Interlaken to Jungfraujoch

Interlaken to Jungfraujoch: two routes, one ticket, about two hours

The journey from Interlaken to Jungfraujoch takes roughly two hours each way, and it can be made two entirely different ways for the same fare. Everything starts at Interlaken Ost, the eastern of the town's two stations. From there one branch runs through Grindelwald and the Eiger Express gondola, the other through Lauterbrunnen, Wengen and Kleine Scheidegg, and both end at the same platform inside the mountain at 3,454 metres.

A return ticket from Interlaken Ost is not tied to one of those branches, which is worth knowing before you book anything. You can go up one way and come down the other, which is what most people who have done it will tell you to do. The rest of this page covers what it costs, what a pass does to that price, which connections actually exist, and the timing detail that catches out many visitors.

The two routes out of Interlaken Ost

Every Interlaken to Jungfraujoch itinerary begins on the same platform. Trains from Interlaken Ost run up the valley and split at Zweiluetschinen, so the first decision is made for you by the carriage you sit in. Check the destination board and the coach markings before you settle.

The Grindelwald side. Interlaken Ost to Grindelwald Terminal, then the Eiger Express gondola to Eigergletscher, then the Jungfrau Railway through the Eiger and the Moench to the top. The gondola leg alone takes about 15 minutes by Jungfraubahnen's own figure, and Grindelwald Terminal to Jungfraujoch is 45 minutes all in. This is the faster half of the loop by 47 minutes, and it is the step-free one: Interlaken Ost to the terminal, the gondola and the railway above it are barrier-free end to end, with one companion free per wheelchair user.

The Lauterbrunnen side. Interlaken Ost to Lauterbrunnen, the Wengernalp line up to Wengen and on to Kleine Scheidegg, then the Jungfrau Railway for the final 44 minutes. That last stretch includes the stop at Eismeer, where the train pauses about five minutes at a window cut into the rock at 3,160 metres. It is not guaranteed on every service and it only happens on the Kleine Scheidegg side, so if you want it, this is the direction to take it in.

Our Eiger Express page goes into the gondola in detail, including the cabin figures and the November maintenance window.

What the Interlaken to Jungfraujoch ticket costs

The table below shows the lowest return fare we currently list per person from Interlaken Ost, in Swiss francs, as sold on Headout for the fare year ending 12 December 2026. Half Fare Card and Swiss Travel Pass holders pick their ticket type at checkout on the same ticket, and every ticket includes a reserved seat on a return departure about 3 hours after arrival.

From prices per person, rounded to whole francs; the exact price depends on the travel date. Half Fare Card and Swiss Travel Pass holders choose their ticket type at checkout. The Zurich day trip includes transfers and a guide.

Interlaken Ost is the highest starting price of the three valley stations, because it includes the run down to the lake. Starting from Grindelwald Terminal instead is cheaper, and from Lauterbrunnen it sits in between. If you are staying in Interlaken that difference is theoretical, since you would pay for the valley leg anyway, but it is worth knowing if you are choosing where to base yourself. The full comparison sits on our Jungfraujoch ticket prices table.

Children under 6 travel free on this route, and ages 6 to 15 pay a flat child fare. That flat fare is the same from every station we list, which makes the family arithmetic unusually simple: the adults decide the price of the day, the children add the child fare each, and everyone's return seat is already part of the ticket.

What a pass actually does

The Half Fare Card and Swiss Travel Pass fares are not separate products you have to hunt for. They are ticket types inside the same ticket: you open the Interlaken Ost round trip, pick Half Fare Card holder or Swiss Travel Pass holder at checkout, and pay from CHF 122 or from CHF 157 instead of from CHF 234. The one condition is that you already hold the card or pass, valid on the travel date, and can show it on the train.

Neither the card nor the pass is included in the ticket, but both are sold on the same platform: the Swiss Half Fare Card costs CHF 150 for one month, the Swiss Travel Pass starts at CHF 254 for three consecutive days. Each traveller needs their own card, and on this trip alone it does not pay for itself. The difference between the from CHF 234 adult fare and the from CHF 122 holder fare is CHF 112 per person (CHF 130 in the peak window), less than the CHF 150 card. It pays off once other trips are added, roughly CHF 40 more in savings per person, which is CHF 80 of other full-fare travel. Our Swiss Travel Pass and Jungfraujoch page works through when the pass is the better buy.

First connection, last return, and the time on your ticket

Timetables here move with the season, so treat the following as scheduled service for the current block rather than a permanent fixture, and check jungfrau.ch operating info before you fix a plan. In the block running 24 August to 25 October 2026, the first connection out of Interlaken Ost leaves at 07:04 and reaches the top at 08:41. The last return arrives back at Interlaken Ost at 19:24, off a 17:45 departure from the summit area.

The time printed on your ticket is the boarding time at Grindelwald Terminal or at Kleine Scheidegg, not the departure time from Interlaken Ost. You need to leave Interlaken Ost at least 30 minutes before the time on the confirmation, and more if your connection is tight. Read that time twice, work backwards, and set an alarm.

There is no opening time for Jungfraujoch itself. The mountain is open for as long as the railway is running, and any site telling you the summit opens at 8 am and the last train up is at 2 pm has invented it. Crowding does follow a pattern: in summer the first connection and the late afternoon are the quiet windows, while in winter it inverts, because skiers fill the early departures. Jungfraubahnen's own guidance says waiting times can exceed two hours at peak moments, with no refund for them.

The reserved return seat, and what the time slot means

Every ticket on this route includes a reserved seat on a return departure, set about 3 hours after you arrive at the top. There is no separate seat reservation to buy and no extra booking step: you choose an outbound time slot at checkout, and the return seat comes with it. Three hours is a comfortable window for the Sphinx terrace, the Ice Palace, the Plateau and a meal, without the day feeling timed.

The slot is the only time-bound part of your purchase, and it is worth reading carefully: it is a boarding time at Grindelwald Terminal or Kleine Scheidegg, not a departure from Interlaken Ost. Book it as early as you can: the earlier you book, the wider your choice of slots, including the quiet first departures of the day. The ticket cancels free up to 24 hours before, and there is no bad-weather refund once you have travelled. Book now for the slot you want, then check the forecast one or two days before and use that free cancellation window if the weather looks poor.

How long to allow, and what to do with the rest of the day

Jungfraubahnen's own guidance is at least three and a half to four and a half hours for the round trip via the Eiger Express, or five to six hours via Wengen and the Wengernalp line. Add the two hours you want at the top for the Sphinx terrace at 3,571 metres, the Plateau, the Ice Palace at a constant minus three degrees and the walk through the Alpine Sensation corridor. A realistic Interlaken to Jungfraujoch day is then seven to nine hours door to door.

That is a full day, and the altitude makes it a tiring one. Altitude sickness is possible from 2,500 metres upward, and you lose roughly 200 millilitres of fluid an hour simply by breathing at that height. Jungfraubahnen warns of a considerable risk of snow blindness on the glacier without sunglasses, in poor weather as much as in bright. Jungfraubahnen also lists conditions for which the trip is not recommended, including recent stroke or brain haemorrhage, severe asthma or chronic lung disease, dialysis, a cold or fever, pregnancy from the seventh month, and children under two.

If the summit is clouded in, the other direction out of Interlaken Ost is worth holding in reserve. Harder Kulm sits directly above the town, the funicular return costs from CHF 38 (from CHF 19 with a Half Fare Card or Swiss Travel Pass), and the Two Lakes Bridge looks down over Lake Thun and Lake Brienz. It takes an evening rather than a day, it is a fraction of the price, and on a clear night it is the better photograph. It works just as well as the coda to a Jungfraujoch day as it does as the substitute for one.

How to book, in four steps

1. Decide your route before your ticket, then do not choose. An Interlaken to Jungfraujoch return covers both branches, so plan to go up over the Eiger Express early and come down through Kleine Scheidegg and Wengen in the afternoon. You get the north face on the way up and the Eismeer window and the open valley on the way down.
2. Work out your ticket type first. From CHF 234 full fare, from CHF 157 as a Swiss Travel Pass holder, from CHF 122 as a Half Fare Card holder. If you are in Switzerland for more than a few days, price the Half Fare Card at CHF 150 against your whole itinerary, not just this trip.
3. Read the time slot twice. The outbound slot you pick is a boarding time at Grindelwald Terminal or Kleine Scheidegg, so leave Interlaken Ost at least half an hour earlier than it says. Your reserved return seat sits about 3 hours after arrival at the top.
4. Book early, keep the cancellation as your safety net. There is no bad-weather refund, but every ticket cancels free up to 24 hours before travel. Check the forecast one or two days before and cancel or rebook if it looks poor; the jungfrau.ch webcams on the morning of travel are a last look only.

A sensible plan for one clear day

Take the first connection, the 07:04 in the current block, and be on the Plateau while the morning is still sharp and the terraces are empty. Do the Sphinx terrace first, before the groups arrive, then the Ice Palace and the Alpine Sensation corridor, which are indoors and hold up perfectly well when cloud rolls in. Eat early rather than at one o'clock, when the restaurants take the full weight of the mid-morning trains.

Start down by mid-afternoon over Kleine Scheidegg, break the journey in Wengen for half an hour if the weather has held, and you are back in Interlaken with an evening left. That is the version of the Interlaken to Jungfraujoch day that people remember: not rushed at the top, not stranded at the bottom, and with both routes used once each.