The round Piz Gloria revolving restaurant on the snow-covered summit plateau of the Schilthorn, with visitors on the viewing terrace in front

Michal Gorski · CC BY-SA 3.0

2,970 m · above Mürren

Schilthorn and Piz Gloria

The second most expensive ascent in the region from Lauterbrunnen — every fare from every starting point, and the two stations where the same view costs a fraction.

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The second most expensive ascent in the region — and the only one with a restaurant that turns. Whether that is worth CHF 115 depends on one question: are you here for the view, or for the summit itself? The two answers cost very different amounts.

Quick Facts

Elevation
2,970 m
Getting There
71 min from Interlaken Ost, 4 changes
Duration
Full day
Price
from CHF 115
Season
Year-round, closures in late autumn and spring
Best for
Panorama, film fans, fair-weather days

Checked with the operator

What it costs, from every starting point

The fare depends entirely on where you get on, and the spread is wider than most people expect. All figures are Schilthornbahn's own, checked on 19 August 2026 and valid to 12 December 2026:

Travelcards cut this hard, and they too depend on where you board. A Half Fare Card brings the return to CHF 67.60 from Interlaken and CHF 57.50 from Lauterbrunnen or Stechelberg. A GA or a Swiss Travel Pass brings it to CHF 45.70 — from all four starting points alike, so the boarding station stops mattering. A Eurail pass from Stechelberg is CHF 86.40. Children aged 6 to 15 pay half throughout. And one card removes the fare completely: the Berner Oberland Pass is listed at zero on the operator's tariff sheet — hold one and this ride costs you nothing at all.

When it is not worth it

This is the part the sellers leave out, so here it is plainly: the Schilthorn's own middle stations already deliver much of what people come up for — and the list above shows what that is worth. Birg, one stage below the summit, sits high enough for the same three-peak panorama and has a cliff walk of its own. Mürren gives you the car-free village and the valley wall for a small fraction.

And the comparison people get backwards: the Jungfraujoch costs from CHF 129.60 and so comes in above the Schilthorn from Lauterbrunnen (CHF 115), not below it. From Interlaken the Schilthorn is CHF 135.20 and so sits above that entry figure. That is not enough to rank the two from Interlaken, though: the Jungfraujoch figure is the entry fare with a saver ticket and no departure point attached; the standard fare is higher. Set the two mountains against each other and you have to say where you board — otherwise you are comparing two different journeys.

So: if the revolving restaurant, the Bond exhibition and standing at 2,970 m are the point of the day, the summit is worth it and nothing else substitutes. If you want height and a view, stop earlier and spend the difference on something else. And if the forecast is uncertain, do not buy in the valley — the summit makes its own weather, and a cloud layer turns a CHF 115 ticket into a ride through grey.

Why it is called Piz Gloria

The revolving restaurant was half-built and short of money when the producers of On Her Majesty's Secret Service arrived in 1968 looking for a mountain hideout for Blofeld. They financed the completion in exchange for the location, gave the building the name Piz Gloria — and it kept it. That is why the mountain answers to two names: the operator runs its own site under both, and half the people searching for it type the film name rather than the mountain's.

What is up there today: the turning restaurant, a Bond exhibition and interactive Spy World, the Walk of Fame with the cast and crew, the Skyline viewing platform and a shop. It is a built summit, not a quiet one — worth knowing if you were expecting an alpine hush.

Getting there

71 minutes from Interlaken Ost on the fastest day connection, with four changes: train to Lauterbrunnen, bus to Stechelberg, then the cableway in three stages via Mürren and Birg. The first stage runs Stechelberg–Mürren non-stop in four minutes; only about every second departure calls at Gimmelwald on the way, and those take twelve minutes rather than four. The fast connection uses the non-stop departures. Only the first two connections of the day, at 06:34 and 07:04, take about ten minutes longer and one change more — the early connections are thinner, not faster. The route through Grütschalp and Mürren takes more time and is the better half scenically; if you are doing this once, go up one way and down the other.

From Lauterbrunnen it is 40 minutes to the summit, which is the number to plan with if you are staying in the valley rather than in Interlaken.

When the cableway stands still

Only one section on the way up closes for maintenance, and the operator publishes three windows for it:

In those windows the summit is still reachable — you just cannot come up from Stechelberg. Take the other way in: train to Lauterbrunnen, the cable car to Grütschalp and the mountain railway to Mürren, then the cableway on to Birg and the summit. For Mürren–Birg–Schilthorn, the section that actually carries you to the top, the operator lists no maintenance window at all.

The long closure you may see on the operator's tariff sheet — 19 October to 11 December 2026 — belongs to the Allmendhubel funicular, a separate excursion above Mürren. It does not touch the Schilthorn.

Outside those dates the cableway runs all year. Wind and cloud are the more common stoppage, and they arrive without notice — check the operator's live status on the morning you plan to go, not the evening before.

Buying a ticket

There is exactly one operator, Schilthornbahn AG, so there is no provider to choose between and nothing to compare: fares, timetable and the live mountain weather all come from the same place. Once you have decided the summit is worth it, buy directly from them.

Timetable and fares at Schilthornbahn — the operator's own tariff sheet, and the source of every figure on this page.

Weather at 2,970 m

The forecast applies to 2,970 m above sea level — 2,402 metres above Interlaken (568 m). It is computed for that altitude, not for the valley.

Loading the forecast …

Forecast for 2,970 m — data: Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0)

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Schilthorn worth it?

It depends on what you are buying, and the honest answer splits in two. If the revolving restaurant, the Bond exhibition and a 360° panorama of Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau are the point of your day, then yes — there is nothing else like it in the region. If you mainly want height and a view, you are paying a large premium for the last section: Birg, one stage below, already delivers most of the panorama, and Mürren delivers the valley view for a fraction. Any comparison with the Jungfraujoch has to name the starting point: from Lauterbrunnen the Schilthorn is CHF 115 and so costs less than the Jungfraujoch entry fare, from Interlaken CHF 135.20 and so costs more.

How much does the Schilthorn cost?

CHF 115 return from Lauterbrunnen via Grütschalp and from Stechelberg, CHF 135.20 from Interlaken, and CHF 91.40 if you start in Mürren — checked against Schilthornbahn's own tariff sheet on 19 August 2026, valid to 12 December 2026. A Half Fare Card brings it to CHF 67.60 from Interlaken and CHF 57.50 from Lauterbrunnen or Stechelberg, a GA or Swiss Travel Pass to CHF 45.70 from any starting point, a Eurail pass from Stechelberg to CHF 86.40. Children aged 6 to 15 pay half. The Berner Oberland Pass covers the ride entirely — the operator's tariff sheet lists it at zero, which is worth knowing before you buy a single ticket.

What is Piz Gloria?

Piz Gloria is the name of the summit building, and it comes from a film. The revolving restaurant was under construction when the producers of On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) chose it as Blofeld's alpine hideout and helped finance its completion; the name stayed. The operator uses it as a second brand — its own site is titled "Schilthorn Piz Gloria" — which is why you will find the mountain under both names. The summit today has the restaurant, a Bond exhibition, the Walk of Fame and a viewing platform.

How do you get to the Schilthorn from Interlaken?

71 minutes with four changes: train to Lauterbrunnen, bus to Stechelberg, then the cableway in three stages via Mürren and Birg. Gimmelwald sits on the first stage, but the fast connection does not stop there: only about every second Stechelberg–Mürren departure serves the hamlet, and those take twelve minutes rather than four. The alternative runs through Grütschalp and Mürren and takes longer but is the more scenic half. Measured as the fastest day connection on the Swiss timetable — only the first two connections of the day, at 06:34 and 07:04, take about ten minutes longer, because the early connections are thinner.

When is the Schilthorn cableway closed?

For maintenance in late autumn and in spring, but only on one section of the way up: Stechelberg–Gimmelwald–Mürren, from 19 to 30 October 2026, from 26 April to 7 May 2027 and on 28–29 October 2027. Even then the summit is reachable by the other way in, via Lauterbrunnen, Grütschalp and Mürren, and for the summit section Mürren–Birg–Schilthorn the operator lists no maintenance window at all. The longer closure on the same tariff sheet, 19 October to 11 December 2026, belongs to the Mürren–Allmendhubel funicular above Mürren and does not touch the Schilthorn. Outside those windows the cableway runs year-round, but wind and cloud stop it at short notice — the summit is at 2,970 m, and a ticket bought in the valley does not come with a view. Operator figures, retrieved 23 August 2026.