Wengen is a mountain village in Bernese Oberland in Swiss Alps. It is 16 miles south of Interlaken and 3 miles Northeast of Mürren. The Mönch, Jungfrau, and Eiger loom above this sunny resort town built on a sheltered terrace high above the Lauterbrunnen Valley, at about 4,100 ft.

The Swiss Ski Resort of Wengen is part of the Jungfrau Region ski area with access to more than 300 miles of downhill skiing, with 131 individual ski trails, served by 66 ski lifts. In addition to the skiing in Wengen itself (76 miles of ski runs), the appropriate ski Lift Pass will allow you to ski or snowboard in the other Jungfrau Region ski resorts of Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen and Mürren.

With ski lifts as high as 1,441 ft, snow cover is generally reliable.

There are three Airports within two hours drive, so ski weekends, snowboard breaks and short ski holidays to Wengen are perfectly feasible.

The area names that sound the same, but are different places (like Jungfrau and Jungfraujoch or Grindelwald and Grindelwald First). Here is a breakdown of the area:

-Jungfrau is the name of the area that covers popular towns like Lauterbrunnen, Interlaken and Grindelwald.

-Grindelwald is a valley and a town, whereas Grindelwald First is a summit that can be reached by cable car and is famous for hiking. There is not a Second, Third or Fourth summit, in case you were wondering.

-Jungfraujoch is the name of a mountain col and it`s the highest train station in Europe (11332 ft.).

-The Bernese Oberland is the mountain area in Jungfrau and it basically means the Highland of Bern because this part of the Alps is close to the city of Bern.

Wengen is most easily reached by train. Travel on the Berner Oberland-Bahn (BOB) from Interlaken West to Wengen with a change of train at Lauterbrunne. Departures are every 45 minutes from 6:30 am to 11 pm, costing about 16F one-way. After a stopover at Wengen, the train goes on to Kleine Scheidegg and Jungfraujoch. For rail information, call tel. 0900/300-300.

If you`re driving, head south from Interlaken toward Wilderswil, following the minor signposted road to Lauterbrunnen, where you`ll find garages and open-air spaces for parking. You cannot drive to Wengen, you must take the train. You can park in one of the garages at Lauterbrunnen for about 12CHF to 18CHF a day. Trains from Lauterbrunnen to Wengen takes about 15 minutes.

We suggest to travel by train if you can. You will save on parking costs, and you won`t be needing a car to explore the region anyway.

Wengen is a car-free village so the only way to get around is by walking. A few of the hotels run electric vehicle transfers to and from the station. This has the added advantage of making it a coach trip free zone, some of the surrounding villages which are accessible by road are not so lucky.

From Wengen, there are trains back down to Lauterbrunnen and further up the mountain to Kleine Scheidegg and eventually Jungfraujoch. From Lauterbrunnen, you can continue to Interlaken and other parts of the Bernese Oberland and Switzerland. From Kleine Scheidegg, you can take another train to reach Grindelwald.

There`s also a cableway up to Männlichen. Several hiking routes start there, and there`s a gondola from there to Grindelwald as well.

In winter, many ski lifts make sure you can reach the more than 125 miles of ski runs in the Jungfrau region.

In both summer and winter the region can be reached by car from Basel/Zurich/Geneva via Bern or Lucerne/Brünig Pass. From the south, you reach the Jungfrau Region via Grimsel- or Sustenpass (only in Summer) or via Simplonpass and afterwards Lötschberg Car Transport.

Wengen and Mürren are car-free.

Parking for Wengen is available in Lauterbrunnen, Parking for Mürren in Lauterbrunnen and Stechelberg. There is no road that goes to Wengen or Mürren. If you type in `Wengen` or `Mürren`, the navigation system will lead you on a small alpine gravel road where no private cars are allowed.

Parking in Grindelwald:
There are different car parks: Parkhaus Eiger (252 car parks) and Parkhaus Sportzentrum (160 car parks) or Grindelwald Grund.

In summer you can choose from over 300 miles of marked walking, hiking and mountain paths. The crystal-blue mountain lakes and gushing waterfalls provide a welcome refreshment. The Jungfrau Region boasts the most spectacular views of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau. The landscape has also been awarded the status of a UNESCO World Heritage site.

-Hike to Bachalpsee Lake (difficulty: easy)
-Hike to Grosse Scheidegg (difficulty: easy)
-Hike to Eigergletscher (difficulty: medium)
-Walk to the Grindelwald First Cliff Walk
-The First cable car
-Downhill trotti biking
-First Flyer zip lining

The ski areas around Grindelwald, Wengen, Mürren and Hasliberg offer a total of 160 miles of ski runs ranging from fast to leisurely, and from four to swven miles in length. A total of more than 40 percent of the ski runs are equipped with snow-making machines. In the Jungfrau Region however, non-skiers also get their money`s worth: over 60 miles of winter footpaths enable you to explore the mountains on foot. Furthermore, with its countless toboggan runs, the region is a real paradise for tobogganing. Amongst them is the longest toboggan run in the Alps.

The currency of Switzerland is the Swiss franc, usually indicated as CHF or SFr. While Switzerland is not part of the European Union and thus is not obliged to convert to the Euro, many prices are nonetheless indicated in euros so that visitors may compare prices. Most of the restaurants, bars, cafes and clubs accept euro, but expect to pay a premium rate.

The Swiss Franc (CHF or SFr) is divided into 100 centimes (known as Rappen in German speaking Switzerland). Bills come in 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 10000SFr and coins are divided into 5, 10, 20 and 50 centimes and 1, 2 and 5SFr.

US dollars are not accepted. Please be sure to have the correct currency on hand or be prepared to exchange your dollars for Swiss Francs upon arrival. Currency exchange desks can be found at the airport, train station and many bank locations throughout the city. ATMs are also widespread throughout the city accepting bank cards and credit cards.

Switzerland has a reputation for being an expensive destination. Those amazing transportation options, meals, hotels and attractions come at a cost. Once you get there, expect your hotel to cost you an average of $200 USD per night and that cheap pizza at a restaurant will cost you around $30 USD.

Average temperatures in Wengen vary greatly. Considering humidity, temperatures feel cold for about half of the year and otherwise nice with a chance of rain or snow throughout most of the year. The area is less temperate than compared to tourist destinations worldwide. If you’re looking for the very warmest time to visit Grindelwald, the hottest months are July, August, and then June. The warmest time of year is generally mid July where highs are regularly around 77°F with temperatures rarely dropping below 57°F at night. The coldest month is generally December and January with temperature highs around 38°F and lows around 27°F.

Wengen is situated in the German speaking part of Switzerland. In addition to German, however, many locals also speak English and French.

Most of the employees working for hotels, restaurants, and shops that are aimed at tourists can speak the English language at a competent level. We suggest you get a good English-German guidebook and familiarize yourself with common phrases such as hello, goodbye, excuse me and numbers 1-10.

Like most European ski resorts, most of the Wengen restaurants are located in hotels. Four-star Hotel Silberhorn serves up incredible five-course dinners and exceptional breakfast buffet spreads. The table service is also noteworthy. Hotel Wengener, also a four-star property, provides well-presented Swiss/German cuisine and warm hospitality.

The village offers plenty of memorable Swiss restaurants that offer incredible fondue, raclette and other traditional cuisine. There are also plenty of options serving up international meals from around the world.

Wengen On-Mountain Restaurants:
Wengen and Grindelwald ski areas share nearly a combined 30 on-mountain restaurants, so there`s certainly no shortage of views, menus and experiences to partake in. Dine at the Top of Europe in Wengen`s highest restaurant, Eigergletscher. The Wengernalp ski area restaurant provides incredible vistas and a simple menu.

Some Swiss specialties we recommend are the Bernese Rosti, skilleted hash brown potatoes flavored with bacon or cheese, it is as popular as is Valaisian Raclette. This is prepared by melting cheese over a fire, scraping it onto a baked potato and garnishing it with meat and vegetables of your choice. And no trip to Switzerland is complete without trying a `fondue`. This is a communal dish served in a pot over a small burner. There are different types of fondue, the most popular being cheese. Those eating the fondue, dip different things (on most occasions bread) into the pot. Simple!

Wengen is more ideally situated for families, so it is probably not the choice for those who put their partying before their skiing. Nearby Grindelwald village is the more ideal place for party animals. Wengen nonetheless has enough lively bars and nightspots for most tastes. Unusually it is the locals, and often visiting Germans, who add to the fun.

After the lifts close the pavement cafes that spill out around the station are generally crowded, happy places and tea dances begin at the nearby Silberhorn and Belvedere. Apart from partying options include the cinema, often showing English language films and occasional floodlit slalom races and ski jumping to watch, as well as ice hockey matches.

There are various tourist shops in the village, including an information center, as well as a small Coop supermarket where you can buy groceries. The Made in Switzerland Shop is a great place to buy presents as you avoid the disappointment of your "authentic" souvenir coming from China. There are several stores selling gear for hiking, climbing, and skiing.

Note: Value-added tax (VAT) rate is 8% in Switzerland which applies to supplies of goods or services registered in Switzerland, including hotel and restaurant bills. There are no other special taxes.

Police Emergency Number - 117
Ambulance / Medical Emergency - 144
Fire Department - 118