Licensed from Columbia University Press
Background
The Aare River flows through the town. Interlaken is located between Lake Brienz to the east and Lake Thun to the west in the area called Bödeli. The town takes its name from its geographical position between the lakes (in Latin inter lacus), but the name was only coined in 1891, replacing the old name Aarmühle (Aare mills).Interlaken is located at 570 meters above sea level. The original importance of the town was as the site of a convent of the Augustinian Canons; the convent was built in 1130 and lasted until 1528. In the past, printing, textiles, and to a smaller extent watchmaking were also of importance, but today tourism is the most significant source of income. Interlaken is one of the oldest tourist resorts in Switzerland, and it remains one of the most popular.
Interlaken is frequently visited by adventure-seeking backpackers throughout the year. The town is home to numerous backpacker-friendly hostels and companies that provide guided services in skydiving, canyoning, hang gliding, paragliding, and skiing, to name a few.
The town offers tourists a peaceful base from which to explore the surrounding areas by train or bus. However, the main attraction is probably the magnificent Jungfrau mountain (4158m). Many hotels are located along the Höheweg avenue which offer good views of the mountains. Mystery Park, a paranormal-based theme park owned by Erich von Däniken, was closed in 2006 after three years because of financial difficulties.
Despite its small size (population 5,700), the town features two railway stations Interlaken Ost and Interlaken West and two funicular railways, the Harderbahn and the Heimwehfluhbahn. Train connections in Interlaken serve the Jungfrau region via the Berner Oberland Bahn, with the narrow-gauge lines of the Zentralbahn extending over the Brünig Pass to Luzern. The main line connects Interlaken with the cities of Spiez, Thun and Bern. There are also regular bus links to the neighbouring town of Thun. Boat services across Lake Brienz to Brienz and across Lake Thun to Spiez and Thun are operated by BLS Lötschbergbahn.
Gallery
Events
- In September, the Jungfrau Marathon starts in Interlaken.
- The Unspunnenfest is a festival held in Interlaken and the neighbouring communities of Matten and Wilderswil approximately every twelve years. The festival highlights traditional Swiss culture and features competitions of Steinstossen (stone put), Schwingen (wrestling) and yodelling. The last Unspunnenfest was held in September 2006. The next celebration is scheduled for the year 2017.
- On July 15, the Red Bull Air Race World Series was held on the Airport situated near Interlaken.
See also
External links
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Last updated on Friday July 25, 2008 at 07:42:19 PDT (GMT -0700)
View this article at Wikipedia.org - Edit this article at Wikipedia.org - Donate to the Wikimedia Foundation
Copyright © 2008, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.