Information on traveling, insurance and venue

Grindelwald and Jungfrau Region

Grindelwald is a scenic place in the Bernese Oberland. This beautiful area has been declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 2001. For tourist, sports, and other information, please visit the Grindelwald tourism website.

If you would like to get familiar with the nature, the landscape and the people of Grindelwald, you may have a look at the online brochures about the UNESCO World Heritage Site Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch. Conservation and development strategies and conflicts in and around the World Heritage Site are described in this article (pdf) about participatory approaches or this article (pdf) on the commons dilemma shown with alpine farmers.

Accommodation and Venue

Hotel reservations are made by us in the Hotel Hirschen and Hotel Central Wolter for all participants and teachers. The list with rooms (double rooms) will be sent to you prior to your travel. Dinner is served alternately in one or the other hotel for all. We assume that you have notified Cornelia Kehl as of 15 June 2022 if you wish to have vegetarian meals or if something else should be considered to make your stay enjoyable. Lunch is not organized by us, i.e. you may also go for a walk, enjoy the sun or sports facilities.

The lectures and poster sessions will be held in the Grindelwald Congress Centre situated in walking distance from the hotels.

Climate

Grindelwald is situated at 1050 m asl. The weather conditions in August / September are typically nice, with warm days and cool nights, but be prepared for rain and temperature drops.

Excursion to Pfingstegg and Bäregg

On Wednesday afternoon, there will be a field trip including a hike of 1 – 4 hrs depending on your choice of the route. We follow mountain hiking trails. Please bring appropriate boots (outdoor sport shoes, hiking boots! … this is NOT a beach-side walk), outdoor gear (wind and rain protection) and sunglasses.

Arrival and departure

Arrival: Sunday 28 August 2022 early afternoon. Registration starts at 13:00 in the Grindelwald Conference Centre, the opening of the Summer School is at 14:00.

Departure: The Summer School closes on Friday 2 September 2022 at 16:00.

Travel by train

Please see the SBB website for information about train rides to Grindelwald. There are Intercity-, Eurocity-, ICE-, and TGV-trains connecting major European cities with the train station at Interlaken Ost. Change train at Interlaken Ost to a small train that brings you to Grindelwald in 35 minutes. Both Summer School hotels and the Congress Centre are in walking distance from Grindelwald railway station.

Travel by air

Best are Zurich Airport or Geneva Airport, for some European cities also Bern-Belpmoos Airport. Zurich and Geneva Airport have train stations with (half-)hourly connections to Grindelwald. Passengers from Zurich Airport change trains in Bern and in Interlaken Ost. The duration of the train ride is approx. 3 hrs. (Zurich Airport) or 3.5 hrs. (Geneva Airport) and costs approx. 170 CHF (2nd class, return ticket). Tickets can be bought at the airport train stations, credit cards are accepted, and train reservations are not necessary.

Insurance

Please make sure that your health and accident insurance is covered for your stay in Switzerland. The organizers of the Summer School do not take responsibilities for any kind of damage by or to its participants.