Switzerland is the land of the mountains, with more than 10,500 named ones. Narrowing down the options to just two is an achievement in my book, and deciding between the final two – Jungfraujoch and Mount Titlis – doesn’t have to be a challenge if you have all the relevant information.
Ease of access, cost of travel, and top things to do at the summit are a few of the main points explored in this comparison of Jungfraujoch and Mount Titlis. I’ve included everything you need to know to figure out which summit is the better destination for you. So, is it better to visit Jungfraujoch or Mount Titlis? You’re about to find out.
Table of Contents
General Information
| Jungfraujoch | Mount Titlis | |
| Location | Lauterbrunnen | Engelberg |
| Elevation | 3,463 meters | 3,238 meters |
| Activities | Observation deck, hiking, glacier tunnel, video exhibit, restaurants, shops, skiing, zipline, sledding | Skiing, snowboarding, sledding, tubing, tobogganing, restaurants, hiking, glacier tunnel, chair lifts |
| Opening Hours | 8 AM – 5 PM | 8:30 AM – 5 PM |
| Cost | 164 CHF – 187.8 CHF | 72 CHF |
| Time Needed | 4-6 hours | 5-8 hours |
Location and Transportation
Public transportation is available for both Jungfraujoch and Mount Titlis. Both summits are fairly easy to access, but the travel times and ideal departure points are different.
Getting To Jungfraujoch
Jungfraujoch is easiest to access from either Interlaken or Grindelwald. It takes approximately 90 minutes to travel to the summit and it includes three modes of transport:
- Train (from Interlaken to Grindelwald)
- Eiger Express Gondola (from Grindelwald to Eiger Glacier Station)
- Cogwheel Train (from Eiger Glacier to Jungfruajoch)
Trains also run between Grindelwald and the Eiger Glacier station in the summer; they’re cheaper than the gondola but have longer travel times. Travel in the gondola to save time and enjoy wonderful panoramic views as you climb up the mountain.
The full price of tickets from Interlaken to Jungfraujoch is 187.8 CHF. Discounts are available to anyone with any sort of travel pass in Switzerland. The Half-Fare Card offers the largest discount (down to 93.9 CHF ), whereas the Swiss Travel Pass (122.4 CHF) and Interrail/Eurail cards (141.2 CHF) offer a smaller discount.
Getting To Mount Titlis
Engelberg is the main destination for ascents up Mount Titlis. The mountain village is home to the bottom station of the gondola that takes you all the way up to the mountain in a little less than 30 minutes. Engelberg is most easily accessible from Lucerne, via direct trains that take about 45 minutes to travel to the village.
I enjoyed the experience of traveling up Titlis more because of the rotating cable car. Sitting inside a spinning cabin and experiencing 360-degree views without moving your head is a fascinating experience, albeit uncomfortable for people who struggle with heights and gondolas. The entire journey up the mountain takes 20-30 minutes with two stops:
- Engelberg to Trubsee (regular gondola, optional to get out)
- Trubsee to Stand (must change gondolas)
- Stand to Klein Titlis (rotating cable car to Klein Titlis summit)
Discounts are available to travelers with the Swiss Travel Pass, Half-Fare Card, and GA Travelcard. The discounted price of return tickets is 48 CHF.
Landscape and Views
The views are epic at both Jungfraujoch and Mount Titlis, so if you’re doing the trip for panoramic vistas, you won’t be disappointed either way. The landscapes and surrounding sceneries are different at Jungfraujoch from those at Titlis, but each is special in its own way.
Jungfraujoch has stunning views, but in all honesty, they are a bit monotonous. Europe’s longest glacier is absolutely impressive, but in essence, it’s just a massive block of ice, so the scenery isn’t incredibly dramatic.
Mount Titlis features a more varied scenery, which translates to more dramatic views. See the summits of the Uri Alps, a glacier, and even alpine lakes. All those magical sights can be witnessed while you’re still in the gondola, and they only get better once you disembark.
Things To Do At Jungfraujoch
Visiting Jungfraujoch means you will spend a good chunk of the time at the visitor’s center. It’s got quite a few attractions for visitors, but there aren’t too many different things to do once you exit the center and start walking around the mountain.
Eiesmeer (Aletsch Glacier)
Eismeer is the first attraction visitors see when traveling up to Jungfraujoch. The train will stop here for 5 minutes before climbing all the way up to Jungfraujoch, and you’ll be taken through a tunnel to a room that offers an incredible view of the Aletsch Glacier.
It’s the longest glacier in Europe and the sight of it is enough to make your jaw drop. The Eismeer station is at an elevation of 3,160 meters, and as soon as you get off the train you will start to notice the difference in temperature.
Top of Europe
Top of Europe is the visitor’s center at Jungfraujoch. It is home to the highest train station and post office in Europe, as well as a variety of fun activities. When you first get off the train at the Jungfraujoch station, you see a map of all the different attractions you can explore:
- Sphinx Observatory (observation deck with panoramic views)
- Ice Palace (tunnel through the glacier with ice sculptures)
- Jungfrau Panorama (video exhibit of the Bernese Alps panorama)
- Alpine Sensation (corridor connecting the Ice Palace with Sphinx Hall)
- Lindt Chocolate Shop (highest in Europe)
- Post office (bring postcards and mail them from here)
It should take 1-2 hours to explore all the attractions at the Top of Europe, depending on how long you stay at each one. Take your time to see everything because it’s all included in the price of the tickets, except for the chocolates at the Lindt shop.
Snow Fun Park
Open between May and October, the Snow Fun Park is the perfect destination for anyone looking to have some fun in the snow in the midst of summer. Jungfruajoch has snow year-round, and this is the best place in Central Switzerland for some fun skiing in the middle of July.
The activities available at the Snow Fun Park at Jungfruajoch are:
- Zipline
- Sledding
- Tubing
- Skiing
- Snowboarding
They will all cost you extra. Skiing and snowboarding are 35 CHF per person, while all the other activities have a rate of 20 CHF. Children up to 15 years old get a 25% discount.
Mönchsjochhütte
Mönchsjochhütte is a hiker’s cabin at Jungfraujoch. It offers lodging to hikers who wish to attempt an ascent on the Monch and it’s got a rustic restaurant. The hut is a 30-minute walk across the glacier from the Top of Europe, so you can easily walk to it.
The hiker’s hut is open from March to October, so that’s the only time when it’s possible to visit it. The hike is worth the time and effort – at the very least, it’s an extra hour of staying busy at Jungfraujoch and exploring the glacial landscapes.
Hiking
Hiking is the best way to explore any mountain in Switzerland and Jungfruajoch is no exception. With countless well-developed trails that are accessible in the summer and winter, anyone who travels up the mountain can have loads of fun exploring its varied landscapes.
The Eiger Trail is one of the most popular hikes in the area, but it is doable only in the summer. Hike from the Eiger Glacier to Grindelwald along a path just below the North Face of Eiger for the most epic views.
The entire hike shouldn’t take more than two hours as it is mostly a downhill walk down to the village. This is also a good way to save some money on train tickets to Jungfraujoch, so you can incorporate it into your trip if you’re on a tight budget.
Things To Do At Mount Titlis
Mount Titlis offers more variety of activities than Jungfruajoch. Ride the Ice Flyer chair lift above the glacier from the summit, but descend one station and you can rent a boat to explore Lake Trüb. Granted, boat rental is available only in the summer, but it’s still an experience you can’t have on the Jungfraujoch.
Titlis Cliff Walk
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The Titlis Cliff Walk is a 100-meter suspension bridge that connects the observation deck at the Titlis cable car station with the Ice Flyer chair lift. It is the highest suspension bridge in Europe, so crossing it is a must if you’re checking things off your bucket list.
The bridge is perfectly safe even in poor weather, but it can be nerve-wracking to see the abyss below. Skip this adventure if you have a fear of heights; I personally loved it, but I have zero issues with high altitudes.
Titlis Glacier Cave
The Glacier Cave is a tunnel in the Titlis glacier that takes visitors 10 meters underneath the glacier. The tunnel is approximately 100 meters long and features sculptures carved into the walls on either side. It’s similar to the Ice Palace at Jungfraujoch, so no matter which mountain you visit, you’ll get to walk through a tunnel in a glacier!
The Glacier Cave at Tiltis is open to all visitors who purchase tickets for the Mount Titlis cable cars. A corridor takes you from the cable car station to the entrance to the Glacier Cave, so make sure that this is one of the first things you explore atop Mount Titlis!
Trübsee
Trubsee is an Alpine Lake easily accessible from the Trubsee gondola station. Disembark from the cable car at this station and you’ll be just a short walk from the lake. Boat rental is available for visitors, and it’s one of the best things to do at Mount Titlis in the summer.
Additionally, there’s a playground at the lakeshore where children can have loads of fun while adults take in the views. Hiking is popular in the area around the lake in the summer, while winter is mostly reserved for skiing and sledding. Overall, this is a wonderful destination at Mount Titlis, one which you shouldn’t miss during your exploration of the mountain.
Ice Flyer
The Ice Flyer is a chair lift that transports passengers over the Titlis Glacier, and it’s my favorite thing to do on this entire mountain. It’s essentially a lift for skiers and the downhill run is very fun, but the lift can be used by anyone.
The experience of sitting in a chair lift, climbing to an altitude of more than 3,000 meters is both thrilling and scary. But the views are by far the best thing about this ride, and the reason why the Ice Flyer is fully operational even in the summer when there’s not as much snow on the ground. Return tickets for the lift are 12 CHF per person.
Skiing & Snowboarding
The ski season at Mount Titlis is from October to May, which is long even for Switzerland. Blue, red, and black runs are all available at the mountain. The lower slopes of Mount Titlis are reserved for blue runs, so mostly the area between Trubsee and Geschnialp.
The descents from Klein Titlis, Stand, and Jochstock are largely red and black runs, suitable only for intermediate and experienced skiers. The Titlis-Engelberg ski area has a total of 80 kilometers of slopes, with 17 lifts that transport skiers and snowboarders all over the place.
Sledding & Tobogganing
Mount Titlis has 4 toboggan runs and 2 slide parks, so there are plenty of ways to have fun even for people who aren’t into skiing and snowboarding. Gerschnialp still has the sled run that was used in the first two-man bobsleigh championship, which took place in Engelberg in 1934. There are even more runs at Brunni and Fürenalp.
Trubsee has an entire snow park for tubing, and it’s loads of fun for both kids and adults. The park is open from December until May, and in the period from January to March, night tubing is available here on Saturdays after 7 PM.
Hiking
Mount Titlis has many wonderful hiking trails but the best ones are accessible from the Trubsee cable car station. One of the most popular hikes on the mountain is the one to Trübseebach Waterfall. The loop starts at the gondola station and it’s an hour max to the waterfall and back, and that’s taking into account the time spent taking photos at the cascade.
A loop hike around the entire lake is also possible and takes around an hour, with plenty of places for breaks along the way. It’s a family-friendly trail suitable for strollers and young children, with very little elevation gain.
Restaurants
Jungfraujoch has three restaurants at the summit:
- Bollywood
- Crystal
- Aletsch
Monchjoschhut also has a restaurant that’s open from March to October. Mount Titlis, on the other hand, has:
- Titlis Panorama Restuarant (table service)
- Self-service Panorama Restuarant
- Ice Cream Bar
In addition to the restaurants at the summit, there are plenty of other places where you can get something to eat along the way. Each of the transit stations along the journey has at least one restaurant, and there are usually more of them at the lower parts of either mountain.
Weather and Best Time To Visit
Jungfraujoch and Titlis are both open year-round, so you can truly visit whenever you want. Below is my personal take on the ideal weather at either summit for the best overall experience.
Best Time to Visit Jungfraujoch
Summer is the best time to visit Jungfraujoch, there’s no doubt about it. The entire experience is dependent on the weather. Fog, clouds, and precipitation can ruin the entire adventure, forcing you to spend most of your time inside the visitor’s center and obstructing the panoramic views.
Jungfraujoch can still be incredible on a sunny winter’s day, but it’s much harder to plan the visit if you have limited time. It’s also very cold at the summit in the winter – the Ice Palace will feel tropical compared to the temperature outside.
Best Time to Visit Mount Titlis
Mount Titlis is great any time of the year, but I like it best in the winter. Skiing, snowboarding, and sledding are immensely fun, as long as you don’t mind the cold. On the other hand, if you prefer hiking and boating, plan a visit in warmer weather for the best experience.
Clear sunny days are perfect for this mountain, but you won’t be disappointed even if you visit on a foggy day. The sight of summits cutting through the fog is incredible and makes the trip worthwhile even on days with bad weather.
Reasons To Visit Jungfraujoch over Mount Titlis
Jungfraujoch is a special place in Switzerland. It’s the mountain saddle of superlatives, with the highest train station and post office, as well as the longest glacier on the continent. The main reasons why you should prioritize visiting Jungfruajoch are:
- You’re in Interlaken or Grindelwald
- Views of Europe’s longest glacier
- Unique experience
- Snow fun in the summer
- Better accessibility for wheelchairs and strollers
- Smaller crowds than at Titlis
Reasons To Visit Mount Titlis over Jungfruajoch
Mount Titlis is one of the many mountains in the Uri Alps with some of the best views in Central Switzerland. With a plethora of things to do at the mountain, this is an excellent destination for travelers who enjoy being outdoors and exploring. Here’s why you should prioritize visiting Mount Titlis while you’re in Switzerland:
- If you’re in Lucerne or Engelberg
- Ride in the world’s first rotating cable car
- Budget-friendly
- Shorter journey
- There are more activities
- Excellent for skiing and snowboarding
Map of Jungfraujoch and Titlis Attractions and More
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is Better Jungfraujoch or Titlis?
Jungfraujoch is better in the summer, but Mount Titlis is better in the winter. The experience of visiting Jungfraujoch is dependant on the weather and summer offers the best conditions overall. Mount Titlis is excellent for skiing, snowboarding, sledding, snowshoeing, and many other fun activities in the snow.
