Aare Gorge is narrow river gorge with interesting curved formations and icy blue water running through the middle. For a small fee, you can explore the gorge on an elevated walkway built into the rock walls. The Aare Gorge is usually combined with a visit to the nearby Reichenbach waterfalls.
Families will appreciate the extras for kids, like the gorge’s mascot, a cute “tunnel” worm, and his family hidden in the walls along the river. There’s also a fun playground outside the west entrance, a nice reward for kids after the walk.
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| Location: | Bernese Oberland, near Interlaken |
| Address: | West gorge entrance: Aareschluchtstrasse, 3860 Schattenhalb |
| Car: | Parking west: 46°43’12.1″N 8°12’15.2″E 25 mins from Interlaken, 1hr25 from Zurich |
| Train: | west entrance: Aareschlucht West train station east entrance: Aareschlucht Ost train station 45 mins from Interlaken, 2hr40 from Zurich HB |
| Trail: | 1.6 km one way, about 1 hour |
| Condition: | narrow elevated walkway, partially stroller and wheelchair accessible |
| Skill: | easy |
| Open: | mid April thru October, daily 8:30 – 17:30 (until 18:30 in summer) |
| Cost 2024: | CHF 12/adult, CHF 6.50/children age 6-16, under 6 free |
| More info: | www.aareschlucht.ch |
Location of Aare River Gorge
The Aareschlucht is located east of Interlaken, near the village Meiringen. See on Google Maps.
Map of Aare Gorge and Attractions
The Aareschlucht is 1.6 km on a walkway cut through the rock and attached to the side of the rock walls. Many people simply walk through the gorge, then walk back to their starting point, 3.2 km total distance.
If you want a shorter walk, you can through the gorge one way (1.6 km) and take the train back to your starting point. The train stations are a short walk from the gorge entrances (500m on the west, 250m on the east). The train runs once an hour and the ride takes 3 minutes.
Strollers & wheelchairs
Only the west entrance and west half of the gorge walk is stroller and wheelchair accessible.
Getting to Aare River Gorge
There is an entrance on each side of the gorge, each with parking and train station.
By car to west entrance
Drive towards Meiringen, following signs to the Aareschlucht, just east of the Meiringen on the south side of the river. The address is Aareschluchtstrasse, 3860 Schattenhalb. There is parking outside the entrance to the gorge.
Alternatively, you can drive to the east entrance located at 46°42’43.5″N 8°12’58.7″E, which has limited parking on the side of the road.
By public transport
Take a train to Meiringen, then change to the regional train to either the Aareschlucht West or Aareschlucht Ost stop and walk to the park entrance.
The Aareschlucht West train station is a 500m walk from the west gorge entrance as shown below.
The Aareschlucht Ost train station is a 250 walk from the east gorge entrance.
Opening Times
It is generally open from May through October, every day from 08.30 – 17.30, until 18:30 in summer. Sometimes they do a special evening illumination on summer evenings. See current opening times.
Tickets
In 2023, entrance to the gorge costs CHF 10/adult, CHF 6/child 6-16, under 6 free. See current prices.
Discounts
They sell a combo ticket that includes the funicular ride to the nearby Reichenbach waterfalls, which is cheaper than purchasing the tickets separately.
If you are staying overnight in the region, you get a 20% discount with your guest pass (free from your hotel).
SBB Railaway has a “combo” offer that discounts both your public transport journey and your entrance fee to both the Aare Gorge and Reichenbach Falls.
Photo story of Aare gorge
Here is the playground outside the west entrance of the Aareschlucht. Try to save this for after the walk.
Children are encouraged to find this “Tatzel” worm and his family hidden in the rock walls. You can see one below.
Sometimes a narrow canyon, sometimes wider open.
Sometimes you are in tunnels, some partly lit, other a bit dark.
Sometimes the path is wet and slippery.
Sometimes you can see quite far down the canyon.
This is the river flowing west out of the gorge, toward Brienz.
More activities near the Aare gorge
Visiting the Aare gorge is a short activity, about one hour. So I suggest combining this with other activities in the area. Here are a few activities we suggest.
Reichenbach Falls
These waterfalls are very close to the Aare gorge, just a 3 min drive or 15 min walk. Since these two activities are so often visited in the same day, they sell a convenient discounted “combined” ticket for both attractions. In 2023, an adult combined ticket costs CHF 18, a savings of CHF 4 if you bought the tickets separately.
To reach the falls, you ride a vintage funicular up the mountain to the viewpoint shown here. In the novels, this is the setting of Sherlock Holmes’ fatal confrontation with his nemesis, Professor Moriarty.
From here, you can optionally hike further up to see more of the falls and get lovely views over the valley below. After about 30 mins, you reach a restaurant at the top of the falls. For a bit of fun, you can rent big wheeled kick scooters here to ride back down the mountain.
Learn more about Reichenbach Falls.
Sherlock Museum
If you want to continue the Sherlock Holmes theme, you can visit the Sherlock Holmes museum in the neighboring village Meiringen. It has the living room of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson’s living room in Baker Street 221B, London, faithfully reconstructed from clues in the novels. They also offer a free scavenger hunt game through the village, called KrimiSpaas.
Location: Bahnhofstrasse 26, CH-3860 Meiringen
Cost: CHF 5/adult, CHF 3/child (6-15), under 6 free
Website: sherlockholmes.ch
Hasliberg Mountain
From the nearby Meiringen village, you can ride a cable car to reach the Hasliberg mountain resort. Here you’ll find amazing views and lots of fun hiking trails.
If you are traveling with children, we suggest the Muggestutz storybook trail, with lots of fun activities along the 4 km mountain trail. Plan for about two hours on this trail to include play time for the children.
Or perhaps the “Kugelweg” trail, with elaborate wooden marble runs along the trail, where children can roll a wooden ball down the tracks. It takes about 90 mins to walk this easy downhill trail.
For a proper mountain hike, we suggest the “Horizontweg” (Skyline Trail). From Meiringen, you ride a series of gondolas up to the Alpen Tower for amazing views of the whole region. The moderate trail traverses the mountain to a beautiful alpine lake. Then ride a bus back to your starting point in the valley.
Planning your visit
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Where to stay
This map shows the attractions and villages closest to the Aare Gorge.
Meiringen (1) is the closest village to the Aare Gorge. It has convenient train and road connections to both Interlaken and Lucerne. Our first choice would be Hotel Reuti, which is a short cable car ride up from the village. It has a modern chalet vibe and cozy restaurant. Your stay comes with a cable car pass for the Hasliberg mountain region.
For families, you might try Das Hotel Sherlock Holmes, which has family rooms with bunk beds, an indoor pool, and very nice views from their balconies facing the mountains. It’s very close to the train station and a close walk to a nice playground in the forest.
The next closest village is Brienz, which is on the shores of the Brienzersee lake. For a budget stay, you might consider the Brienzer Youth Hostel, which has both dormitories, shared rooms, and family rooms.
For an old world experience, you could stay at Hotel Rosenlaui, which has hosted guests since 1771 and has preserved the original rooms as much as possible. It’s tucked away in a beautiful mountain landscape at 1330m. You are asked not to use electronic devices in or around the hotel.
If you have trouble finding an available hotel, Interlaken is only 30 mins by train and has many more accommodations. Search hotels in Interlaken.
Where to eat
The Aare gorge has restaurants on both ends of the gorge. At the west entrance, there is Restaurant Aareschlucht (see on map), which is the larger of the two and has a playground. At the east entrance, there is a bistro with more of a snack menu and a nice terrace with mountain views (see on map).
If you are visiting the Reichenbach falls as well, there is a restaurant at the top of the falls, Gasthaus Zwirgi (see on map), with fantastic views over the valley. But note that it requires a 30 min hike from the top of the funicular.
The nearby Meiringen village has lots of restaurants. We typically go to Leopold for ice cream sundaes, because it’s right next to a small park where the kids can run around. Forcasual pizza, you might try Pizzeria Leone or Pizzeria BIRÓ.
16 Responses
Hello,
Thank you for the informative article.
I was wondering if there is any difference between starting at the east entrance or the west one? Or is it the same? The gorge hike is through the Fußweg Aereschlucht correct? Not the green Wanderweg path from the map on the brochure? And if I want to combine it with the waterfall I can take the train back and get off at Meiringen Alpbach, right?
Thank you.
Hi Marwa, the path through the gorge connects the east and west end. So you’ll see both on your visit. There is no difference in price if you enter on one side vs the other. If you want to visit the Reichenbach falls, perhaps start on the east entrance, walk through the gorge, then continue walking to the falls. I would do that instead of walking back and forth in the gorge and taking the train after your visit.
Thank you for the details on the Aare Gorge and nearby attractions. I will have the BO pass. Are all train rides from Interlaken Ost up to the gorge covered by it? What about the entrances and the funicular up to Reichenbach Falls? Is there a discount on this with the BO pass?
Thank you.
Yes, the train from Interlaken Ost to Meiringen and Aareschlucht Ost stops are covered. You also get a 30% discount on the entrance to Aare Gorge. For Reichenbach falls, you get a small discount on the funicular ride. You can see all discounts on https://www.berneseoberlandpass.ch/discount-partner/
I read that this is only open until Oct I will be there the 2 week in nov. What things would you recommend in place of this ?
Hi Toni, most attractions like this are closed in November due to the snow and ice. You might find my November posts helpful: https://swissfamilyfun.com/tag/november/
Hi!
Thank you for this article. You said the hike to the restaurant is 30 minutes, but how steep is it? I’m trying to figure out if it would be too challenging for a family member. TIA
There are restaurants at both ends of the Aare Gorge near the parking. No hike required.
Hi, I wanted to know where do you come out after finishing the tour of the gorge? As I want to plan to combine it to visit Schattenhalb. We will only rely on public transport so is it possible?
If you enter the Aare gorge at the west entrance, you walk about 1 km to the east entrance. You can either walk back the way you came. Or you can get on a train at the east entrance, which takes you back to Meiringen near the west entrance. From there you can walk to Schattenhalb. But I’m not sure what you mean when you say you want to visit Schattenhalb. Do you mean you want to visit the Reichenbach Falls? Then yes, you can take the train back to the Meiringen Alpbach station which is a short walk from the Reichenbach Falls attraction.
Hi! how long does the furnicular take to get to the top? How late can you arrive at the restaurant to rent the big wheel scooters? How long does it take to get down the mountain on them? Trying to make sure we can get it all done before it closes as we arrive at the Aare Gorge around 2:30pm.
thanks,
Danielle
The funicular ride is short, just a few minutes. I would plan about 90 mins for your visit including the funicular ride, hike up to the restaurant and scooter ride down. I think arriving at 2:30 is fine.
hello:) thank you for your descriptions.
Quick question – is it possible to combine the gorge with other activity? As it is relatively long drive from Interlaken – 45 minutes.
thanks,
Anna
It’s only about a 35 min drive to the Aare gorge from Interlaken. Yes, I would combine it with the Reichenbach Falls and/or a hike at the Hasliberg mountain next door.