The nature available in Switzerland is nothing short of mind-blowing! Between the Swiss Alps, the glaciers, valleys, waterfalls, and blue lakes, there are more natural wonders in Switzerland than you can shake a stick at!
Despite being a small country with amazing public transport, it would take you years to see all the natural wonders this country has to offer, so what not start with the best and most impressive of them?
Join me as I run through all the awesome slices of nature Switzerland has to offer so you can incorporate a few or all of them the next time you visit.
Table of Contents
Lake Lucerne
Sitting in Central Switzerland, Lake Lucerne is possibly the most impressive lake in the country and one of the natural wonders of Switzerland everyone should experience. It is not the largest lake in Switzerland, which would be Lake Geneva, but is the most beautiful.
Lake Lucerne is best visited during the summer when you can enjoy the lake to its maximum. You can sunbathe on the beaches of Lake Lucerne, go paddle boarding, boating, water skiing, fishing, and even take a boat ride across it.
Known as the “Lake of the Four Forested Elements” the shape of Lake Lucerne is unique with its four arms that stretch into different directions. The surrounding mountains are very impressive and the never-ending views into the Alps are hard to beat.
The city of Lucerne is also very charming with a very well-preserved medieval old town and the famous Chapel bridge across the Reuss River. The surrounding area is also filled with wonderful biking and hiking trails that give you different perspectives on the beauty of the area.
Lake Lucerne is, without a doubt, one of the natural wonders of Switzerland you have to visit!
Swiss National Park
One of the natural wonders you simply have to visit while in Switzerland is the Swiss National Park. Located in eastern Switzerland close to the Italian border, this is the only national park in the entire country!
The Swiss National Park is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and may be the best destination in the world if you want to see preserved dinosaur footprints. This speaks volumes to just how well-preserved and old this part of the Alps is.
The park is home to a range of different ecosystems from alpine peaks to meadows and forests which support a diverse array of flora and fauna.
While hiking around this magical part of the world you might encounter marmots, chamois, golden eagles, bearded vultures, ibexes, and if you are lucky a brown bear or two.
The Swiss National Park is the most pristine and best-looked-after part of the country, and that is saying something, so it is one of the “must” places to visit in Switzerland.
Lauterbrunnen Valley
The Lauterbrunnen Valley in the Bernese Oberland was where J. R. R. Tolkien got the idea for Rivendell in his books “The Hobbit” and “The Lord Of The Rings”. To create that kind of inspiration, this must be one of the best natural wonders in Switzerland.
The Lauterbrunnen Valley is known as the valley of waterfalls and it is just that. It was carved millions of years ago by a glacier that created a valley with 3000-foot walls on each side, down which 72 waterfalls fall.
Hiking down the valley from waterfall to waterfall is pretty incredible. You will have the alps as a backdrop as you wander through the snow-covered or wildflower-filled meadows and forests.
Be sure to see the Staubbach waterfall while you are there as it is mighty impressive as it drops with such power and force.
Rhine Falls
Europe’s largest waterfall, the Rhine Falls is another of the natural wonders that you have to see while visiting Switzerland.
By Europe’s largest waterfall, I mean largest in terms of volume, not height. Rhine Falls is created by the Rhine River and during the summer months of peak snow and glacier melt, it pumps out 600,000 liters of water per second.
Sitting in northern Switzerland, close to the German border, and not far from Zurich, the Rhine Falls is mightily impressive to see. The sheer force of the water pouring out of Rhine Falls is incredible and there are a number of ways of seeing it.
The most spectacular is on a boat ride which takes you right up close to the falls. You can feel the power of the Rhine River as it pounds down the 23-meter drop.
Oeschinensee
Oeschinensee is an incredible alpine lake and without a doubt another of the Swiss natural wonders, you have to see while visiting.
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It sits in the heart of the Bernese Alps and its waters are about as crystal clear and blue as an Alpine lake could be.
You can enjoy this Swiss lake all year round. It is an awesome place for hiking, fishing, and swimming. One can rent boats to explore the lake and hop on a paddle board, and in winter it is great for ice fishing too.
This is a very popular spot, so is not one of those secluded alpine lakes you can enjoy on your own. Expect to share it with locals and visitors. The mountain views and surrounding landscapes are spectacular.
The Matterhorn
The Matterhorn is one of the natural wonders of Europe and it just so happens to be in Switzerland. Sitting just outside of the resort town of Zermatt, the Matterhorn is an iconic part of Swiss nature and probably the most iconic peak in the entire Alps Range.
Known for its amazing shape, the Matterhorn has everyone’s jaw-dropping when they catch a glimpse of it for the first time. The jagged, shark-tooth look of this mountain peak is mesmerizing and it is for this reason that it is the most photographed mountain in the world.
The peak is 4,478 meters above sea level and is one of the tallest mountains in the Alps. You can visit the Matterhorn via a train and tram that will take you to the glacier at its base to see one of the best views in all of Switzerland.
Trümmelbach Falls
One of the more unique natural wonders of Switzerland is the Trümmelbach Falls. Trümmelbach Falls is a subterranean waterfall, meaning it is an underground waterfall that cascades through the heart of a mountain, how amazing is that!
This is the largest underground waterfall in Europe with a drop of 140 meters over 10 different cascades which 20,000 liters of water per second falls down. That is a lot of natural power, to the point that the mountain constantly rumbles as the waterfall crashes within it.
You will find this waterfall in the stunning Lauterbrunnen Valley and you can use the exceptional infrastructure to view it. There are galleries, lifts, viewing platforms, and paths to see it up close in all its glory.
Jungfraujoch
Jungfraujoch is often described as the top of Europe. It is there where you will find a mountaintop observatory that you can access via a railway. The view from the viewing platform is hard to describe and almost impossible to beat.
You are literally at the top of the alps looking across some of the most incredible landscapes you will ever see. From mountain peaks to valleys and more, staring out from the observatory is a must.
There is more to Jungfraujoch though if you can believe it. You can stroll through an Ice Palace filled with sculptures, go on incredible glacier hikes with a guide, and there is even a Snow Park where you can zipline over the longer glaciers in Europe.
Eiger
The north wall of the Eiger is a sight to behold. It is simply a shear wall created by some of the tallest mountains in Europe and is quite a force of nature.
The wall of Eiger was considered unclimbable and more than 60 climbers have died trying to attempt to scale it. It wasn’t until 1938 that a climber actually managed to get up it.
You can visit Eiger via the historic Jungfrau railway which tunnels through it and provides you with amazing views of the mountain on each side. You will then arrive at the saddle, some 10,332 feet above sea level for unparalleled views.
Aletsch Glacier
Another Swiss wonder found in the Valais region is the Aletsch Glacier. Again, this natural wonder is hard to comprehend as the Aletsch Glacier creates the largest frozen area in all of Europe.
The Aletsch Glacier covers 81. 7 km squared, 23 km long, and has a volume of 15.4 km cubed. That is a lot of ice and just seeing this alive mountain being is nothing short of incredible.
The glacier has actually retreated in the last 100 or so years and is now 3.2 km shorter than it used to be and 300 meters thinner too.
Hiking to the glacier is the best way to see it and you can ski all around it with amazing views of it too!
