Hotel Mittaghorn

We had a wonderful stay as a family of five. We knew about the rustic conditions, and hike up the hill to get here due to Tim’s great communication and loved it. Our rooms overlooked the majestic mountains and the only sounds we heard were from the cow bells ringing in the fields. We were served a lovely, simple breakfast each morning. Tim had great hiking suggestions based on the weather conditions and we couldn’t be happier. We knew this hotel wasn’t for everyone, and we preferred it that way. Those requiring more amenities happily stayed up the hill in Murren, keeping Gimmelwald perfectly quiet and rustic. The pay shower made us giggle, and added to the fun! There was a large balcony at the end of the hall as well as a tables outside where we were able to eat simple evening meals. We also read out on the covered balcony on a rainy afternoon, super cozy! This experience seems like a gem from times past to be treasured.. We were honored to briefly run into Walter on several occasions during our stay. Hope to stay again sometime- this may be a favorite place on the planet, the hiking accessible from here blew our minds!

The view of the Alps from our room was breathtaking. The hotel was rustic, but clean and very friendly. Tim is a special guy, with lots of stories and advice about the area. We have stayed at ‘Walter’s’ many time and will never forget the tasty dinner and the good wine. I hope the hotel reopens so we can bring our grandchildren here some day. This is my favorite spot in Switzerland.

My wife, daughter and I stayed here in June 2019 for three days/nights and had a fabulous time. The mountain chalet is in fact very rustic, but it was clean and was not lacking for anything. We brought along our own groceries and had lunch and dinner on our own while a small breakfast was provided each morning. There are plenty of hiking trails located directly behind the chalet and host Tim was kind enough to lend me his trekking poles. The gondola ride up (and I mean UP) to Gimmelwald was awesome. We will fondly remember our stay there for the rest of our lives!

Returned after nearly 30 years, to share this slice of alpine paradise with our children. Hotel Mittaghorn (aka Walter’s) is as charming as ever. It might creak a little bit, but then so do we. It was lovely to see Walter and our host Tim was exceptionally welcoming and helpful as we planned our days walking in the mountains. We are very thankful to Tim for being so accommodating. The breakfast provided great fuel for the mornings. While you can no longer have an evening meal at Walter’s, you are welcome to picnic in the dining room, which we did. You can also wander down the hill to the Pension for a lovely meal and/or drink.||We highly recommend you stay at Hotel Mittaghorn. We were all very sad to leave, however, have promised to return.

I came to Hotel Mittaghorn in 2009 and i fell in love with the amazing service and kindness from Tim and Walter and i adored Gimmelwald and the surrounding areas. After coming back after ten years, i have to say nothing has changed! I just felt at home and Tim is so great with hiking advice and paragliding tips! He knows the place inside out and is very helpful. The breakfast is great because you sit with everyone and meet new people and have fun. The rooms are perfect little cabin rooms, with amazing views and very cosy. Overall a 10/10 experience for me and i will definitely come back again soon!

While trekking from murren to gimmelwald we stopped here to drink beer and take a break. The cafe didn’t have a lot to eat other than some sandwiches. The old gentleman was very very polite and sweet. We later headed to mountain hostel for lunch but will always remember this quaint little hotel run by this very polite gentleman

This place was recommended to us by the Rick Steves book. We were drawn to Uncle Rick's description of the hotel...described as bare-bones and wholly authentic. We wanted a rustic stay while in Switzerland, so this description matched what we wanted. When we arrived in Gimmelwald, we found that the Mittaghorn was exactly as described. Hotel Mittaghorn is simply an old building with rooms and beds. There's only shared bathrooms, and there's a few rooms that have private showers, but for the most part, there's only a community shower (coin-operated, 1 franc for five minutes, but francs are complimentary!). The floors are creaky and the walls are paper-thin. Don't come here expecting five-star accommodations...this is where you come to make a life-long memory and a great story to tell people. Our room had twin beds with pillows and a duvet. Then there was a sink, and that was all. All of this was moot, since the balcony on the room offered incredible views of the surrounding mountains. As I opened the doors to let the cool mountain air in, I noticed that everything in this place is authentic...all the way down to the led glass windows and iron window latches. It is truly a step back in time. A very simple breakfast of bread, jam, and decent coffee is provided. There used to be a restaurant and bar here, but the owner and operator of the joint is too old to serve any more, so now the bar sits dormant, a frozen image of the past, where I bet some very good times were had. Tim, who assists Walter in running the place, is incredibly helpful. You can tell him what you want to do and your time table, and he’ll make a custom plan for you that day…all based around the weather. It’s like having your own Gimmelwald tour planner, conveniently located in your hotel. You can tell Tim is passionate about the area…we told him what all we wanted to do and he suggested a short hike up into the mountains that was so much fun…and gorgeous. Even when a quick thunderstorm came over the mountains and drenched us, it was still completely worth it. Tim’s help really made our stay even that much more memorable. Staying at Mittaghorn set the mood for what turned out to be an epic weekend getaway in Switzerland. Walter and Tim are genuine people who only add to the time we spent in Gimmelwald and the surrounding area. We hiked, ate, and drank all over the Swiss alps and loved every second of it, with our return back to Mittagshorn for a slumber to recharge the batteries being a rustic cap on the day. I fully intend to return to Gimmelwald and Mittagshorn…hopefully when they get some snow.

We had a great stay at the Mittaghorn! An authentic hotel in a tiny Swiss mountain village. Tim and Walter were very friendly and happy to talk about the surrounding area. They also helped with recommending hiking trips and lending us hiking poles.

We had a wonderful stay in September. Tim was an excellent host-- very reasonable, helpful and otherwise personable. We found out after our arrival that this appears to attract almost exclusively readers of Rick Steve's guides (admittedly this is how we found out about it, too). However, it turns out this demographic is largely retired people. While one couple our age was there, meals were shared with a group who had been making an annual pilgrimage since retirement and an Australian couple just passing through. Tim did a great job communicating the possibility that dinner would not be cooked if Walter (the proprietor) didn't feel well or not enough people requested it, so it was no surprise when we needed to find our own meal at the pension down the street on the first night. Tim also let us rent hiking poles (which turned out to be essential) very cheaply, and while we ended up on a bit of an ambitious hike considering our fitness level, we felt very prepared with Tim's advice and the map he drew. There were no private rooms when we booked, but Tim let us take two beds in the quad room, which he kindly pushed together. No one rented the other two beds, but I wasn't sure whether Tim purposefully blocked them off for us or they just weren't filled. Either way, the view from the balcony was beautiful! The cows across the street wore bells that sounded like wind chimes, so for us city folk it was a happy medium between mountain quiet and street noise. There are about 3-5 other B&B/pension/hostel-type establishments in the village part of Gimmelwald. Hotel Mittaghorn is a 5-minute walk uphill beyond the village (or 10-15 with luggage taking the longer but paved and less steep route). The entire village consists of about 20 buildings: 3-5 B&B/pension/hostels, and then a bunch of cottages and barns. I'd return to Gimmelwald and Hotel Mittaghorn but I might split up my stay to see what the other places in the village are like.