Snowshoeing in Grindelwald: 7 Trails, Where to Rent

Snowshoeing in Grindelwald is easier to organise than the village's reputation suggests. Seven signposted snowshoe trails leave from the village, the Hotel Wetterhorn, Bussalp and the Holenstein gondola station, from 1.3 km to 7.2 km, and the one in front of the Eiger North Face costs a CHF 20 gondola ticket. I have walked three of them myself: Holenstein to Brandegg, the Wetterhorn loop and the Panorama Trail. This guide gives you all seven with the figures Grindelwald Tourismus and the federal route register publish, read on 27 October 2026, the two shops that print their rental prices, and which trail I would pick for a first day and which for the view.

Where can you go snowshoeing in Grindelwald?

On seven signposted trails: six numbered 1 to 6 on the village side of the valley, and the Eiger Trail from Holenstein to Brandegg on the Männlichen side. Grindelwald Tourismus lists them in its winter sports report with their daily status, 22.9 km in total. On 27 October 2026 every one showed "closed" or "end of season": the trails open with the snow, not with a date.

The numbered six all start within a bus ride of the village. Wetterhorn Trail 1 is a loop of about 3 km from the Hotel Wetterhorn that Grindelwald Tourismus describes as the beginner and family option, with only slight climbs. Wetterhorn Trail 2 is the harder sister, 3.5 km and 240 m of climbing from the same hotel, graded red. Alpweg Trail 3 (3 km, 1 h 30, 303 m up) extends either Wetterhorn loop towards the Grosse Scheidegg road. Mühlebach Trail 4 (2.8 km, 1 h 10, 170 m up) starts at the village church and climbs to the Hotel Wetterhorn. Panorama Trail 5 (7.2 km, 3 h 10) runs from Bussalp to Bort on the sunny side. Aspen Trail 6 (1.3 km, 51 minutes, 219 m up) is a short steep link from Aspen up to the Eiger Trail.

The seventh, the Eiger Trail from Holenstein to Brandegg, is the one the Jungfrau Railways promote and the one I know. The federal register gives it 5.3 km, 145 m up and 430 m down, about 2 h 20, graded blue; the Jungfrau Railways say 5.4 km and 2 h 15, "marked in red". Same trail, two colours on paper, which is why the pink signposts on the ground matter more than the brochure. How the whole region compares, Mürren and the lake side included, is in our guide to snowshoeing near Interlaken.

Fun fact: the Aspen Trail, the shortest of the seven at 1.3 km, is also the steepest for its length: 219 m of climbing in under a kilometre and a half, according to the Grindelwald Tourismus route data. It exists to connect the village side to the Eiger Trail, not as a walk in itself.

Is the Holenstein to Brandegg Eiger Trail worth a morning?

Yes, and it is the trail I would send a fit visitor to first in Grindelwald, because it puts you under the Eiger North Face on snowshoes for the price of a half-mountain gondola ticket. You take the Männlichen gondola from Grindelwald Terminal to Holenstein, the middle station at 1,624 m, and walk down to Brandegg at 1,288 m, where a train takes you back to the village in 19 minutes.

The Jungfrau Railways describe the route as a walk through the Hubel and Itramen forests, where the Eiger disappears from view, and back out into the open for the last stretch, where it fills the sky again. I walked it with friends, and the moment I keep from it is not the wall but the terrace of the Brandegg restaurant at the end, snowshoes off. We took longer than the official 2 h 15, with the stops, and nobody minded.

Pierre Vetsch, founder and head guide, says: asked which moment of the Holenstein to Brandegg trail he keeps, he does not name the Eiger. "The Brandegg terrace." The wall is the reason to go; the terrace is what you talk about on the train down.

The figures for the day, read on 27 October 2026: the gondola from Grindelwald Terminal to Holenstein costs CHF 20 one way (CHF 40 return, half-fare and GA valid, children 6 to 15 at most CHF 20), and it runs from 8:00 from 12 December 2026, with the last descent from Männlichen at 16:30 until 29 January and at 17:00 from 30 January to 4 April 2027. On Thursday 21 January 2027 the Swiss timetable shows the train from Interlaken Ost reaching Grindelwald Terminal in 29 minutes, the gondola taking 10 minutes to Holenstein, and the Brandegg to Grindelwald train leaving at 21 and 51 minutes past the hour. The full fare list is on the Jungfrau Railways trail page and the Männlichen fare PDF.

Insider tip: the cable car employee at the Männlichen gondola told me he loves his job for the view, and the station is where you see why, before the trail has even started. Check the Brandegg train before you set off: on the two Lauberhorn race days I queried, 15 and 16 January 2027, the timetable showed no daytime stop at Brandegg at all, only evening trains for the night sled run. On every other winter date I tried, from 20 December to 5 April, the train stopped there twice an hour.

Eiger Trail or Wetterhorn Trail: which should you pick?

Wetterhorn Trail 1 for a first time on snowshoes, the Eiger Trail for the view and for anyone who has done a snowshoe loop before. The two are not the same kind of day. The Wetterhorn loop brings you back to a hotel terrace after an hour or so with small climbs; the Eiger Trail is a one-way traverse with a gondola up, a train down and 430 m of descent on your knees.

Getting there differs too. The Hotel Wetterhorn is 65 minutes from Interlaken Ost on 21 January 2027, train to Grindelwald then bus 121, and the loop starts at the hotel's door. Holenstein needs the Grindelwald Terminal stop and a gondola ticket, but the trip from Interlaken Ost to the Terminal is only 29 minutes. If you want the harder loop, Wetterhorn Trail 2 adds 240 m of climbing and is graded red by the federal register, with about 1 h 50 of walking.

I have walked all three of the trails that matter here, the Eiger Trail, the Wetterhorn loop and the Panorama Trail, and the mistake I see most often in Grindelwald is on the first of them: visitors underestimate the 430 m of descent.

Pierre says: asked where he sends a first-timer in Grindelwald, his answer is "the Wetterhorn loop". The Eiger Trail waits for the second day, once the knees know what a long descent on snowshoes feels like.

My verdict: a family or a first-timer takes Wetterhorn Trail 1 and the bus, and adds Alpweg Trail 3 if the legs say yes. A walker who wants one photo of the Eiger North Face from the snow takes the gondola to Holenstein. If you have not yet chosen between the villages for your base, Mürren or Grindelwald in winter settles that first. Whether snowshoeing itself will be hard for you is in is snowshoeing hard: on a packed trail, no.

What is the Panorama Trail from Bussalp to Bort like?

A 7.2 km traverse on the sunny side of the valley, graded moderate, with 270 m up and 510 m down and about 3 h 10 of walking, according to the Grindelwald Tourismus route data. It is the trail a couple from the United States asked about on r/askswitzerland before a late-December day trip from Zurich, and it is the longest of the seven.

You take bus 126 from Grindelwald to Bussalp, 76 minutes from Interlaken Ost on 21 January 2027 with the 09:04 train, and start at the Bussalp restaurant. The route description has you climb past Paffenegg to the Steessiboden area, drop over open meadows to the Rasthysi restaurant, then follow the winter path to where the First to Bort sled run crosses, and finish at the Bort gondola station, from where the First gondola brings you down to the village. It can be walked in the other direction too.

Two things decide whether it suits you. The length, because 7 km on snowshoes is more than double the Wetterhorn loop, and the sun, because the Bussalp side faces south and is the warmest part of the valley in January. How much direct winter sun Grindelwald gets against Interlaken is measured in Interlaken or Grindelwald in winter. I have walked it too. It is the long day of the three, and I keep it for after the Wetterhorn loop.

Where can you rent snowshoes in Grindelwald, and should you book ahead?

In the village, at one of the sports shops on the Dorfstrasse. Grindelwald Tourismus lists 11 rental addresses, and the one that prints a snowshoe price is Buri Sport: CHF 21 for one day, CHF 39 for two, CHF 52 for three, CHF 64 for four, read on 27 October 2026, with a jacket at CHF 16 and trousers at CHF 15 a day if you came without. The Backdoor Shop rents snowshoes too but publishes no price online.

If you start from Interlaken, Swiss Alpine Guides in Matten rents snowshoes at CHF 15 a day and poles at CHF 10, which is cheaper, but you carry them on the train and the gondola. The Isenfluh cable car, where our own tour runs, rents sleds and no snowshoes, so the same rule applies there.

On booking ahead: I send guests to a shop in the village and do not have them reserve. The couple on Reddit were asking about late December; even then, my answer stays the village shops, and Buri Sport's price list runs to seven days, which tells you they stock for a season, not a weekend.

Insider tip: the shops are on the Dorfstrasse between the station and the church, so Mühlebach Trail 4 starts a few hundred metres from the rental counter. For Holenstein you walk back to the Terminal stop with the snowshoes on your pack, or get off the train one stop early at Grindelwald Terminal and rent at the shops there, as I tell skiers to do in skiing near Interlaken. What to wear under the snowshoes, and the jeans mistake, is in what to wear snowshoeing.

Can you snowshoe at First or on the yellow hiking routes?

At First, walk the prepared winter paths without snowshoes; on the yellow summer routes, no. First has no signposted snowshoe trail in the Grindelwald Tourismus list. What it has are groomed winter walking paths: First to Bachalpsee, the sunny First to Waldspitz to Bort route (2,275 m to 1,530 m, about 3 hours) and the Faulhorn walk (4 hours), all on the Jungfrau Railways winter hiking page, with the First gondola from CHF 38.

The yellow routes are a different question, and a reader on r/askswitzerland asked it in October 2026: can you follow the summer hiking signs on snowshoes? The federal snowshoe register and the BFU, the Swiss accident prevention office, give the same answer: stay on the pink-signposted snowshoe routes. Operators secure those against avalanches and route them around wildlife rest zones; a yellow summer trail in winter is neither checked nor cleared, and the BFU counts on average two snowshoe deaths a year in Switzerland, most of them in avalanches away from the marked routes. The risks, and what is in my guide bag, are in is snowshoeing dangerous.

Fun fact: the Grindelwald winter sports report that lists the snowshoe trails also lists the First to Bort sled run and the Eiger Run, so the same page tells you whether your snowshoe trail and your afternoon sled run are open. Which run suits a first-timer is in sledding in Grindelwald.

When is the season, and what does a Grindelwald snowshoe day cost?

From the first lasting snow, usually mid-December, until the trails close in April, and about CHF 60 to 80 for a self-guided day from Interlaken. The Männlichen gondola opens its winter season on 12 December 2026 and runs to 4 April 2027. The Jungfrau Railways sell their Winter Hiking and Sledging Pass from CHF 61 for one to seven days, from 21 November 2026 to 25 April 2027, but for one gondola ride to Holenstein the CHF 20 single ticket is the cheaper buy.

Add it up for the Eiger Trail: train Interlaken Ost to Grindelwald Terminal and back, the CHF 20 gondola, CHF 21 for Buri Sport snowshoes, and lunch at Brandegg. Grindelwald is the easiest day trip in this series for the trains: 36 minutes from Interlaken Ost to the village, 89 minutes from Bern and 151 minutes from Zurich HB to the Terminal on 21 January 2027.

Fitness. The Eiger Trail is graded blue but loses 430 m, which is where beginners feel their thighs on day two; the Wetterhorn loop and Mühlebach Trail stay under 250 m of climbing. Snow. On 27 October 2026 every Grindelwald snowshoe trail was still closed, and in a thin December the low trails around the church open last; check the report on the morning.

Pierre says: "March. Fewer people, more sun, and snow." That is my month for every snowshoe trail in the region, Grindelwald included.

Your Questions About Snowshoeing in Grindelwald

Do you need a guide to go snowshoeing in Grindelwald?

Not on a signposted trail, if you check the report and go with company. The seven trails are marked with pink signs and graded, and Grindelwald Tourismus's rules are simple: stick to the signposted routes, check the weather, snow and avalanche conditions, do not go alone. A guide earns the fee when you want the trail chosen for the day, the gear sorted and someone who has read the conditions. Outdoor Interlaken runs a four-hour Wetterhorn snowshoe tour from Grindelwald at CHF 89 with snowshoes, poles, boots, a snack and a drink, for eight people at most, read on Viator on 27 October 2026. Our own guided morning is above Isenfluh, not Grindelwald, and ends with a fondue; whether a guided day is worth it to you is argued in is snowshoeing worth it.

Which Grindelwald snowshoe trail is best with children?

Wetterhorn Trail 1, then Mühlebach Trail 4. Grindelwald Tourismus describes the first as the beginner and family loop, about 3 km with slight climbs, and a hotel terrace at the start and finish. The Mühlebach Trail is shorter, 2.8 km in 1 h 10, and starts at the village church, so there is no bus to catch. A parent on the TripAdvisor Switzerland forum asked in 2025 for secluded family hikes near Grindelwald with two tweens, and the answers sent them to the pink signs. Keep the Eiger Trail for teenagers who have done a loop first: 430 m of descent is a long way down for small knees. Our own tour takes guests from 10 years old.

Can you snowshoe in Grindelwald as a day trip from Zurich?

Yes, with an early train. On 21 January 2027 the 07:02 from Zurich HB reaches Grindelwald Terminal at 09:33, 151 minutes with one change at Interlaken Ost, which puts you at Holenstein before 10:00 and at Brandegg for a late lunch. The last Männlichen descent is at 16:30 in December and January, so the Eiger Trail fits the day; the Panorama Trail at 3 h 10 plus the Bussalp bus is tighter and better from a bed in Grindelwald or Interlaken. From Bern it is 89 minutes to the Terminal.

Which trail has the best view of the Eiger?

The Eiger Trail from Holenstein to Brandegg, by design: the Jungfrau Railways named it for the North Face and route it so that the wall disappears behind the Itramen forest and returns for the last stretch above Brandegg. The Panorama Trail answers with the wider line-up, Eiger, Mönch, Jungfrau, Finsteraarhorn, Wetterhorn and Schreckhorn from the sunny side, according to the Grindelwald Tourismus description. For the Wetterhorn itself, the loops that carry its name look up at it from the Hotel Wetterhorn.

Grindelwald for the Eiger, Isenfluh for the silence

If you are still weighing the gondola ticket against the bus, decide by the photo you want: the Eiger North Face from the snow is Holenstein to Brandegg, the gentle loop with a terrace is the Hotel Wetterhorn. Both work on your own with CHF 21 snowshoes and the morning report. If what you want is a quiet forest, the gear handled and a fondue at the end, our snowshoe tour with Swiss cheese fondue runs above Isenfluh from 26 December to 4 April, Thursday to Sunday at 10:00, eight guests at most, CHF 129 or CHF 119 from six people. Grindelwald can be your second snowshoe day.

How we made this: based on Pierre's interview of 27 October 2026, facts and prices checked at the official sources on 27 October 2026, written with AI assistance.

Source: Gondelbahn Grindelwald-Männlichen winter fares, the Grindelwald Tourismus winter sports report, and a snowshoe walk from Holenstein to Brandegg, Grindelwald, with Swiss Local Adventures.

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