Jungfraujoch Day Trip from Interlaken: Eiger Express & Ice Palace

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1/9

Duration7h

GroupUp to 48

LanguagesEN · CM +1

Mobile ticketAccepted

From Interlaken to 3,454 meters in one day, with three different ways up the mountain.

You travel by coach, gondola, and cogwheel train from Interlaken to Jungfraujoch, Europe's highest railway station. You walk through the Ice Palace, stand on the Sphinx Observation Terrace overlooking the Aletsch Glacier, and experience Alpine Sensation, a 100-year anniversary tour of the railway. A multilingual guide leads you throughout, seat reservations are included, and you're guaranteed at least two hours on top before descending back to Interlaken.

Step-by-step itinerary

Jungfraujoch day trip from Interlaken

Meet guide at Outdoor Interlaken Shop
Travel by coach to Grindelwald
Take gondola Eiger Express to Eiger Glacier
Change to cogwheel train to Jungfraujoch
Explore Alpine Sensation discovery tour
Visit Sphinx Observation Terrace and Plateau
Walk through Ice Palace tunnels
Descend by cogwheel train to Lauterbrunnen
Return by coach to Interlaken

The Experience

You're in Interlaken on a clear morning with a free day ahead, and the Alps are right there. The difference between watching them from the valley and standing on top of them is a coach ride to Grindelwald, then a gondola, then a cogwheel train — and that's exactly what this day trip does. You meet your guide at the Outdoor Interlaken Shop late morning, board the coach, and head into the Jungfrau region. The drive itself is the warm-up: you're already moving through the mountains, already seeing the scale of what's coming.

At Grindelwald, you switch to the Eiger Express, a newly opened cable car that climbs toward the Eiger Glacier station. The three peaks — Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau — come into view as you rise, and the North Face of the Eiger gets closer than it has any right to. Then you board the cogwheel train for the final push to Jungfraujoch, Europe's highest railway station at 3,454 meters. The train takes its time, which is the point: you're not just arriving, you're watching the world change as you climb. A minimum of two hours on top is guaranteed, so you're not rushed through what comes next.

Once you're up there, the Ice Palace is the thing that stays with you — tunnels carved into the glacier itself, cold and strange and real in a way photos don't quite capture. The Sphinx Observation Terrace and Plateau open onto the Aletsch Glacier, the longest in the Alps, and the panorama includes peaks in neighboring countries. There's also Alpine Sensation, a discovery tour marking a century of the Jungfrau Railway, which gives the history some weight. Your multilingual guide is with you through all of it, and the seat reservations on the cable car and train mean you're not competing for a spot on the way up or down. After you've had your time on top, the cogwheel train descends past Wengen, a resort town that looks small from where you've been, and you rejoin the coach in Lauterbrunnen for the return to Interlaken.

Bring a warm jacket, solid-soled shoes, and sunglasses — the sun reflects hard off the snow, and the cold is real even on a blue-sky day. The operations are carbon-balanced, which matters if that's something you track. If maintenance or seasonal schedules shift the route or transport method, the operator will adapt without notice, so flexibility helps. The coach gets you back to where you started, same location, same afternoon.

What’s included

Your day includes coach transportation from Interlaken to Grindelwald and back, the Eiger Express cable car with seat reservation and preferred boarding, the cogwheel train to Jungfraujoch with seat reservation, entry to the Ice Palace, access to the Sphinx Observation Terrace and Plateau, the Alpine Sensation discovery tour, and a fully guided experience led by a professional multilingual guide. Operations are carbon-balanced and certified by myclimate.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Best of Switzerland Tours

Is this one for you?Right for travelers based in Interlaken who want to reach the top of the Alps without arranging separate transport, cable car bookings, and train tickets — the guide and reserved seats handle the logistics. Plan for a full day out and bring warm clothes; the altitude and snow are constant, which is exactly what makes the Ice Palace and glacier views possible.