Switzerland · budget stays
Cheap hotels in Interlaken
Budget-friendly hotels, hostels, and guest houses in Interlaken, Switzerland. Expedia surfaces budget-friendly nightly rates — refundable options are labelled per property.
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What things cost in Interlaken
A Harder Kulm return sits in the high thirties of francs, cut by half for holders of the Bernese Oberland and national rail passes. Tandem paragliding runs CHF 180 to 199 including the landing on Hohematte. Jungfraujoch returns from here land between CHF 230 and 280 before discounts. A main course on Hoheweg is CHF 28 to 40; the same plate in Unterseen is nearer CHF 25.
What first-timers get wrong in Interlaken
There are two stations and they are not interchangeable: Ost serves every Jungfrau region train and the Lucerne line, West sits nearer most Hoheweg hotels. The Harder Kulm valley station is a separate walk across the Aare bridge from either. Jungfraujoch adds a CHF 10 seat reservation from May to October and refunds nothing when the summit is in cloud.
What to eat in Interlaken
Hoheweg menus arrive in six languages and are priced for coach groups. Cross the Aare into Unterseen, where the Untere Gasse and Marktgasse hold the older, cheaper dining rooms serving Bernese platters and Brienz lake fish. Husi Bierhaus does Swiss comfort cooking with local beer. The Migros near Interlaken West is where self-caterers assemble the fondue that hotels charge triple for.
Interlaken's museums, and which one to pick
Not a museum town, and honest guides say so. The Touristik-Museum der Jungfrau-Region in Unterseen traces how Victorian British visitors invented this entire industry, and opens afternoons in season only. Schloss Unterseen and the medieval quarter across the Aare are the real history that almost every visitor walks past. Bern's Kunstmuseum and Zentrum Paul Klee are fifty minutes away by direct train.
Interlaken after dark
Nights run on the hostel circuit rather than clubs: Balmers and the backpacker bars fill early, Husi Bierhaus and the Brasserie 17 draw a mixed crowd, and the Kursaal casino keeps the smartest room in town. Most kitchens and bars stop around midnight because half the guests have a seven o'clock cable car. Winter empties the streets once the ski buses have left.
When to go to Interlaken
| Best months for cheap-hotels | Avg daily high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| August | 25°C / 77°F | 14 days |
| October | 18°C / 64°F | 14 days |
| September | 21°C / 70°F | 15 days |
The month to avoid is January — around 7°C (45°F) with roughly 15 rain days. Prices and crowds track the weather here: August is the sweet spot, January the month most people skip.
Pack for peak season: Summer clothes, plus one light layer for air-con and evenings, Rain gear is non-negotiable — expect rain on roughly 14 days, Comfortable walking shoes — every guide on this site assumes you'll use them.
Where to base yourself in Interlaken
- Interlaken Ost — Eastern station — gateway to Brienz, Grindelwald, and the Jungfrau trains.
- Interlaken West — Western station + the casino, Höhematte Park, the main hotel strip.
- Unterseen — Old-town side along the Aare — quieter, traditional houses, riverside walks.