Reviewed by: Dirk Anderson, Advanced, from Washington Vermont Summary:
We were fortunate enough to get to Interlaken only two days after the roads up to the mountains had been opened, following the dump of the century. Although it was late March, there was an unbelievable amount of snow on the slopes. Interlaken itself is a small city between two lovely lakes, and a very swanky summer resort. Just south of Interlaken the valley splits. The left fork accesses the ski areas of Grindelwald, First, and Kleine Scheidegg. The right fork takes you to Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, Murren, and Kleine Scheidegg. There is a dizzying network of trains, cog railways, cable cars, chairlifts, funiculars, and buses running all over the place. It seemed like the best skiing and most consistent snow was up on the Kleine Scheidegg, at the foot of the Eiger. First had the long, wide open cruisers, and most of the hairy stuff was above Murren. This area is rich in skiing history. Alpine skiing itself was shaped on the slopes of Murren by the British Ski Club, and the famous Inferno and Lauberhorn downhill races still take place here. There's plenty of authentic alpine charm, and lots of drinking and dining. This is not the cliff-jumping, bottomless powder skiing of Chamonix, Verbier, or the Arlberg, but the scenery is incredible, the runs are long and immaculately groomed, and there's plenty to do after the lifts close. The only caveat is that it takes about an hour and a couple of train transfers to get right up on the mountain from Interlaken, if you go solely to ski, you'd be better off staying in Wengen or Grindelwald.
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