Trummelbach Falls near Lauterbrunnen

The magnificent Trümmelbach Falls are fed by a glacier. It is a series of 10 waterfalls in a cave-like environment, hidden inside a mountain in the Lauterbrunnen Valley. The Trümmelbachfälle are a natural UNESCO World heritage site, and rightly so.

A tunnel elevator leads up to a platform from where the uppermost waterfalls are accessed. The path leads to a small bridge, a few steps and passages up, and a section through less brightly lit tunnels to the waterfall at the top. Freezing cold water spray makes the caves damp and stairs can be slippery. Spraying and dripping from above will not let you get away completely dry.

The melting water flowing from the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau becomes a fast-flowing stream that carries 20,000 liters of water per second through the caves. For thousands of years, the stream has made its way through solid rock and rubble and carves elegant and impressive shapes into rock shapes. The result is amazing and the roar of the drifting water is deafening.

Torrents carved through solid rock

Along the way there are always small cuts with vantage points from which you can watch the spectacle of the water plunging into the depths. The foaming mass of water winds over the smooth, shaped rocks and finally disappears in the darkness. 

Once you have reached the last section, you return to the lift platform, from where you can take the lift or walk back to the entrance to watch the last two of the ten slides plunge into the Trümmelbach. It’s steep and the stairs ‘go straight to the knees’ but the view over the Lauterbrunnen valley is gorgeous.

Instead of returning by post bus to Lauterbrunnen, one can hike back through lush and flat farm meadows along the famous Staubbach Falls (Staubbach Fälle) that cascade down from sheer rock faces. At the edge of the village, a steep gravel footpath branches off from the country road and leads up to one of the falls. A short tunnel ends at a viewing platform where one can see sheets of water crash down right in front of visitors.

The Trümmelbach Falls are worth your while any time they are open, but it’s particularly an ideal excursion if the weather keeps you from going to higher elevation.

Good to Know

• Linger as long as you want but allow at least an hour to see it all;
• Even in summer  the caves are quite cool and damp, so make sure to bring a jacket or raincoat;
• Wear good shoes without slippery soles. It’s pretty steep in parts, and even if you take the lift, you get quite a workout;
• Not recommended for toddlers, unless you carry them all the way on your back;
• You won’t be alone visiting the Trümmelbach Falls, especially in the high tourist months July and August. Go early in the morning; preferably be the first when the gates open, because between 9 and 10am usually busloads of tourist do arrive;
• There’s a restaurant at the bus station right outside the entrance, but it closes part of May and ends the season in September;
• Free parking, but easily accessed by post bus from Lauterbrunnen (about 10 Minutes) and/or Stechelberg (7 minutes) from where an Aerial cableway brings you up to Gimmelwald, Mürren or all the way to the Schilthorn (Piz Gloria). If you want to return to Lauterbrunnen or continue to Stechelberg by post bus do check departure times (time table right at the bus stop).
• If you arrive on bike be aware that there are no lockers for your gear;
• Lauterbrunnen to Interlaken Ost approximately 17 km (10.6 miles);
• The hike back to Lauterbrunnen is well signed and takes about 40 minutes to an hour, depending on how much time you spend at the Staubbach Falls. Trümmelbach Falls to Lauterbrunnen Train station approximately 4,7 km (2.9 miles);
• Not wheelchair accessible;
• Open daily from April through November, 9am to 5pm; July and August from 8.30am to 6pm;
• Admission: Adults CHF 11; Children CHF 4. Special prices for groups on request. No credit cards accepted.