We have heard so much about Interlaken and how it is one of the most beautiful places in Switzerland, so after our time in Zurich we decided to stay here for 2 days & explore it with the car we have rented. As with most of the accommodations, we booked a room through Airbnb & it was a very nice & cosy studio apartment connected to the main house but with our own entrance. The view outside the glass doors was that of mountains but we didn't really get to enjoy it because of the thick mist that hovered in the mornings when we were leaving the apartment.
Here's our review for our Airbnb apartment:
"Gisela was really friendly and nice. Though her English was not very good but she did her best in explaining everything to us. Her place is very clean and modern. It is a studio apartment with minimalistic design and has everything you need. She lives just next door as a neighbour and is easily reachable. We were surprised that our bed was made up when we came back at night, which was really nice. We drove and had a space to park our car outside. Town is not too far away and you could walk or take a bus. We had a nice 2 night stay and would definitely go back there again if we pass by interlaken!"
The red building behind us was where we stayed for 2 nights & that Toyato was our trusted ride for a couple of days around Switzerland.
Our studio apartment
This was the view outside our glass doors but it was too foggy to see the mountains in the distance.
Our plan for the day was to drive around the Interlaken region but we didn't have any specific destination or stops in mind, it was more of a "We'd take it as it comes" mentality we had that day. We packed in our sandwiches, hot cocoa & tea, turned on our GPS & embarked on the road trip for the day.
Interlaken, here we come!
At the start of our journey, the fog that surrounded the area was so thick, we could barely see more than 50m ahead but we decided to just drive & hopefully the fog would clear up as the day went by. Whenever we see something interesting or beautiful sights, we would park the car, get out and just explore on foot.
First stop at Riggenburg & there were pretty wooden houses lining the main road.
We had to drive VERY slowly & carefully. I was glad Kenneth drove the whole time, all I had to do was sit beside him and navigate.
This view gave a very surreal & mystical feeling and we just had to snap a shot to remember it by.
We stopped by a place with a lake but the visibility was limited because of the heavy fog.
There was one place that we were hoping to be able to see - Giessbach falls, a waterfall that was supposedly quite pretty to see. We had a rough idea where it was but not the exact direction to get there so while we were travelling in that general direction, we chanced upon a restaurant with an amazing view as we ate lunch - Restaurant Bramisegg
Restaurant Bramisegg was perched on the edge, just beside the windy road we took randomly going up the mountain.
We are big fans of awesome views & experiencing local food so we got out of the car & scooted into this restaurant without a second thought. It was one of the most memorable place we ate at this trip & we enjoyed ourselves totally!
We had this view as we sat by the windows of the restaurant. Breathtaking.
Our yummy Rosti (Homemade!) with eggs, bacon and cheese as well as pork sausage.
The local (Interlaken) beer was super good as well!
It felt like a good place to take an emo shot. Model!
With our tummies filled & hearts full, we got back to exploring the Interlaken region. After driving and just enjoying the views along the way, we finally found Giessbach Falls tucked in a cosy area where we took a short hike of 5-10mins from where we parked the car.
We were so excited to see the waterfall at our backs.
The path leading up to the waterfall was covered with snow & quite slippery to walk on. We had to take the risk of falling so we could get up close & behind the waterfall.
From behind the waterfall. It was so cold there were icicles forming at the top.
A closer shot of us with the waterfall.
Quite a nice view on the hike up to the waterfall. That's the Grandhotel Giessbach sitting just in front of the lake.
We took a walk to the base of the waterfall before heading back to the car. The water flowed from the top all the way down to the lake.
The view inside the mini forest just by the side of the waterfall.
After the short hike & burning off some of the calories we took in during lunch, we continued driving and the plan was to drive around one of the lakes before ending off the day grocery shopping & cooking a warm home cooked meal. Unfortunately, we found out that some roads were closed due to heavy snowfall & the potential danger of an avalanche. Kenneth was feeling adventurous and wanted to just drive up anyway. Thankfully, there were road blocks & he was forced to U-turn back home instead.
Road block!
We drove through a town that is well known for handmade wood carved products but it was too late and most, or rather all, the shops were closed. Too bad for us :(
Without shops to go into, we just got out and take some pictures of the lake we drove along for most of the trip instead.
Hot cocoa on a cold winter day kept us warm through the day.
Just as we were heading back to our place, it started to rain quite heavily. After this, it was about a 15-20mins drive & we just took our time getting back and enjoying hot cocoa from our flask. All in all, we had a pretty good & fun day just taking things slow & easy.
We would certainly recommend this drive around the Interlaken region if you just want to enjoy beautiful views & fresh air with no stress of rushing from place to place. Enjoy!
You can read more on our full Switzerland trip and overall itinerary here.
Date of travel: Jan 2015
Links:
Flickr Interlaken Photos
Tripadvisor (Interlaken)
Interlaken Tourism
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