will start to descend.

Skiing Area

Grindelwald itself is part of the Jungfrau Ski region which is also connected to Wengen (which had a World Cup skiing match there just last week) and Lauterbrunnen which is also known for its fantastic landscape in between two cliffs. In this whole area you have about 200 km of slopes in all different kinds of difficulties. Also the options for freeriding between the trees were good enough for the adventure seekers and the First Area even has a fun park. If skiing is too much of an adventure for you there is also one of the longest sledding tracks which will give you 15 km of downhill sledding at your own pace. Talk about a cool family activity right there!

One of the things that makes this area also so special is dat a lot of the skiing transporttation is done by train over the mountain. You can easily go by train to a different mountain station and start skiing from there. And if you really want to get high? Visit the Jungfraujoch station by train! (but no skiing from there)

It aint always happy joy joy

Remember I wrote about the Netflix series called 'the Horn' a couple weeks back? The series is about the mountain rescuers how they operate with their helicopter picking up the injured from the mountain. Well, I witnessed a mountain rescue myself here in Grindwald and I was absolutely impressed here on how this whole process goes. With winds blowing and lift cables everywhere these helicopters managed to pick up a victim who was injured in a quite difficult area.

I was absolutely impressed on the force of these machines and how they were operated. Now I hear you guys thinking that its not cool to watch rescure missions. But honestly, with my medical background and overseeing how this whole operation went I can only say how much these rescuers should be admired. True heroes who go out every day risking their own lives!

Grindelwald Town

Apart from the skiing area Grindelwald town itself is also super cool actually. The houses and vacational homes are scattered throughout the whole region leaving all places with a decent amount of space and privacy. Having affordable options with Airbnb definately makes this an area of interest. But there is more to do in town that just to ski. For example currently there was an ice sculpture festival going on and I also saw some things about live music. You do not have to get bored while hanging around in this area.

I would surely recommend everybody to visit Grindelwald honestly. With its surroundings you can hardly go wrong if you are a bit of a mountainlover.