I’m an American who traveled 500 miles to the famous TikTok hostel – it’s only accessible by cable car and has a big secret

Last May, I traveled by plane, train, bus and cable car to get to the iconic TikTok-famous hostel nestled in the mountains of Switzerland.

Aptly named The Mountain Hostel, it sits at the top of the Gimmelwald mountain, just under an hour from the well-known city of Interlaken, and offers countless adrenaline-pumping activities.

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The place prides itself on its scenic hiking trails, cable cars and, best of all, paragliding.

My trip was spurred by a moment of restlessness as I sat in my apartment writing an 8,000-word essay.

While procrastinating scrolling through TikTok, I came across the most beautiful hostel I’ve ever seen.

The mountain hostelinitially built in 1563, it is one of the few buildings at the top of the village without cars, making it feel isolated and exclusive.

After seeing short clips of the jaw-dropping scenery and towering mountains, I immediately booked a solo trip to Switzerland just to stay at the Mountain Hostel.

The hostel was only $45 a night, a bargain for the infamously expensive country, but I wasn’t prepared for the journey it would take to get there and what my living conditions would be like once I arrived.

Two weeks after impulsively booking the hostel, I boarded my $20 Ryanair flight from London City Airport to Zurich, took a three-hour train to Lauterbrunnen, and then caught a bus that took me to a cable car where I needed to board. reach Gimmelwald.

The six-plus hour day of travel finally brought me to The Mountain Hostel.

As soon as I got off the cable car, I was struck by the movie-like mountains that surrounded the hostel. The long day of travel was worth it.

I walked up the steep hill to the reception area, which felt more like a cozy living room than an office.

The friendly receptionist took me to my girls’ dormitory, where I shared a room with about 30 other girls.

I’ve stayed in dozens of hostels before, but this one was unlike any I’ve ever stayed in.

The bunk beds were not divided as in more modern hostels; all mattresses were placed side by side.

If you rolled over, there was a good chance you’d end up accidentally hugging your roommate.

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Surprisingly, this setup helped foster a warm and friendly atmosphere, with all guests more aware and respectful of each other’s space.

ADRENALINE ADVENTURE

When I settled into my new home for the next Three days in, a guest told me about the “life-changing” activity she did that day: paragliding.

“You have to do this,” she exclaimed.

So, naturally, I I had to do this.

Later that day, I signed up to go paragliding; for $150, I could jump in and get videos to brag about on social media.

Sure enough, at 9am on Saturday morning I was on a cable car from Gimmelwald to Murren, a journey that only takes about five minutes, to go paragliding.

When I reached the top of Murren, a slightly larger town with a convenience store and a few restaurants, I met my instructor, Dave, from Aerial paragliding.

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Dave, an American expatriate who lived in Switzerland 15 years ago, he met me on the cable car.

We climbed the mountain until we were both out of breath.

While preparing to paraglide, he told me that, as it is not possible to have a car in the city, sometimes he chooses to paraglide down to the parking lot at the base of the mountain, instead of using the cable car.

As soon as the paraglider was ready and I put on my seat belt, the instructor told me that, for it to fly, we needed to run down the hill as quickly as possible.

Although I thought it was ridiculous, we both started running down the hill.

After a few seconds of running, our paraglider accelerated and we flew.

As we flew high, I was struck by the natural beauty of the Swiss Alps.

Snow-capped mountains surrounded us, and from above you would never be able to tell that humans lived in the area. Well, besides the parking lot where we finally landed.

Before paragliding, I had already skydived twice, but it wasn’t the same.

The 15-minute trip didn’t have the same adrenaline rush as skydiving; instead, I was able to enjoy the panoramic views.

As we prepared to land, Dave told me to start running while still in the air, so that I would literally hit the ground running.

Once we landed safely, he downloaded the GoPro photos he took during our trip and sent them to me.

We split up and I took the cable car back to Gimmelwald where I relaxed in the hostel.

MORE TO OFFER

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Mountain Hostel has much more to offer than paragliding, hiking and ski.

Those looking for an even more exciting experience can opt for bungee jumping or rock climbing.

I was really looking forward to going rafting, but unfortunately it was snowing (yes, it still snows in Switzerland in May, as it turns out), so no water activities were going on.

Furthermore, in both winter and summer months, the hostel offers live music and DJs for all tastes.

Those wishing to stay in the iconic area should book well in advance as it tends to get quite busy during peak travel times.

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