Reichenbach Falls Sherlock Holmes: Find the Star

Conan Doyle wanted Sherlock Holmes dead, and he chose a Swiss waterfall for the job. In his story, Holmes and Professor Moriarty go over the Reichenbach Falls above Meiringen on 4 May 1891. A white star on the rock still marks the ledge, and you have to know where to look for it.

I guide guests to these falls. On 8 August 2026, I photographed the funicular's valley station at 11:02, reached the top with my guests by 11:16 and took my photo of the main fall at 11:52. Below you will find what the star marks, what the 1957 plaque says, how much water the power plants leave in the falls, and what a visit costs before the season ends on 4 October 2026.

Where exactly did Sherlock Holmes die at the Reichenbach Falls?

In The Final Problem, Holmes and Moriarty fall at the Reichenbach Falls, just south of Meiringen, on 4 May 1891. A white star painted on the rock marks the ledge where their fight takes place. You spot it from the area around the upper station of the Reichenbachfall-Bahn, the funicular that has climbed to the falls since 1899.

Conan Doyle published the story in 1893. Sidney Paget drew the two men locked together on a narrow path above the water, and his drawing fixed the scene for every reader after him. Watson sums up the spot in one line: "It is, indeed, a fearful place."

Doyle ends the story without a body. Watson finds Holmes's alpine stick and a farewell letter, and the path stops at the water. Doyle brought Holmes back in a later story, so the ledge marks a fall that only Moriarty took.

The falls lie in the municipality of Schattenhalb, not in Meiringen itself, according to the federal place-name register.

Fun fact: In the story, Holmes and Watson stay at the "Englischer Hof" in Meiringen. SWI swissinfo.ch reports that Conan Doyle is believed to have stayed at the Park Hotel du Sauvage, and that he gave it a new name for the story.

Can you see the white star, and is it the real ledge?

Yes, you can see the star, but you have to look for it. It sits on the rock across from the viewing area near the funicular's upper station. It marks the ledge of a story, so no one fell there. Give yourself time on the steps above the station, because the path keeps climbing to the viewpoints.

Doyle invented the fight, and readers agreed on a ledge to give it a place. In reviews, Holmes fans name the star as the reason they came.

The top of the funicular is not the end of the visit. Here is what I tell guests before we get on.

How long should you plan at the top?

Pierre says: "After the funicular, there's a climb with steps up to the viewpoint and the star. It's not a two-minute stop."

Pierre Vetsch, founder and head guide at Swiss Local Adventures

Where do the falls fit in a Meiringen day?

"Gorge first, Reichenbach second, Meiringen last. The cold and the damp at the start, the viewpoint in the sun after, something sweet to finish."

Pierre

On 8 August 2026, 36 minutes passed between my first photo at the top and my photo of the main fall. Plan at least half an hour up there.

Did Conan Doyle stand at the Reichenbach Falls himself?

Yes. SWI swissinfo.ch reports that Conan Doyle came to Meiringen in 1893 with his wife and chose the falls as the place to end Holmes. Doyle had grown tired of his detective and wanted time for other books. He is believed to have stayed at the Park Hotel du Sauvage, in the village centre.

Meiringen has kept the story alive, and a hotel led the way. Jürg Musfeld, director of the Park Hotel du Sauvage, told swissinfo.ch that the hotel decided in 1987 to put up a Sherlock Holmes statue by the sculptor John Doubleday. They unveiled it with the Sherlock Holmes Society of London, and the idea of rebuilding 221B Baker Street in the village's English church came next.

That museum opened in May 1991, for the 100th anniversary of the fall. Opening hours and tickets are in our day trip to Meiringen guide.

Fun fact: On 4 May 1991, the Sherlock Holmes Society of London re-enacted the fight at the falls in heavy snow. That weekend, Dame Jean Conan Doyle, the author's daughter, opened the museum and gave Meiringen's square the name Conan Doyle Place.

What does the Sherlock Holmes plaque at the falls say?

The bronze plaque calls the fight across this "dreadful cauldron" the high point of Holmes's career. It dates the fight to 4 May 1891, when he beat Moriarty, "the Napoleon of crime". Two fan clubs put it up in 1957: the Norwegian Explorers of Minnesota and the Sherlock Holmes Society of London.

Both phrases come from Doyle's own text, so the plaque speaks in the words of the story.

Haslital Tourismus places the memorial plaque at the funicular. Read it, then look across the water for the star: the plaque tells you what the star stands for.

The plaque went up 64 years after Doyle published the story, and the museum followed 34 years after the plaque.

How much water goes over the Reichenbach Falls?

Less than the whole stream, because power plants use the Reichenbach. BKW, which runs the Schattenhalb 1 plant, states that the concession of the Schattenhalb 3 plant keeps 850 litres a second out of its intake in the summer half-year. That water goes over the Reichenbach Falls instead of into the pipes.

Schattenhalb 3 takes its water in the Zwirgi basin, above the falls. The water that goes over the falls does a second job: BKW captures it again under the waterfall and sends it down a 570-metre pressure pipe to Schattenhalb 1, which can turbine up to 1,300 litres a second. The plant produces about 6.7 gigawatt hours a year, enough for 1,500 households, according to BKW.

Visitor reviews split on the size. Some call it a modest waterfall and say they expected more. Others found it impressive even after a dry summer, so do not expect Niagara.

The height depends on who you ask. The railway that runs up to it gives the main fall 110 metres. Haslital Tourismus and the Berner Oberland Pass give it 120.

My verdict: if you want a big waterfall, go to the Giessbach on Lake Brienz, which drops over 14 named steps. Come to the Reichenbach for Holmes, the star and the view down the Haslital.

Funicular or footpath: how should you get up to the falls?

Take the funicular up. The Reichenbachfall-Bahn has run since 1899 with wooden carriages of 24 seats, and it climbs about 244 metres, by my reading of the federal elevation model. A footpath from the valley climbs the same height, and visitors describe it as steep. If you want to walk, walk down.

On 16 September 2026, I read the federal elevation model at the two ends of the line: 600 metres at the valley end and 844 metres at the top. The funicular runs from 9:00 to 17:30 in 2026, and the last ride up leaves at 17:15.

The ticket prices back the verdict. A single costs CHF 10 and a return CHF 15, so walking down saves an adult CHF 5. Walking up means the full 244 metres before the steps above the station even start.

The operator also lists two marked hikes from the top, of 2.5 to 3.5 hours, graded T1 to T2 on the Swiss hiking scale. Lake Brienz has an even older mountain railway: the Giessbach Falls funicular, opened in 1879.

Insider tip: Get off the bus at Willigen, Dorf, not in Meiringen. Haslital Tourismus puts the valley station five minutes on foot from that stop. For 17 September 2026, the timetable gave the 10:04 train from Interlaken Ost and the 10:42 bus from Meiringen, arriving at 10:49.

What does a visit cost in 2026, and when is it open?

The operator charges CHF 15 for an adult return and CHF 10 for a single, from 2 May to 4 October 2026, 9:00 to 17:30. Children aged 6 to 15 pay CHF 10 return and CHF 7 single. Two other official sites still show lower prices, so check the operator's page on the day.

On 16 September 2026, the Haslital Tourismus page still showed CHF 12 for an adult return. The Berner Oberland Pass page says pass holders pay the child price, which it gives as CHF 8 return. The operator's child return costs CHF 10. Ask at the ticket window: the two official figures do not match.

The operator sells three combined tickets for adults: CHF 25 with the Aare Gorge, CHF 18 with the Sherlock Holmes Museum and CHF 26 with a Monster Trotti ride. Children pay CHF 16, 12 and 22.

A Viator search on 16 September 2026 returned no tour built around the falls or Holmes. The only Meiringen product it showed was a private car tour from CHF 390.

The funicular has no winter service, according to the Berner Oberland Pass. One winter visitor summed it up in a review title: not for winter.

Your questions about the Reichenbach Falls and Sherlock Holmes

Travellers ask five things before they go: where the star is, whether they can walk up, whether the falls are worth it without Holmes, whether winter works, and how to get there from Interlaken. The short answers: at the top, yes, only with the Aare Gorge, not by funicular, and by train and bus.

Where is the Sherlock Holmes star at the Reichenbach Falls?

The white star sits on the rock across the water from the viewing area near the upper station of the Reichenbachfall-Bahn. It marks the ledge where Doyle staged the fight between Holmes and Moriarty on 4 May 1891. Climb the steps above the station and look across the falls. The operator describes three viewing terraces near the mountain station, so try more than one angle. The memorial plaque from 1957 stands at the funicular and tells you what the star stands for. Plan at least half an hour at the top.

Can you walk up to the Reichenbach Falls without the funicular?

Yes. A footpath climbs from the valley, about 244 metres, which I read from the federal elevation model on 16 September 2026. Visitors describe it as steep. My advice is to ride up and, if you want the walk, walk down: a single ticket costs CHF 10 against CHF 15 for a return, from 2 May to 4 October 2026. From the top, the operator lists two marked hikes of 2.5 to 3.5 hours, graded T1 to T2. Wear shoes with grip for the steps and the path.

Are the Reichenbach Falls worth it if you don't care about Sherlock Holmes?

Only if you are already at the Aare Gorge. One reviewer sums it up: go if you are visiting the gorge, and do not travel to Meiringen for these falls alone. The main fall measures 110 metres according to the railway, and power plants take part of the stream. For a bigger waterfall near Interlaken, the Giessbach on Lake Brienz falls over 14 named steps. The operator sells a combined ticket for the gorge and the funicular at CHF 25 for adults. That ticket and the funicular ride make the falls a good second stop in a Meiringen morning.

Can you visit the Reichenbach Falls in winter?

Not by funicular. The Berner Oberland Pass lists no winter service, and the 2026 season runs from 2 May to 4 October. A winter visitor put a clear warning in the title of their review. The Sherlock Holmes Museum in Meiringen stays open on winter weekends, so a winter visit can still cover the story in the village. For the falls themselves, go between 2 May and 4 October, and check the operator's page on the morning you travel, where it publishes the season and hours.

How do you get from Interlaken to the Reichenbach Falls by public transport?

Take the train from Interlaken Ost to Meiringen, then the bus to the Willigen, Dorf stop. Haslital Tourismus puts the valley station five minutes on foot from there. On the timetable for 17 September 2026, the 10:04 train reached Meiringen at 10:35, and the 10:42 bus reached Willigen, Dorf at 10:49, 45 minutes from station to stop. The 09:33 train with the 10:20 bus took 51 minutes. The last funicular ride up leaves at 17:15, so leave Interlaken before mid-afternoon and keep a spare connection in hand.

Go before 4 October and find the star yourself

The Reichenbach Falls reward visitors who know what to look for. Ride up before the funicular's last day on 4 October 2026, climb the steps above the upper station and find the white star across the water. Then read the plaque, and picture Paget's two men on that ledge.

The hard part is the timing. The last ride up leaves at 17:15, the season ends on 4 October, and the bus from Meiringen runs on its own timetable. Miss one of the first two and you stand at a closed gate.

Brienz sits on the same line back, and Ballenberg in half a day fits another morning. For the wider region, see our best day trips from Interlaken.

I took guests up these rails on 8 August 2026, gorge first and falls second. If you would rather not juggle trains, buses and last departures, you can plan a private day around Meiringen with us, from the Aare Gorge to the star.

Source: Grimselwelt, Reichenbachfall-Bahn, BKW, Schattenhalb 1, Sherlock Holmes Museum Meiringen, and a private tour to the Reichenbach Falls on 8 August 2026.

Written by Pierre Vetsch, founder and head guide at Swiss Local Adventures