How to Get to Kandersteg, Switzerland (Oeschinensee Gateway)

Here's how to get to Kandersteg by train or by car, what the Lötschberg car train from Zermatt is like, and how to reach the Oeschinensee gondola.

Most people traveling around Switzerland either rent a car or get around by train, and if you love nature, sooner or later you'll probably end up in Kandersteg, since it's the village you need to reach to visit Oeschinensee.

Getting there is easy from some directions and a bit tricky from others, especially if you're driving up from Zermatt or the Valais side, where there's no road, and you have to put your car on a train through the mountain.

I went to Kandersteg on several summer hiking trips and used both public transport, the car train, and the regular road. In this guide, I'll explain all the ways to get there, by train and by car, with fully updated prices and timetables.

For those in a hurry, here's a summary of how you can get to Kandersteg: 

By train: Kandersteg has its own station, and from Bern there's a direct train every hour that takes about an hour. From Zurich, Interlaken and most other Swiss cities you change trains in Spiez or Bern.

By car from the north: you take the A6 motorway to Spiez and then the valley road up through Frutigen. From Interlaken it's around 40 minutes of driving.

By car from the south (Zermatt or the Valais): you drive to Goppenstein and load your car onto the Lötschberg car train, which gets you to Kandersteg in about 15 minutes and costs CHF 26 to 31 per car, with everyone inside included.

Travel times to Kandersteg:

• From Bern: about 1 hour by direct train, about 1 hour by car
• From Zurich: 2 to 2.5 hours by train with one change, about 2 hours by car
• From Interlaken: about 1 hour 10 minutes by train via Spiez, about 40 minutes by car
• From Zermatt: 2 to 2.5 hours by train via Brig, about 1.5 hours by car from Täsch plus the car train

Kandersteg is in the Bernese Oberland, the mountain area in the south of the canton of Bern that also includes Interlaken, Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen. The village sits at the far end of the Kander valley, about 65 km south of Bern and around 46 km from Interlaken by road, at roughly 1,200 meters above sea level.

It's a small place, with around 1,200 people living there, a main street lined with old wooden chalets and mountains on almost every side. The pointy peak you'll see from pretty much everywhere is the Bire, 2,502 meters high, and just above the village to the east there's Oeschinensee, the lake that sits inside the Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch UNESCO World Heritage Site and the main reason Kandersteg shows up on so many lists of the most beautiful places in Switzerland.

What its location means for getting there:

• It's the last village before the Lötschberg, the mountain that separates the Bernese Oberland from the Valais, which is the canton where Zermatt is.
• The road stops here. To keep going south you either take the train or drive your car onto the car train through the Lötschberg tunnel, which starts just outside the village.
• It works as a gateway in both directions: easy to reach from Bern, Thun and Interlaken, and the quickest link to Zermatt and the Valais if you're driving.

The easiest way to plan the train trip is to use the SBB website (sbb.ch) or the SBB Mobile app, which is the official app of the Swiss Federal Railways. You type in the station you're leaving from, put Kandersteg as your destination, and the app shows you the best connections with times, changes and platforms. From there you can buy your ticket directly on your phone, pick first or second class, and add a ticket for your dog or your bike if you're bringing one. A ticket on your phone is all you need.

Kandersteg station is small and sits right in the village, and the trains that stop here are the RE Lötschberger, regional trains that run once an hour between Bern and Brig. From most places in Switzerland you'll change once, and the app tells you exactly where.

Train Times and Prices to Kandersteg

These are average travel times and full-fare prices for a one-way second-class ticket. Supersaver tickets in the SBB app can be a lot cheaper if you book a few days ahead.

• From Bern: about 1 hour, direct, around CHF 30 to 35
• From Zurich: 2 to 2.5 hours, one change in Bern, around CHF 65 to 75
• From Basel: 2 to 2.5 hours, one change in Spiez, around CHF 65 to 75
• From Geneva: about 3 hours, one or two changes, around CHF 65 to 75
• From Interlaken: about 1 hour, change in Spiez, around CHF 20 to 25
• From Grindelwald: about 2 hours, 2 changes (in Interlaken Ost and Spiez), around CHF 35 to 40
• From Zermatt: 2 to 2.5 hours, change in Brig, around CHF 50 to 60
• From Milan: around 3 hours, change in Domodossola or Brig

If you're spending a day or two in Zurich before heading to the mountains, like most people do, the trip to Kandersteg is easy to do in a morning.

Swiss Travel Pass and Other Discounts

Some discounts to keep in mind, in case you're planning to travel in Switzerland for a while:

• Swiss Travel Pass: from CHF 254 for 3 days in second class, covers the train to Kandersteg and gives you 50% off the Oeschinensee gondola.
• Swiss Half Fare Card: CHF 150 for one month, 50% off the train and the gondola. To keep it short, it's only worth it once your full-price tickets go over CHF 300.
• Berner Oberland Pass: from CHF 240 for 3 days, covers the train but is no longer accepted on the Oeschinensee gondola.
• Kandersteg Guest Card: free from your hotel, covers local buses and gives 10% off the gondola with no time slot needed, but doesn't cover the train to get there.

Driving to Kandersteg is easy, but the route depends a lot on which side you're coming from. From the north it's a normal road up the valley, while from the south the road ends at the mountain and you continue on a car train.

Remember that, either way, if you use Swiss motorways you need the vignette, the yearly highway sticker, which costs CHF 40 and can be bought online as an e-vignette linked to your license plate at via.admin.ch.

From the North 

From Bern, Zurich, Basel or anywhere north of the Alps, you take the A6 motorway to Spiez and exit following the signs for Kandersteg. From there it's a regular two-lane road up the Kander valley, through Frutigen, and the last part climbs a bit before reaching the village. If you're starting in Interlaken, you follow the motorway along Lake Thun to Spiez and then take the same valley road through Frutigen.

From Bern: about 1 hour
From Zurich: about 2 hours
From Spiez: about 30 minutes
From Interlaken: around 40 minutes

From the South: The Lötschberg Car Train

If you're coming from Zermatt, the rest of the Valais or northern Italy, there's no road across the mountains to Kandersteg. The only way to drive there is to load your car onto the Lötschberg car train in Goppenstein, a small station in the Valais, and ride through the old railway tunnel to Kandersteg.

The Car Train costs around CHF 26 to CHF 31 per car depending on the day. It departs roughly every 30 minutes, more often on busy days. Booking ahead is really not possible, you just show up and take the next train. Online tickets are valid for one month and can't be refunded.

How the Car Train Works, Step by Step

• Buy your ticket online on the BLS website, the railway company that runs the car train. You need to create an account and pay by card, and you'll get a QR code by email.
• Follow the signs for "Autoverlad" (car loading) when you get close to Goppenstein or Kandersteg.
• Scan your QR code at the entrance. There's a self-service lane for people with online tickets, but on busy days staff check the tickets in person.
• Wait in line until the train arrives. On summer weekends the line may be long. The BLS Autoverlad app shows live waiting times at both stations.
• Drive onto the train when staff wave you on, and follow the cars in front of you onto the open wagons. Keep all four wheels on the same wagon and avoid stopping right over the joint between two wagons.
• Park, turn off the engine and put the handbrake on. You stay in your car for the whole ride.
• Drive off when the train stops in Kandersteg, and you're basically already in the village.

The ride takes about 15 minutes. It's quite noisy and some parts are completely dark, which can be a bit strange the first time, but it's over quickly and I found it totally fine. If tunnels make you really uncomfortable, it's good to know beforehand, but for most people it's just a short and slightly unusual part of the drive.

The Direct Car Train from Kandersteg to Italy

BLS also runs a direct car train between Kandersteg and Iselle, on the Italian side of the Simplon, which is handy if you're driving to or from northern Italy.

• Travel time: about 1 hour
• Price: from CHF 109
• Booking: required, at least 5 hours before departure
• Schedule: only on certain days, mostly in holiday periods

Parking in Kandersteg

Parking in Kandersteg gets full quickly in summer, especially on weekends, so if you're coming for the day it's best to arrive before 10 am. If you're staying overnight, check that your hotel has parking. 

A few options:

• There's a parking lot next to the Oeschinensee gondola, open from 7 am to 9 pm, for cars up to 2 meters high. It costs around CHF 9 for up to 4 hours, then about CHF 1.80 per extra hour.
• There's an option for reserved parking: CHF 10, bookable together with a gondola ticket for a time slot between 8:30 and 10 am
• Hikers' car parks in the village: cheaper, a short walk from the gondola
• Campers and vans over 2 meters: use the car parks at the Schützenhaus or near the Sunnbüel cable car

Kandersteg is close enough to the Jungfrau area to visit as a day trip, so if you're based in Interlaken or Grindelwald for hikes like the Bachalpsee and Faulhorn hike from Grindelwald First or the Augstmatthorn hike, you can easily add a day at Oeschinensee. Zermatt is on the other side of the mountains, but with the car train it's closer than it looks on a map, which is exactly how I combined the two.

• Interlaken: about 46 km, 40 minutes by car, or about 1 hour by train with a change in Spiez
• Grindelwald: about 65 km, 50 minutes to 1 hour by car, or 1.5 to 2 hours by train with changes in Interlaken Ost and Spiez
• Lauterbrunnen: about 50 km, 50 minutes by car, or 1.5 to 2 hours by train with changes in Interlaken Ost and Spiez

Once you're in Kandersteg, the last step is getting to the valley station of the gondola that takes you up toward Oeschinensee. It's at the eastern edge of the village, close enough to walk from pretty much anywhere.

From the train station it's about 1 km to the gondola, a flat 15 minute walk through the village with signs all the way. I stayed at the Hotel Alpina, on the main street, and on the morning of the Oeschinensee hike I just walked from the hotel to the gondola in about 10 minutes. At that hour the street was almost empty, and it's a nice way to start the day with the mountains right in front of you.

From June to October, there's a local bus timed with every train arriving at and leaving Kandersteg station to the gondola valley station. It's free with the Kandersteg Guest Card you get from your hotel

Is there a direct train from Zurich to Kandersteg?
No, you need one change, usually in Spiez. The whole trip takes 2 to 2.5 hours, and from Zurich Airport it's about 2 hours 20 minutes.

Can you drive from Zermatt to Kandersteg?
Yes, but only with the Lötschberg car train. You drive from Täsch to Goppenstein, load your car on the train and get off in Kandersteg 15 minutes later, about 1.5 hours in total.

Do you need to book the Lötschberg car train?
No, you can't book it. You buy a ticket online or at the booth and take the next available train, which leaves every 30 minutes or more often on busy days.

Can you drive to Oeschinensee?
No, the road to the lake is closed to cars and bikes. You can take the gondola from Kandersteg and walk 25 to 30 minutes, or hike up from the village in about 1.5 hours.

What is the closest airport to Kandersteg?
The most practical airports are Zurich and Geneva. From Zurich Airport it's about 2 hours 20 minutes by train, and from Geneva about 3 hours.

Is Kandersteg a good day trip from Interlaken?
Yes, it's about 1 hour by train or 40 minutes by car. If you leave early, you have plenty of time to go up to Oeschinensee, do a hike and be back in Interlaken for dinner.

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