Girls Getaway in Grindelwald

Spring has finally sprung around here (hooray!!), but just before it did we had a little girls’ getaway weekend to the mountains.  Grindelwald, in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland, is a gorgeous year round destination.  We love it in the summer, but I really had my heart set on seeing it in the winter and when I found a couple of willing girlfriends to come along we decided to make a girls’ weekend out of it!

My birthday also happened to fall over this weekend and I can’t tell you how grateful I felt to be able to spend the day in such a stunning setting with great friends.  I was never much of a winter lover until we moved to Switzerland, but it’s hard not to fall in love with those mountain peaks covered in snow!  This season I’ve also really fallen hard for snow shoeing and Grindelwald is an excellent place for it.

We ate, drank, had some spa time, enjoyed a couple of epic snow shoe outings and generally just had a lovely weekend!  I had read about the Eiger Snowshoe Trail with fabulous views of the north face of the Eiger Mountain, so we decided to set out on this two hour trek.  The forecast called for rain all weekend, but we lucked out and had warm temperatures with only cloudy skies and by the afternoon the sun even came out.  I’d love to come and do this trail again earlier in the season when there is lots of fresh snow covering the trees!

This was really the most beautiful snowshoe trail…I’d highly recommend it!  After our hike, we stopped off for some gluhwein before taking the train back down to Grindelwald for a fondue lunch.  We earned all those cheesy calories, right?!

Afternoon spa time, continued home spa on our balcony with champagne, and a fun dinner…couldn’t have asked for a more perfect way to spend a birthday!

On Sunday we went out for one more snowshoe hike before calling it a weekend.  We found a short loop from the Hotel Wetterhorn and enjoyed some more amazing mountain views.

Amazing scenery, great friends, good times.  When I picture a girls getaway, the snowy mountains don’t immediately come to mind but I’m so glad we went for it.  Thanks for a wonderful weekend, ladies!

 

Practical Info

S T A Y //

We stayed at Aparthotel Eiger in a 3-bedroom apartment.  The apartments are not fancy, but they do have balconies with amazing views and you have access to the spa and free afternoon coffee and cake at their hotel next door (Hotel Eiger).

E A T //

We liked the hotel’s restaurant, Barry’s, for a casual dinner and also for good fondue.  Restaurant Belvedere was nice for a more upscale dining experience.

A C T I V I T I E S //

Make sure to stop by the tourist office for a map and info on what to do in the area…there is really a lot of choice including of course skiing and cross country skiing.  For the Eiger snowshoe trail you can take the bus to the Mannlichen cable car.  The trail starts just under the first cable car station and is very well marked.  From the end of the trail at Brandegg you can take the train back to Grindelwald.  For the second day snowshoe, we took a loop trail from the Hotel Wetterhorn.

 

What’s your ideal getaway weekend?  If like me, you’d normally say beach or relaxing by the pool maybe it’s worth adding a winter weekend with friends to the agenda!