DAY ONE GONDOLAS & GLACIERS

Morning

Hitch a lift on Grindelwald’s Eiger Express. Launched in December 2020, the new tri-cable gondola breezes past the Eiger’s gnarly north face and within 15 minutes you’re at Eiger Glacier station for a switch to the Jungfraubahn. Since 1912, this little red train has been curling up to Jungfraujoch, Europe’s highest train station at 11,362ft. Jungfraujoch is the crowning glory of the Jungfrau-Aletsch UNESCO World Heritage Site; stop at the Sphinx observation terrace for views across the 14-mile swirl of the Aletsch Glacier. You’ll need warm layers and boots, particularly if you fancy the 45-minute stomp to Mönchsjochhütte, Switzerland’s highest serviced mountain hut.

Afternoon

With cowbells jangling, marmots whistling and purple gentian in bloom, summer in the Bernese

Alps is pure Heidi stuff. Hiking is the way to go here: Eiger Glacier is the start of the Eiger Trail, which draws close to the mountain’s north face. Largely downhill, the moderately challenging four-mile ramble pulls back the curtain on the waterfall-streaked Lauterbrunnen Valley and a host of glacier-frosted peaks; bring binoculars to spot climbers on the Eiger. The trail picks its way over meadows, streams and scree slopes to Alpiglen, where a gorgeous mountain hut delivers uplifting views and drinks on its terrace in the golden light of late afternoon.

Evening

If you’re lucky enough to snag a room at Hotel Glacier in Grindelwald, you’re in for a treat. Of all the glacier-themed, silver-hued rooms, the ones with whirlpools out on the deck and front-row views of the

Eiger are the best. The 28-room boutique hotel has impeccable eco credentials, too, sourcing sustainably, minimising waste and drawing energy from the local biomass plant. Even if you’re not staying the night, try to get a table in the restaurant; local, seasonal ingredients are cooked with flair in dishes like smoked sturgeon with Swiss caviar and kohlrabi, and braised Swiss wagyu with black truffle and egg-yolk praline.

Train driver at Schynige Platte Left: Harder Kulm, a viewpoint above Interlaken with Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau in the background