Mürren Ski Facts
LOCAL AREA: Mürren Gimmelwald Lauterbrunnen;
CONNECTED AREA: Jungfrau Region, which includes Wengen & Grindelwald
SEASON START & END: November to 1st weekend in May
SKI ALTITUDE IN METRES:
Mürren: 800-2970m / Vertical Drop 2170m (Mürren 1650m)
PISTES:
Mürren: 54km of piste (8 blue / 10 red / 7 Black)
Jungfrau Region: 214 km of piste (23 Blue / 34 red / 19 Black)
LIFTS:
Mürren: 16 lifts in total (Funicular: 2 / cable cars x 3 / chairs x 7 / Drag lift x 2 / nursery rope-tow & magic carpet)
Jungfrau Region: 41 lifts in total (Funicular: 5 / cable cars x 9 / chairs x 19 / T-bar x 1 / poma x 1, nursery rope-tow & magic carpet)
LIFT TICKET PRICES: LINK
CROSS COUNTRY SKIING: Cross country x 11.8km (Lauterbrunnen)
LANGUAGE: Swiss German
AIRPORT: Zurich 130 km / Geneva 226 km / Bern 67 km
NB: Mürren is a car-free village, park cars in public car parks at Lauterbrunnen or Stechelberg
TRAIN: Interlaken Ost-Lauterbrunnen-Mürren BLM; or bus from Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg and cable car to Mürren
SKI FACTS:
-Birthplace of Alpine ski racing (1920s)
-Home to ‘The Inferno’ – The world’s longest downhill amateur ski race (every January)
-The world-famous mountain-top revolving restaurant – Piz Gloria – taking in views from Mont Blanc to the Jura
-The world’s steepest cable car (launching December 2024)
Mürren Village
To reach Mürren in the Bernese Oberland, one first drives along the Lauterbrunnen Valley, and one gets the sense that this place is a little different from the rest of the Alps. Huge, steep cliffs stand guarding the valley on each side, while the 300-metre waterfall ‘Staubbach Falls’, along with 71 other waterfalls, gives the area a very ethereal feel. In fact, ‘Lauterbrunnen’ means many fountains.
Have I seen this place before? It feels like something from a dream, perhaps, but it is not until I hear that J.R.R. Tolkien came here in 1911 that the penny, or should I say centime, drops. As a lifelong Tolkien fan, I immediately recognise the scenery from his paintings and related films that have used the Lauterbrunnen valley as inspiration; well, I know where I will be spending my summer hiking trip.
Vehicles must be parked at one of two parking spots in Lauterbrunnen and Stechelberg and the journey to Mürren must be completed by the choice of two routes by cable car and train from Lauterbrunnen to the north end of the village or cable car from Stechelberg to the south end of the village. Mürren, perched on the edge of a cliff, has outstanding views of three very famous gargantuan mountains the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau and also across to the neighbouring Wengen.
The village only allows locals to use small electric vehicles which makes for an altogether pleasant experience whilst exploring, visitors must leave their vehicles down in the Lauterbrunnen Valley. There are many gorgeous Alpine timber homes dotted along meandering little streets reminiscent of some high-altitude village perched on a mountainside in Tibet or Nepal; in juxtaposition, there are a few palace-style hotels dating back to the Belle Époque. Various laws protect some of the architecture so Mürren is not as modernised as some other Swiss resorts and as a result, it really feels like no other ski resort; you can sense the history that flows through its veins which makes for something quite unique.
Our favourite place to visit in the village is Insport, the Australian Coffee house connected to Intersport, a very chilled vibe, go have a coffee and peruse the well-selected ski gear. A great deli for lunch is Alti Metzg, weather permitting sit out and watch the world go by under the gaze of the Jungfrau. Eat in or take some of their delightful produce home. We stayed at the Hotel Eiger, which has outstanding views of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau mountains and easy access in front of the train station. Our room was well-appointed, and we enjoyed using the small spa and having a cheerful meal in the main dining room. The bar is a bit of a legend in Mürren, so make sure to stop by for a drink even if not staying here.
Mürren Skiing
Mürren is integral to the history of skiing in the Alps, Sir Henry Lunn was one of the first tour operators in the Alps when he brought British holidaymakers to Mürren in 1910-11. Between the World Wars, it was integral in the development of Alpine ski racing. Henry’s son Sir Arnold Lunn ran the first slalom race in 1922 with the first World Championships of Alpine skiing in 1931 here. He also founded the famous Inferno ski race which first ran in 1928 with 17 competitors and still runs to this day.
The area is currently undergoing some huge updates to the lift system and the stations involved due for completion in July 2026. In three stages from the valley at Stechelberg to the Mürren at 1638 metres, up to Birg at 2677 metres and then up to the Schilthorn at 2970 metres, the new state-of-the-art lifts are currently being built, with various restaurants being created, personally I can not wait to return to experience these updates and what they will mean for Mürren. I am told that the lift system will utilise a hybrid-battery system fed by the braking energy created by the cable car along with solar panels at Birg. All of the feats of engineering will generate electricity for Mürren.
Mürren seems to consist of four ski areas each offering a completely different feel. I love the high Alpine pistes from the top of the Schilthorn, with big sweeping pistes at high altitudes and mostly northeast and east facing the snow is usually pretty good. Note there are only two choices of descent from this area. Down black piste 16 or back down the cable car from Birg.
Make sure to visit the top of the Schilthorn mountain peak, even if you do not plan to ski down. The Piz Gloria building on the peak was used in 1968-69 as the arch-villain Ernst Blofeld’s lair in the 007 movie ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’. The outer rim of the restaurant rotates 360° over 45 minutes; we went for the Bond Brunch, which comprises a buffet which keeps changing position in relation to our table; the views from the Eiger to Mont Blanc and Jura are outstanding. Afterwards, visit Spy World, the James Bond museum.
The three lower ski areas, all connected, start just above the tree line and descend into the trees, they are all great fun and comprise mostly of blues, reds and one black piste. The south end over towards Gimmeln seemed to be so quiet when we visited and is a fun area with lots of rollers and wide space to play. Make sure to visit Bergrestaurant Gimmelen at the bottom of Red Piste #24 for their delicious Apfelkuchen.
The middle section just above Mürren is a spaghetti junction of pistes, make sure to take the correct one depending on where you want to arrive, make sure to carry a map as this area can be tricky to get your head around. We had a great lunch at the very central Allmendhubel. We enjoyed the ski back to Mürren on piste #6 which winds through the forest and little log cabins, very scenic.
The North area towards Winteregg has a different feel again, it is a little laid back with a snowpark included and once again we loved exploring this part of the mountain. What we liked about Mürren is that it did not feel busy at any time and we were there during half term!
BEGINNER
With a nursery slope in the very centre of Mürren, this is a great place for the little ones to find their ski legs. Once ski legs have been established, much of the mountain can be explored with a huge selection of blue pistes stretched across the mountains.
INTERMEDIATE
Intermediates will be at home across the whole of the lower three areas of skiing, but do head up the mountain to Birg to experience some high-altitude skiing, once again most of this can be skied by intermediates.
EXPERT
The Black piste #10 from the top of the Schilthorn can be quite a test, steep with seemingly no edges to it; do not think about it, just strap on your planks and go without engaging the brain. The rest of the black pistes in the Schilthorn are a delight to ski.
Ecology & Sustainability Facts
-The entire area of Mürrenis 100% powered by water.
-The new Schilthorn lift uses the latest hybrid safe-power regenerative system to feed the batteries using the cable car’s own braking power and discreetly located solar panels.
-The summit, middle and village station buildings have been refurbished resulting in 75% reduction in energy consumption.
-Toilets at top of Schilthorn operate entirely on rainwater which won the world tourism toilet award.
-Local produce is championed throughout village and all restaurants and huts
-Car-free village
-Early adopter of snow-farming since 2020-21 season
Finally, as a last note, many people I met around Mürren asked me not to write about the area wanting to keep the little secret for themselves. So I did think about writing this in some kind of secret code for you to break but decided in the end that it is best that you read this, do not tell anyone else and then this article will self-destruct in 10 seconds.
Mürren
3825 Lauterbrunnen
Switzerland
