Switzerland 

                                       Spotlight On Wengen

                                                               (Originally written in 2002 for OnTheSnow.com)
                                                                                      by Ted Heck)

Wengen is wonderful, Mürren marvelous, Grindelwald great, Lauterbrunnen lovely, and Interlaken interesting. Even if they are all true, these adjectives are not mine, but those of people who choose one resort over another in the Jungfrau Region of Switzerland.

They are all happy choices, but why tiny Wengen instead of Grindelwald, the dominant village at the foot of the awesome trio of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau mountains?

Wengen aficionados will say their destination is free of automobiles, prettier, more relaxing, and quieter at night. They have the same slopes to ski on as the other villages and the usual amenities of any place worthy of being called a winter sports resort.

Like many European resorts trying to slide their best foot forward, Wengen lays claim to all the terrain in the region and all the uphill conveyances. Even Interlaken, 10 miles away between two stunning alpine lakes, says it has the same 132 miles of prepared slopes, 42 lifts, and nearly a mile of vertical.

When vacationers in Wengen want to hit the slopes, they can jump on a cable car and be whisked up to Männlichen and its broad cruising terrain, which flows down to Grund and Grindelwald. Or they can board a train up to the Kleine Scheidegg rail junction and take even longer runs down toward Grindelwald.

All except the truly relaxed may use the station as the jumping off spot to access the famed Lauberhorn race course. It is mostly a red run back down to Wengen, unless skiers try to maintain a World Cup pace.

Most skiers who stay in Wengen will cross over to the massive First area above Grindelwald and opposite the Eiger. They ride gondolas over farm pastures to broad blue and red treeless slopes.

In a hunt for more pitch they may go in another direction and cross over the long canyon that separates Wengen from Mürren. Headier stuff above Mürren includes a run from the Schilthorn, a revolving restaurant that you may have seen in the James Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. It was the villain’s headquarters.

The Kleine Scheidegg station is the starting point for a less strenuous journey - a sightseeing ride through the mountains. The train pierces the Eiger and Mönch on its way up to the Jungfraujoch, the saddle between the Mönch and the Jungfrau. and the highest train depot in the Alps. They can lunch here, stare at the summer skiing area, and visit the Ice Palace cave.

Tourists come back down from the dizzying 11,333-feet-high station to the more comfortable air of Wengen. Its 4,200-feet elevation lets them breathe easier and attack a bubbling fondue pot with more gusto.

Wengen is 120 miles from the Zurich gateway.

For a comprehensive picture of the famed Jungfrau Region, also see the pages for Grindelwald, Mürren and Interlaken.