Eiger
The Eiger: One of the Most Watched Walls in the World
The north face of the Eiger is 1,800 metres of limestone and ice, and for most of the twentieth century it was as famous for killing climbers as for inspiring them. The German nickname Mordwand, a deliberate pun on Nordwand (North Wall), meaning “murder wall”, stuck because the face was first seriously attempted in 1935 and was not successfully climbed until 1938, with at least 64 fatalities in the years since. Toni Kurz’s death in 1936, he died within sight of rescuers who could not reach him, hanging frozen from a rope, was the incident that cemented the face’s reputation in the European press.
The first successful ascent was completed on 24 July 1938 by a German-Austrian team of four: Anderl Heckmair, Ludwig Vorg, Heinrich Harrer, and Fritz Kasparek. They had originally been two independent teams, Harrer and Kasparek had started a day earlier, and the faster Heckmair and Vorg caught them on the face and used their fixed ropes across the Hinterstoisser Traverse, the key technical section that had turned back earlier attempts. The combined party of four spent three days and three nights on the face before reaching the summit in deteriorating weather.
For most visitors, the Eiger is not a climbing objective, it is an object of sustained attention. The view of the north face from Grindelwald or from the First plateau is extraordinary, and the mountain’s scale and character change through the day as weather and light move across it. Many visitors spend a substantial part of their time simply watching it.
Getting to the Area
Grindelwald is the primary base for visiting the Eiger. It is connected by the Berner Oberland-Bahn (BOB) rack railway from Interlaken Ost, the journey takes around 35 minutes. Interlaken is served by direct trains from Bern (50 minutes), Zurich (2 hours 20 minutes), and Geneva (2.5 hours on the fast service). From Grindelwald, everything is within walking distance or reached by the local gondola networks.
Getting Up the Mountain
The Eiger Express
The Eiger Express tricable gondola opened in 2020 and transformed access to the upper mountain. It runs from Grindelwald Terminal (the lower gondola station, a short bus or walk from the village centre) to Eigergletscher station in 15 minutes. The cabins carry 26 passengers and the system moves 2,200 people per hour. The ride traverses directly below the North Face at height, which provides a view of the wall that was simply not available to previous generations of visitors.
The Eiger Express connects at Eigergletscher to the Jungfrau Railway for the final underground section to Jungfraujoch, the combined journey from Grindelwald Terminal to Jungfraujoch takes around 40 minutes, compared to 90 minutes via the old rack railway route through Kleine Scheidegg.
Note: The Eiger Express is closed for maintenance from 20 to 24 April 2026 and from 9 to 20 November 2026. Check current schedules at jungfrau.ch before travelling.
Jungfraujoch
At 3,454 metres, Jungfraujoch is the highest railway station in Europe. It sits in a saddle between the Monch and Jungfrau peaks and offers views across the Aletsch Glacier, the longest glacier in the Alps, at 23 kilometres. The platform, ice palace, and viewing terraces are open year-round.
A round-trip adult ticket from Grindelwald to Jungfraujoch costs approximately CHF 227 in 2025-2026 (prices are reviewed annually). This is one of the more expensive mountain railway excursions in Switzerland. The Swiss Travel Pass provides a 25% discount. Book early morning or midweek to reduce time spent in queues at the top; the platform is popular enough that the viewing terraces can feel crowded on clear summer afternoons.
First and the Cliff Walk
Grindelwald-First is a separate gondola destination from the Eiger Express, accessed from the gondola station in the centre of the village. The 25-minute ride reaches the First plateau at 2,168 metres. From here, the First Cliff Walk by Tissot extends along a suspension walkway 45 metres out from the rock face, a short walk (10-15 minutes) that provides exposure to the void below in a controlled format. It is more atmospheric than genuinely dangerous, and accessible to most visitors with a head for heights.
Beyond the Cliff Walk, the plateau is a starting point for the hike to Bachalpsee, a glacially formed lake at 2,265 metres reflecting the Wetterhorn and Schreckhorn when the weather is calm. The walk takes around 45 minutes each way from the First station. The lake has the kind of Alpine scenery that appears in photography so often it risks feeling familiar until you are standing in front of it.
The descent from First can be made by gondola, or by mountain cart (a small wheeled sledge), or by Flying Flyer zipline. The mountain cart and zipline are seasonal and require separate tickets.
Hiking
Several excellent walks are accessible directly from Grindelwald or from the gondola stations:
Grindelwald Glacier Gorge: A short walk from the village leads to the gorge carved by the retreating Lower Grindelwald Glacier. The glacier has lost over 2 kilometres of length since the nineteenth century, the gorge the path follows did not exist 100 years ago. The retreat is one of the most visually measurable examples of glacial retreat in the Alps, and the Parks Switzerland information boards along the route document it in detail. This is one of the facts most guide books mention briefly; it deserves more emphasis, watching a glacier shrink at the rate visible between photographic records from the 1870s and today is genuinely affecting.
Kleine Scheidegg and the Eigertrail: The Eigertrail is a marked walking route from Eigergletscher station (reachable by Eiger Express) west to Kleine Scheidegg, running directly below the North Face. The trail takes 1.5-2 hours and is appropriate for regular walkers with appropriate footwear. Looking straight up at the face from the trail, at a distance of a few hundred metres, provides a scale of the Nordwand that is impossible to grasp from the valley.
Where to Stay
Grindelwald is an expensive base by any measure, it is in the Jungfrau Region, where the combination of limited accommodation supply, Swiss operating costs, and sustained demand push prices well above what comparable mountain villages in Austria or France charge.
Hotel Kreuz and Post is positioned directly opposite the train station and functions well as a central base. It has two restaurants within the same building, one traditional and more formal, one more casual. Doubles typically start around CHF 250-350 per night in summer.
Hotel Fiescherblick is a short walk to the First gondola and slightly quieter in location while still central. Good views toward the Wetterhorn.
Glacier Boutique Hotel is the high-end option in the village, with the Glacier Fine Dining restaurant and panoramic window views. Rates reflect this.
Budget accommodation in Grindelwald itself is limited. The Naturfreundehaus at Kleine Scheidegg (a simple mountain inn, reached by rail) is one of the more atmospheric and affordable places to spend a night in the region, with the Eiger North Face visible from the dining room and almost no light pollution.
Where to Eat
Swiss Alpine food is hearty, expensive, and broadly similar across the region. The things worth ordering specifically in Grindelwald:
Fondue: The Bernese Oberland version uses a combination of Gruyere and Emmental; some restaurants offer a variation with local Berner Alpkase, a farmhouse cheese made on summer pastures above the valley. Bebbis, a restaurant with a terrace and strong views, does a reliable version. Barry’s on the main street is more centrally located and has a lively bar, reservations are wise in high season as they run two seatings per evening.
Rosti: The potato cake is a Bernese speciality eaten at any time of day. Kreuz and Post does a straightforward, honest version.
Local supermarkets (Coop and Migros, both present in Grindelwald) stock good Swiss cheese and charcuterie at prices significantly lower than restaurants, a practical option for lunch assembled at the hotel.
Practical Tips
Season: The Eiger Express and Jungfraujoch operate year-round. Hiking conditions on the upper trails are best from late June through September. Snow covers the Eigertrail into early summer and can return in October. Winter brings skiing on the Grindelwald-First and Kleine Scheidegg runs, and the Jungfraujoch visit is equally valid in winter with typically clearer skies on cold days.
Weather: The North Face creates its own weather, and the summit area around Jungfraujoch is reliably colder than the valley by 15-20 degrees Celsius. Check conditions before setting out on any high-altitude hike, and carry windproof and waterproof layers regardless of the forecast.
Swiss Travel Pass: If you are travelling Switzerland by rail, the pass covers the standard railway lines in the Jungfrau region and provides discounts on the mountain railways and the Eiger Express. The Jungfraujoch excursion is a supplement on top. Worth calculating against point-to-point tickets depending on your itinerary.
Camera timing: The North Face catches the best morning light on clear days, it faces north but the early alpine light reflects off the limestone walls in a way that photographs well between 07:00 and 09:00. Watching the face from Grindelwald at dusk, when the shadow line climbs up from the base and the upper ice fields catch the last sun, is one of the better ways to end a day here.
The Eiger is most worth visiting if you give it time. The face changes character completely across a single day, and the walking in the Jungfrau Region rewards slow movement more than fast tick-list coverage.