Hi everybody and welcome to Interlaken in Switzerland, situated in the beautiful Bernese Highlands of the Swiss Alps.
If you are planning a travel to Switzerland, this video about my trip up to the Harder Kulm in Interlaken is for you.
The Harder Kulm is a majestic mountain directly above Interlaken.
At an altitude of 1,322 m, it offers the best views of Interlaken, Eiger Mönch and Jungfrau as well as the two lakes Lake Thun and Lake Brienz with their amazing turquoise colored waters.
I will take the historic cable car to the top of the mountain from where I will visit the Two Lakes Viewing Platform.
Let's check it out.
The Base station building is located not far from the Interlaken East train station, just a 10 minute walk across the Aare river.
You cannot miss it as it’s right next to the Aare bridge and the funicular tracks visibly cut through the forest.
The building has remained in the original design as it was in the early years after the turn of the century, back in 1908.
The ride in the cable car is an experience in itself.
The historic cable car which has been operational for more than 100 years goes up 731 meters (2,400ft) in altitude at an incline of a whopping 64%.
The whole ride takes only about 8 minutes and leads through an illuminated tunnel.
On the way, you will encounter a second cable car coming from the top.
A two-way ticket for adults costs 34 CHF or about $38.
If you plan to take other trains in the region, you may want to purchase the Swiss Half Fare train card which gets you 50% off.
Other combination tickets that allow you to travel with the entire Berner Oberlandbahn network are also available.
This will be especially interesting if you plan to visit the villages of Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen and Wengen, or a visit to the Jungfraujoch.
You can also hike up the Harder Kulm which will take about 2.5 hours, taking trails through the forest that lines the mountain just above Interlaken.
Or you take the cable car to go up and hike back down to Interlaken.
Once you have arrived, take a left.
The iconic restaurant and the Two Lakes Bridge viewing platform are only a short 10-15 minutes walk from the station.
The way there already offers really nice views, especially of Lake Brienz.
I particularly enjoyed the various wood carvings with Swiss themes along the way.
The restaurant location is of course amazing and the architecture of the building with its late 19th century design can be spotted from far away.
As can be expected in Switzerland, the food that is served is not cheap and picnics are not allowed in the vicinity of the restaurant.
But you may still want to take a snack and rest for a while, before going on the various hiking trails on the Harder Kulm.
The restaurant also offers special dinner and weekend breakfast packages which you may want to check out on their website.
The Two Lakes Bridge viewing platform is of course the best place to enjoy the views
across the mountains and lakes below and it’s also the perfect location to take really cool pictures.
If you are lucky, you may also spot some paragliders who start their descents from Harderkulm does to Interlaken,
where they land with perfect touch downs at the large green field of the Hoehematte Park but I could not see them when I was there.
I took the cable car back down and did not have to wait more than 10 minutes for the ride.
Would I go there again?
Absolutely.
A visit to the Harder Kulm is a must-do when you are in Interlaken.
Note that the cable car is not operational during the winter months and the restaurant is closed as well.
But if you come in summer, you should definitely check it out!
Make sure you check the weather forecast before. Those nice panoramic views will only be there during nice and sunny weather.
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I wish you a great day and look forward to seeing you in the next video.
Have a good one.