Few places are as magical as the Jungfrau Region at any time of year. But to see the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau rising above frozen forests and ancient chalets hibernating below pillows of snow feels like you’ve stepped into a snow globe. Read on to discover where to stay and what the Jungfrau Ski Region offers during the winter for skiers and non-skiers alike.
Where to stay for your winter holiday in the Jungfrau Ski Region –
Grindelwald
Why you might love it – An excellent all-round winter resort with just enough Swiss charm. Grindelwald is the liveliest of the Jungfrau villages, with plenty to do off the slopes, which are an intermediate ski paradise.
Why you might skip it – The village sits at a relatively low altitude (1034 m), making the pistes to the village less snow-sure. Plus there’s limited advanced skiing on-piste.
My view – Grindelwald is the best all-round choice for a winter holiday in the Jungfrau Ski Region. The outlying meadows are sprinkled with traditional Swiss chalets that converge on the busy main street lined with hotels, restaurants and a handful of lively apres après-ski spots. While it can’t compete with the traffic-free tweeness of Wengen and Mürren, the mountain scenery is nothing short of dramatic. You can’t help but be over-awed by the mighty Eiger. The north face is so sheer that most of the snow slides straight off. After a fresh snowfall, it retains its fearsome demeanour, a dark, rugged mass looming above the otherwise sparkling landscape.
Thanks to recent new high-speed lifts to both Männlichen and Eigergletscher, Grindelwald offers efficient access to the majority of the Jungfrau Ski Region. The main exception is the long-winded access to the Schilthorn area.
Wengen
Why you might love it – Quieter and prettier than Grindelwald, with rapid access to a larger ski area than the equally picturesque village of Mürren.
Why you might skip it – Access to both Grindelwald-First and Mürren-Schiltorn is time-consuming, and there’s limited expert terrain.
My view – This Swiss village of fairytale perfection sits on a panoramic shelf overlooking the spectacular Lauterbrunnen Valley. It’s an exquisite setting for your winter holiday, especially if you’re a beginner or intermediate skier travelling outside of the peak weeks, or a winter hiker. The Männlichen cable car gets you up on the slopes in just 5 minutes. Queues can form on busy days, but otherwise, this is the fastest resort-to-ski access in the region. The alternative is the twice-hourly train to Kleine Scheidegg (22 mins).
January welcomes the FIS Ski World Cup Lauberhorn. The longest World Cup downhill in the world, with its notorious Hundschopf jump, is one of the few expert runs in the Jungfrau Ski Region.
Mürren
Why you might love it – A sleepy but picturesque alpine village full of Swiss tradition. It’s often laden with snow due to the relatively high altitude of 1650 m.
Why you might skip it – Mürren has the smallest ski area in the Jungfrau Region. Accessing the skiing in Wengen and Grindelwald involves multiple connections.
My view – a walk through the traffic-free village of Mürren feels almost surreal. It’s everything a quintessential Swiss village should be with ancient chalets steeped in history. The Schilthorn cable car departs from Mürren to give the quickest access to the highest (and steepest) terrain in the region. There’s plenty of off-piste terrain for experts, but for piste skiers, 51 km is quite limited, and the relatively isolated location means laborious connections to Wengen and Grindelwald. For this reason, I suggest Mürren is best for a short ski break. It could also be a decent option for beginners who can mix skiing with other activities such as winter hiking, ice skating, tobogganing and soaking up the ambience.
Non-skiing winter activities in the Jungfrau Region
Floating through powdery snow and across corduroy-groomed pistes is just one of many pastimes to give you a reason to visit in the winter.
- Hikers can use the lift network to access over 100 km of winter hiking trails. Plus, trail runners are welcome, too.
- There are 20 toboggan runs, including the longest in the world, which I tackled with very little finesse many years ago. The 2681 m starting point is at the top of the Faulhorn. You can only get here by hiking from the top of the First Gondola, making the incredible views all the more rewarding.
- The adrenaline-fueled options served by the First Gondola are impressive. As well as skiing, hiking and tobogganing, you can soar through the air at over 80 km/h on two winter zip lines (the First Flyer and First Glider) or feel like you’re walking on air on the First Cliff Walk suspended walkway.
- You can visit Switzerland’s must-do attraction the Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe, in the winter too. Make sure you dress for arctic conditions, as it will be ridiculously cold, but it’s certainly a way of beating the summer crowds.
- The villages of Grindelwald, Wengen and Mürren are all well worth a visit to soak up the picturesque winter ambience of the Jungfrau Ski Region. You can easily visit the town of Interlaken down in the valley or take the train to Bern or Lucerne. All are particularly atmospheric when the Christmas markets are on).
Skiing in the Jungfrau Region
The stats –
Ski area – 210 km (Jungfrau Ski Region)
Ski high point – 2970 m*
(*2677 m for winter 24-25 due to cable car closure)
A ski area of 210km is a great statistic and more than enough for most skiers. Particularly so (in this case) if you’re an intermediate. But it’s important to keep in mind that the pistes are split over three different areas –
56 km – Grindelwald-First
103 km – Grindelwald-Wengen
51 km – Mürren-Schilthorn
Click here to for the Jungfrau Ski Region piste map.
As you can see below, Grindelwald jumps out as the best place to stay for easy access to the most pistes.
Logistics of skiing in the Jungfrau Region –
To fully understand both the expanse and limitations of the Jungfrau Ski Region you need to understand how to get around and access each.
Grindelwald-Wengen (103 km) –
The slopes that lie between Grindelwald and Wengen cover 103km. They span the mountain highpoints of Männlichen, Kleine Scheidegg and Eigergletscher.
If you’re staying in Grindelwald, two recently upgraded high-speed gondolas depart from the vast new shiny Grindelwald Terminal (just 3 mins by train from the main station). Choose from the Eiger Express to Eigergletscher or the 10-person gondola to Männlichen. Once at the top, you’re ready to hit the slopes. Alternatively, a slow but scenic 30-minute train connects Grindelwald’s main station to Kleine Scheidegg.
From Wengen, a train runs twice an hour to Kleine Scheidegg (22 mins). Far faster, is to take the cable car that whisks you up to Männlichen in 5 mins.
From Mürren, it takes multiple connections to reach the slopes of Grindelwald-Wengen and the best part of an hour. Below is the ‘easiest’ route which can be reversed to return to Mürren at the end of the day. Realistically, you will only want to do this once during a week’s holiday –
- Train from Mürren to Grütschalp
- Cable car from Grütschalp to Lauterbrunnen
- Train from Lauterbrunnen to Wengen
- Cable car from Wengen to Männlichen
Grindelwald-First (56 km)
To reach the First area from Grindelwald, a gondola departs from the far end of the village taking 25 mins to reach the top. Depending on where you’re staying you can reach the gondola station by bus to save walking.
From Wengen and Mürren, it’s a bit of a faff to ski the First area. If you’re only out for a week’s holiday, it’s arguably unnecessary.
If I were doing this from Wengen, I would likely ski down to Grund from Männlichen, then jump on the train to Grindwald main station, then walk (or take the bus) to the First gondola. Keep in mind that if you’re still skiing at First by late afternoon, you won’t be able to return to Wengen via the gondolas. Once the lifts stop running, you have to take the train from Grindelwald via Zweilutschinen and Lauterbrunnen back to Wengen.
From Mürren, I’m really not sure I’d bother…
Mürren-Schilthorn (51 km)
The skiing here feels more remote and rugged. On a clear day, don’t miss taking the cable cars to the summit of the Schilthorn, the spectacular high point of the Jungfrau Ski Region at 2970 m*, even if you don’t fancy the steep black from the top. When you’ve finished admiring the view (and perhaps stopping for a hot chocolate in the revolving restaurant), you can descend by cable car to the mid-station and pick up the blue run.
*Note – for winter 24-25, the cable car from Birg to the Schilthorn is closed for construction work. There will be no access to or skiing from the Schilthorn summit and the revolving restaurant will be closed. A new cable car will be in operation from Mürren to Birg (the new high point of the ski area at 2677 m) where skiers can join the lower part of the Inferno ski run as well as alternative black pistes or a blue.
Click here to see the cable cars on the Mürren-Schilthorn piste map.
From Grindelwald, there’s no easy way to get there unless you charter a helicopter. From Wengen, it’s only marginally easier. But – from both – it’s definitely worth dedicating a day.
- From both Wengen and Grindelwald, you need to first take the train to Lauterbrunnen (a direct train from Wengen, and from Grindelwald changing at Zweilutschinen).
- From Lauterbrunnen, my preferred route is to take the cable car up to Grütschalp.
- From Grütschalp, take the train to Winteregg (4 mins).
- From Winteregg, jump on the chairlift so you can start skiing as you make your way over to the cable cars to reach the Schilthorn.
Alternatives –
- Bus from Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg, then ride the cable cars up to the Schilthorn.
- Cable car to Grütschalp, then the train to Mürren (11 mins). Note that you’ll need to walk through Mürren to reach the Schilthorn cable cars.
From Mürren, it’s easy, just ride the cable cars up as far as you prefer.
Further information
Read all about the Jungfrau Region in the summer here.
Read more about winter in Switzerland here.
Read about Luzern’s Christmas markets here.