Wengen is one of those magical fairy tale places in Switzerland which offers amazing trails and hiking routes for the fellow nature lover and adventure seeker, there are very beautiful hiking trails in Wengen.
Wengen is pretty much one of the most isolated little villages sitting on a mountain slope and is only reachable by train or by your own foot. You can get there hiking or with the train from famous Lauterbrunnen or even do a huge hike from Grindelwald via Kleine Scheidegg and get down to Wengen.
Wengen is a tiny village, but have all that you would need: food shops, hiking shops, Jungfrau ski resort (one of the biggest in Switzerland), cable cars, many restaurants, and great hotels.
It looks like a Christmas postcard during winter with all the houses on the mountain, piles of snow, and many lights.
In the summertime, Wengen is a bit slower, but it is a great hiking destination as all the snow is gone and it is time to hit the trails.
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How to Get to Wengen
Basically, you have two ways to get to Wengen: by train or by your own foot.
I highly highly recommend choosing the train option as I think it is one of the most beautiful train rides for such a small price: just few Swiss franks for a fascinating train ride with stunning views to the Lauterbrunnen valley.
The train starts at Lauterbrunnen and if you come there by car, there is a very huge parking building right next to the train station. If you come by train to Lauterbrunnen, you don’t even need to leave the train station. The train ride is about 20 minutes. Have a look at the latest time schedules and prices right here: Swiss trains.
If you decide to hike up, it is only 3 kilometers, but you will need to gain more than 500 meters in altitude, so it can take up to 1h 30 minutes to reach Wengen. That can totally be one of the hiking trails in Wengen.
Facts About Wengen
Wengen is sitting at 1280 meters altitude.
Wengen language is German.
Wengen population is just over 1300 people, but it doubles and triples (I think there are tens of thousands of people on the most busy days) during skiing season.
Wengen hosts the famous Lauberhorn ski races where skiers get to crazy speeds of 160 km/h.
5 Majestic Hiking Trails in Wengen
Wengen is in a perfect location for long and short hikes. If you are willing to do longer hikes, you can get to peaks as Männlichen or mountain passes as Kleine Scheidegg.
If you would like to take it easy, you can hike down to Lauterbrunnen, even though it is an easy hike, you will get the full package of spectacular views. Let us explore these trails.
1- Wengen to Lauterbrunnen Hike
Once you have visited Wengen and wandered in the streets of this village, you can skip the train ride and just hike down to Lauterbrunnen and continue your trip from there. There are many other amazing hikes from Lauterbrunnen as well: Hiking trails in Lauterbrunnen.
This hike is quite easy, just 3 kilometers downhill, but don’t underestimate it: as you always walk down, your joints can get tired, so take it easy and slow, and enjoy nature.
The hike should take you around 1 hour or even less and is all the time just going down, sometimes quite close to the beautiful Wengen train rail.
I would not take too much stuff for such a hike, but always have at least 1 liter of water as it gets very hot in summer. As well as good hiking shoes and comfortable clothes are a necessity.
2- Wengen to Männlichen Hike
This hike is much harder as you will have to gain over 1000 meters in elevation, but totally doable if you take it easy. I must note: you can do it from the other side, take a cable car from Wengen to the top and hike down. That will be a much longer hike down than to Lauterbrunnen.
The hike from Wengen to Männlichen will take you up to 3 hours and is 5 kilometers long. The hike is pretty much all the time pretty steep, so be ready for a very good training session. Männlichen is at 2343 meters altitude.
The higher you get, the more views you can enjoy to Lauterbrunnen and to other side of the mountain as well.
On the top of Männlichen, there’s a very nice viewpoint and a cable car station will be a bit lower, but it is like 5 5-minute walk. The cable car ride can cost you 24 CHF, but check all the latest prices right here: Wengen cable car prices.
For this hike, I would prepare a bit more: at least 2 liters of water for each, maybe even 3 would be nice. Take some snacks, very good hiking shoes, an extra jacket (you never know if it starts to rain or the wind gets stronger), and hiking poles (it helps a lot during such steep hikes).
If you decide to do the whole hike back, you will need an extra 2 hours to come back to Wengen.
3- Wengen to Kleine Scheidegg Hike
I would say that Kleine Scheidegg is the most attractive hiking destination and hiking trail of all the hikes in Wengen.
Kleine Scheidegg is a beautiful Swiss Alps destination with restaurants, shops, hotels, and a train station where trains go to Jungfraujoch, one of the highest mountain stations in Switzerland where winter is all year round.
I have visited Kleine Scheidegg in winter (while skiing) and few times in summer (while hiking) – I love that place. It is so beautiful and offers stunning views to the Eiger glacier and huge valleys on both sides.
The hike from Wengen to Kleine Scheidegg is an easier one than to Männlichen, although a bit longer.
The distance is 7 kilometers, but you have to gain around 800 meters, 200 meters less than to Männlichen. The hike is around 3 hours long.
The hike is going up pretty much all the time, although some places are less steep than others.
On the way you will see some huts, and some restaurants (some of them are open just during the skiing season); if you are lucky you will get to see cows, goats or even wild goats. Nature is lush and breathtaking up there.
Once you are on the top, you can have a drink and a snack in the restaurant up there. Or even shop in the local boutiques.
On your way back, I highly recommend taking a red train to Wengen. The ride as the hike is immensely beautiful.
The ticket price should be 24 CHF, but please check all the latest prices right here: Train ride from Kleine Scheidegg to Wengen.
4- Wengen to Leiterhorn Hike
This one is the shortest hike of them all, but don’t ignore it, in the end, you will get pretty stunning views to Lauterbrunnen Valley, the city, and all the surroundings. You are going to love it and your Instagram will explode.
Leiterhorn is on the way to Männlichen and is just 2.4 kilometers away from Wengen. You will gain a bit less than 300 meters, the first and half a kilometers is a bit steeper, but later on, the hike gets easier.
The thing is: there’s no cable car or train back to Wengen, so you will have to walk back, but it is all the way down, so it should not be hard and it would take less than an hour to come back to Wengen.
In total: 4.8 kilometers, up to 1h 30 minutes back and forth.
5- Wengen to Grindelwald Hike
That is the longest hike I would like to offer you, but it gives you the biggest reward. The hike goes through Kleine Scheidegg and you will have to walk all the way down to Grindelwald.
If you come to Wengen and Lauterbrunnen by train, you can definitely try to reach Grindelwald and then spend a night or take your train back home from there.
As it is 3 hours to Kleine Scheidegg, you will need an extra 2 – 3 hours to go down to Grindelwald. I actually really like the hiking path from Kleine Scheidegg to Grindelwald: full of cows, meadows, views to Eiger (famous mountain), a couple of restaurants, very well-maintained trails, and even some places to refill your water bottles. It is one of the best-prepared hiking trails in all Switzerland.
Grindelwald is lower than Wengen, so you will walk down a bit more than you gained before – 1100 meters.
Your whole hike will sum up to 5-6 hours, 15 kilometers, 800 meters altitude gain and 1100 meters drop.
Grindelwald is as well one of the most beautiful villages in Switzerland, so it is a great hike between two charming places.
For such a hike you would need at least 2 liters of water (you can refill in Kleine Scheidegg and on the way down to Grindelwald), some snacks (if you skip lunch in Kleine Scheidegg, take some food then worth at least 1000 – 1500 kcal), extra jacket (for bad weather, and it can get really chilly on Kleine Scheidegg even mid-summer), hiking poles (not great just walking up, but great walking down as well).
Other hiking destinations to consider in Wengen
Once you reach Kleine Scheidegg, there are three more destinations you can reach from there: Lauberhorn (amazing views), Tschuggen (one of the highest places you can hike up to in the surrounding places, 2520 meters), Eiger glacier.
There are even famous Eiger, Jungfrau and Mönch mountains close to Wengen, but that is more for very experienced mountaineers or at least hire a guide to go there. These mountains are no joke and you would need crampons, ropes, helmets, and all other equipment to reach those peaks.
Tips for hiking in Wengen
Start early: I really recommend beginning as early as possible, because just to reach Wengen you are going to need at least one train ride (if you are coming to Lauterbrunnen by car). It is best to begin in the morning as in summer the sun can be very intense and in the middle of the day, it can get pretty hot. If you begin early, you will be able to enjoy a nice dinner in local restaurants or in the middle of your hike.
Pack light and take enough water: I would suggest taking at least two liters of water for each person. The best is to use a water bottle which keeps water cool, because otherwise in the summertime it can get as hot as tea.
Take good hiking shoes: Good hiking shoes is a huge part of a successful mountain hike. Most of the hikes have paths full of sharp stones, so you better take hiking shoes with sturdy soal and it is even better if your hiking shoes are with Goretex, so no weather will be bad for you.
Wengen in Winter
You can as well do some very beautiful snowshoeing in Wengen in winter and the best destination for that is the aforementioned Leiterhorn. All other destinations are pretty impossible as to Kleine Scheidegg there is a skiing route going down.
If you go to Wengen in winter I highly recommend the skiing resort of Jungfrau which is probably the best in all Europe. I have skied there and was not disappointed at all. You can read my review: Jungfrau ski resort review.
As mentioned before, Wengen is very alive during winter, so there are many great restaurants and bars. If you like to spend more time after skiing in the bars, you will definitely find some nice places that do not close at 22.00 (the one I visited is called Pickel bar at this address: Dorfstrasse, 3823 Lauterbrunnen), although overall Wengen is very peaceful and calm in the streets.
Wengen is one of the most beautiful places to do some hiking in Switzerland. It offers amazing trails, very well-maintained paths, fantastic views, and nice cozy places to have lunch or a drink. What else can a hiker ask for?
If you have more time to spend in Wengen, you can definitely try not just one, but a couple of the suggested hiking trails, you will not be disappointed. Or you can even do village-to village hike and reach Grindelwald via mountain pass Kleine Scheidegg.
All the best to you!
If you have any questions about Wengen, please let me know, I will do my best to help you.
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