Hotels near Eiger Trail

Harder than Bachalpsee, well short of the Faulhornweg. Trail No. 36 covers 6.1 km from Eigergletscher to Alpiglen in a signposted 2 hours, with just 78 m of ascent against 779 m of descent as it drops from 2,346 m to 1,615 m. The grade is T2 and there are rope-secured sections where the path crosses scree, so this is a downhill walk that still wants proper boots and a head for uneven ground. The season is July to October.

What makes it worth the travel time is that the entire route runs along the base of the north face of the Eiger, close enough that you hear rockfall and meltwater coming off the wall all afternoon. Most people photograph the face from Kleine Scheidegg; this puts you underneath it for two solid hours.

Coming from Interlaken, take the BOB to Grindelwald Terminal at Grundstrasse 54 (it has its own station, so you do not need Grindelwald village) and switch to the Eiger Express. The tricable gondola runs 6,483 m of cable in 15 minutes with 44 cabins of 26 seats and a capacity of 2,200 people per hour, so queues move even in August. Jungfrau Travel Pass holders ride free; Swiss Travel Pass, Half-Fare Card and Berner Oberland Pass holders pay half. The "from CHF 40.60" quoted on jungfrau.ch is the reduced fare, with the full adult single closer to CHF 81, so treat that as an estimate rather than a quote. At the bottom, the Wengernalpbahn runs from Alpiglen down to Grindelwald Grund, and the BOB takes you back to Interlaken Ost.

Pro Tip: Check the last Wengernalpbahn departure from Alpiglen before you leave Eigergletscher, and write it on your hand. There is nothing at Alpiglen but the halt itself, and continuing on foot down to Grindelwald Grund adds a long extra hour to what was meant to be a 2-hour day.