Giessbach Falls

On the wooded southern shore of Lake Brienz a stream comes down off the high ground and falls to the lake in a staircase of drops, more than a dozen of them, spread over several hundred metres of hillside. Paths cross the water on footbridges, and one of them runs along a ledge behind the main fall, so you look out at the lake through falling water. A funicular built in 1879 lifts visitors from the boat landing to the terrace halfway up, which makes it one of the older pieces of tourist engineering in the country. The falls are floodlit on summer evenings, and below them the lake holds the milky blue green colour that glacier silt gives it.

What you actually see

• The path behind the fall - a ledge that takes you between the water and the rock.
• The staircase of drops - more than a dozen stages down the wooded hillside.
• The 1879 funicular - a short, steep line up from the boat landing stage.
• Lake Brienz below - milky blue green water seen through the trees.

When to go

Late spring carries the most water, when snowmelt fills the stream and spray reaches the paths. Boats across the lake run from roughly May to October and are the pleasant way to arrive. Summer evenings bring floodlighting. In a dry late summer the flow thins noticeably and the lower stages lose much of their force.

Honest expectations

The paths stay permanently wet, with slick stone steps and roots, and the section behind the fall soaks you when the stream is high. Boat, funicular and parking are each charged separately, and eating anything on the terrace is expensive. July and August are busy, and the last boat back leaves earlier in the evening than most people expect.

Nearby

Brienz across the water, with the Rothorn railway and the open air museum at Ballenberg.