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Any blog post you read on the Jungfrau region will likely recommend paragliding in Switzerland, and for good reason. My husband’s first request when we booked our travels to the Jungfrau region was to paraglide.
What does it mean to paraglide? The definition of paragliding is, “a sport in which a wide canopy resembling a parachute is attached to a person’s body by a harness in order to allow them to glide through the air after jumping from or being lifted to a height.” For me, that definition is it’s in epic activity where you float in the sky – just the idea of paragliding makes my heart beat a little faster. I am not an adrenaline junky, but this is perfect for my husband.
While paragliding isn’t something I wanted to partake in, I researched a ton for my husband’s experience. I wanted to make sure that paragliding will be memory he’ll look back on for a lifetime fondly. There’s a lot to consider before booking paragliding in Switzerland from location, duration, and price.
Where to go paragliding in Switzerland
There’s opportunities to paraglide in the Jungfrau region from multiple locations. It looks like the most popular locations you can paraglide from are Interlaken and Mürren. If you plan on staying in Interlaken, then booking a tour from there makes the most sense. Here is where I recommend if staying in Interlaken:
- Budget: Historic Hotel Steinbock – Stayed here for a night and it’s in the oldest part of Interlaken. It’s beautiful!
- Solo: Backpackers Villa – Family friendly hostel, and perfect for solo travelers too.
- Mid-range: Salzano Hotel Spa – This is where we had originally booked before changing our accommodations to Lauterbrunnen
- Splurge: Victoria Jungfrau Grand Hotel & Spa – One of the most stunning hotels I’ve ever seen
Once you know where you’re staying, if you’re staying in Interlaken or anywhere but Lauterbrunnen, I recommend these options for paragliding:
- Highly rated: Tandem Paragliding Flight with Pilot – 1.5 hours long with meeting in the center of Interlaken
- Solo: Paragliding Tandem Flight in Interlaken – Only one person get sgn up for this experience at a time.
- Small Group: Tandem Paragliding Flight – There’s a lot of flexibility in the stating time with this option which was important when we booked out flight.
With us staying in Lauterbrunnen, paragliding from Mürren felt like the best opportunity for us.
Short on time? We booked the Mürren: Paragliding Panorama Tandem Flight Full Experience with Get Your Guide. Tell Paolo we said hi!
Paragliding in Mürren: Traveling to Mürren
Truthfully, Mürren isn’t the easiest town to get to. Personally, I think it adds to the charm! Depending on where you decide to stay on your visit to the Jungfrau region, you may end up on a train, bus, and gondola on your journey to this picturesque town. Believe me when I say it’s worth it.
From Lauterbrunnen, we took a bus to the Stechelberg gondola lift station. There’s a ticket counter inside the gondola lift station where you can get your lift tickets (if you didn’t already purchase them on the SBB app.) If you’re paragliding, you’ll only need to purchase a one-way ticket up to Mürren.
*If you are like me and going to Mürren, but not paragliding, you can either book a round trip ticket or a ticket up to Mürren and back down from Gimmelwald (details on that later.) If you tell the attendant your plans, they can be helpful in making sure you get the tickets you need for your journey.
Introducing the town of Mürren
I could go on and on about the picturesque town that’s Mürren. It’s a carless village that we spent a couple hours wandering and taking in the colorful views of the mountains with paragliders in the distance. Mürren has a clear view of the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau mountains too!
I’ve mentioned in other Switzerland blogs that Switzerland doesn’t always have the best coffee, but Mürren has the best coffee shop I went to in the Jungfrau Region. Swing by Insport Cafe and you won’t be disappointed by anything you order.
If you plan on staying in Mürren, here are my recommendations:
- Budget: Hotel Jungfrau Mürren – A great location in winter if you want to hit the slopes and breathtaking views for the summer and fall visitors.
- Solo: Sonneberg Dormitories – A great hostel option.
- Mid-range: Hotel Blumental – You can ski to the hotel door in the winter and in the summer, it’s in the heart of the town with gardens to enjoy.
- Splurge: Hotel Mürren Palace – The name of this hotel is no exaggeration, it looks like a palace and the amenities are fantastic.
Introducing Paolo
Paolo, also known as the coolest paragliding guide, is incredible. We booked him through Get Your Guide, and he showed up and made us feel immediately comfortable. He moved to the Jungfrau region from Spain and started his own paragliding business.
My husband and I both were feeling a little jittery while we waited for Paolo, but he greeted us with excitement and instantly made us feel at ease. My husband then joined Paolo on the next gondola up the mountain, which could be purchased at the Mürren lift station if you didn’t have that lift ticket yet.
What’s great about Paolo is not only is he an extremely skilled paraglider, but he takes videos and photos the entire time of your experience up. Access to the videos and photos is an extra cost in cash, so be sure to carry cash with you if you’d like these memories.
While they headed up, I had an adventure of my own.
An alternative to paragliding
As my husband wanted to paraglide and I didn’t, I found the perfect solution. My husband went paragliding with a small group that met up in Mürren. While he headed up into the clouds, I took a solo hike from Mürren to another beautiful town of Gimmelwald. The hike from Mürren to Gimmelwald is more of a downhill stroll – it was less than a mile and was very easy.
As I trekked down to Gimmelwald, I heard the valley cows and it was a great way to spend time solo. I spent about an hour in the town wandering around the shops and picturesque paths (I don’t know if I’d call them roads.)
I already bought my return ticket from the Gimmelwald gondola station to take me down to the Stechelberg Gondola lift station. The landing zone for the paragliders is right next to the Stechelberg station, so I was able to walk over and have a little picnic where I tried to spot Paolo and my husband. Here’s a little video:
Final thoughts on paragliding
While watching my husband glide in the sky above while I was on land, I’ll admit I had second thoughts if I should have also gone paragliding in Switzerland. While I don’t think it’s an activity for me, it’s truly a bucket list item for people who seek that kind of thrill.
When I watched my husband glide down to the ground, unclip, and walk over to me, I knew in that moment he’d remember it forever. He truly looked like he was on cloud nine. When I asked him about his experience, he said it was a once in a lifetime experience.
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