We stayed at the Mountain Hostel for 4 days this month. We were very fortunate to get the family room all to ourselves the whole time and not have to share or move to another room. The location was good, right above the cable car station, and the views were amazing. A public computer is available, and you can get WiFi access for only $5 for your entire stay. We were able to do laundry; washer costs 5 Euro per load but dryer is free.
The price was expensive for what you get--about 90 Euros for 3 of us, the usual hostel twin bunks, and no discount for children. The mattresses were thin with wood underneath, but I like a very hard mattress. The room does not lock and there are no lockers, so you just have to trust that your stuff will not disappear. People kept opening our door accidentally (???), and once I was naked from the waist down. Petra (owner) was surly, but her employees were kind and helpful. The bar is noisy until late in the night, but at least smoking is not allowed in the building. The place is absolutely full of flies, making it impossible for you to leave your window open overnight. We met a couple who intended to stay three nights but were leaving after one night because of the flies. It would be wise to pack a cheap fly swatter that you could use in your room and then leave at the hostel.
The bathroom is two floors down and co-ed for both toilets and showers. The bathroom has more flies than any room except the dining room. The showers are pay showers. On our last day for some reason the coin op function was broken and they did not work. I had already soaped up and shaved, trying to save coin minutes in the shower. Then I had to wait one hour for a front desk employee to show up and try to fix the showers, which took another 1/2 hour. We barely caught our train in time.
What is fantastic about this place is the people who stay here and the nature all around you. This hostel has one of the best hostel atmospheres I've ever experienced. Cooking dinner is crowded but fun in the well-appointed industrial kitchen. The dining room is one big conversation with everyone joining in on topics of interest. People make friends and do activites together.
We hiked the North Face Trail. With its hundreds of different wildflowers, its snowy mountains, alp huts, dairy cows and the Sprutz Waterfall (which you can walk under), the 6 hour hike was one of the most beautiful days of my life.
I talked to an older man from Toronto, Canada who said he has vacationed at the Mountain Hostel 21 of the last 22 years. When I asked him why, he replied, "Have you looked around?"
If you are traveling with kids, be sure to buy children's passes down in Lauterbrunnen. You can even use them on the Schilthorn and Jungfrau cable cars. Also, be sure to buy your groceries in Lauterbrunnen before you go up to the hostel. There is no grocery store in Gimmelwald, and a cable car ride to a grocery store will cost you almost 12 Euros round trip per person. It might be wise to keep your groceries inside a plastic bag in your refrigerator basket. Someone was tempted by our bread, and then we did not have enough to make sandwiches for all the days we were there.
I hope you enjoy your stay in Gimmelwald. It's a magical place. read more