Abroad Photo Diary: SWITZERLAND

Another weekend travel update for you!! Last weekend my friend Maddie and I went to Interlaken, Switzerland for 3 days full of adventure, snow and chocolate. I've been dying to go all semester and we were finally able to squeeze it in at the end of spring break. Typically people say it's best to go during the colder winter months, but we actually really loved that it was a little warmer outside! There was obviously still tons of snow on the Alps so it was the perfect mix of cold weather at the top and light jacket weather in town. Let me tell you, it definitely lived up to the hype! Interlaken is for sure on the more expensive side if you want to do the outdoor activities (paragliding, kayaking, skiing, etc.) but it was such a once in a lifetime experience that I thought it was so worth it. How often do you have the chance to fly over the mountains on a parachute?! I'm typically not the most outgoing when it comes to extreme sports, so this trip was crazy but so fun! 

 I'm honestly terrified of heights but I forced myself to paraglide and ended up loving it!! Soaring across the sky above the mountains and city is so surreal. Definitely a little freaky but I'm so glad I did it. 

We rode a gondola up the Alps and found this cliff walk look out right by a beautiful restaurant and bar (see the photo below). Definitely worth the money! 

The mountain views in Grindelwald were so breathtaking - I recommend doing a day trip by train!  

I will never get sick of this view. How is it even real life?!

Things to do:

+ Paragliding 

A little pricey but so, so worth it. You run off a cliff (not as bad as it sounds!) and are up in the air for about 15 minutes before you land in a park in the middle of Interlaken. One of the coolest experiences ever!! 

+ Kayaking 

We booked all of these activities through our hostel (Balmers - we loved it!) and it was super close by. Kayaking through Lake Brienz is one of my favorite memories and the tour guide (Peter) was the absolute sweetest. 

+ Gondola 

I honestly can't remember the name of the gondola but if you go to Grindelwald (about a 30 minute train ride away from Interlaken), there is a spot to go up to the First mountain. You can ski up there or just explore like we did. It was the prettiest view and literally looked like a green screen.

Restaurant Recommendations: 

+ Tea n TakeAway 

There weren't a ton of restaurant options in Interlaken (a lot of them were super expensive) but in Grindelwald we went to this place for burgers and loved it.

+ Schuh

 We went here for chocolate fondue and it was delicious!! The food was kind of expensive but if you just get the chocolate fondue for a snack (or dinner like we did :) then it's not bad. 

Have you been to Switzerland before? I've heard Zurich is beautiful too!

xoxo