Tickets for the cable car can be purchased online, or at the ticket machines or ticket counters at Grindelwald valley station. Return tickets for the cable car costs 64 CHF. You will get a 50& discount with a Swiss Travel Pass and Swiss Half Fare Card and free travel with a Berner Oberland Pass and Jungfrau Travel Pass. 

Also nicknamed the "Top of Adventure", Grindelwald-First is a paradise for nature enthusiasts and adventure seekers, offering an array of  adventurous mountain activities and exhilarating hiking trails. There are four activities that you can take part in: First Glider, First Flyer Mountain Cart and Trottibike.  Do note that you will need to purchase additional tickets for these activities as they are not included in the cable car tickets. 

If you plan to do some of the activities, you may want to consider buying an Adventure Package. The Adventure Package includes unlimited cable car rides, plus one time access to certain number of activities, from one activity to all four of them. Of course, you can also opt to pay for each individual activity. You may need to do some math to see which option will save you more money. 

Some of the activities does not operate all year round. The Mountain Cart and Trottibike are only available during the summer months while First Glider and First Flyer are usually open in winter as well, or as long as the weather permits. 

The weather in the mountains can be unpredictable and out of our control. Although you cannot control the weather, the last thing you want to experience is to pay a lot of money and stand in a sea of fog with no views. To avoid disappointment due to the poor weather, you might want to check out the Grindelwald-First webcam before heading up to the mountain. We had experienced dense fog and poor visibility when we visited Mannlichen.  While it was a different experience, the views was disappointing. 

Each gondola can accommodate six persons, with a maximum capacity of 1,200 passengers per hour. The cable car usually operate throughout the year, except for a few weeks in November to mid December. You can check out the operating hours of the cable car on their website.

The ride to the top takes about 25 minutes. On the way up, you'll pass two cable car stations - Bort and Schreckfeld. For Trottibike, you'll have to disembark at Bort. If you want to take a ride on the First Glider and Mountain Cart, you'll have to disembark at Schreckfeld. For First Flyer, First Cliff Walk and the hike to Lake Bachalpsee, remain seated all the way until you reach the Grindelwald-First station at the top. 

There will be multi-lingual announcement before each stop. The cable car will slow down at each station so you can hop on and off if you'd like.

The cable car ride provides stunning panorama of Grindelwald village and the surrounding mountain peaks. You can even see herds of cows grazing freely on the meadows. There are a number of trails that wind their way up the mountains. The trails are for the trottibikes, mountain carts and mountain bikes. There are two ways to descend Grindelwald-First. You can either descend by the cable car, or: 

Take a flight down from the First peak to Schreckfeld with the First Flyer.

Then ride 3 km down the mountain from Schreckfeld to Bort in the Mountain Cart.

From Bort, you can ride the Trottibike down 4.5 km to Grindelwald. 

Other than the mountain activities, there are also a few free things to do at Grindelwald-First. 

One of the top free things to do at Grindelwald-First is the First Cliff Walk by Tissot.  The First Cliff Walk is open all year end, but may be closed during bad weather. Access to the First Cliff Walk is free as it is sponsored by Tissot. Opened in September 2015, the First Cliff Walk is a 300 meters long metal walkway and a single rope hanging bridge built along the sheer rock face of the First Mountain. It is actually one of the very first attractions on the Grindelwald-First summit. 

The walkway may look a bit intimidating to walk, especially if you are afraid of heights. But don't worry as the walkway is not wobbly or shaky even though there is no support underneath. It takes about 10-15 minutes to walk it in one direction, and offers a stunning 360 degree panoramic view of Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau mountains, as well as the valley below.

There are stainless steel wire mesh handrails installed on the walkway to ensure the safety of the visitors. As you walk around the cliff face, you will pass by some places where you have to duck your head as the cliff face juts out into the walkway. 

The walkway leads to a 45 meters long viewing platform that protrudes out of the side of the mountain at 2,000 metres above sea level. There is usually a long queue of people waiting to take a picture at the end of the bridge, as it is one of the most photographed spots at Grindelwald-First. 

We joined the queue for a photo. In the distance, we saw dozens of paragliders soaring above the lush green valley. 

We queued for about half a hour to take a few pictures with the majestic snow-capped peaks in the background. 

Grindelwald-First has an extensive network of hiking trails, from easy stroll to challenging treks. However, the most popular  trail is probably the hike from First to Lake Bachalpsee. Famous for its pristine, crystal clear waters and stunning mountain backdrop, Lake Bachalpsee is arguably one of the most photographed spots in Switzerland.

The hike to Lake Bachalpsee is about 3 km and takes about an hour one way. However, we didn't do the hike as it was scorching hot on that day. 

Another popular route is the Marmot educational trail hike from First to Schilt. The hike takes about an hour one way, and there are BBQ facilities at the end of the trail. The trail is signposted with various information boards about the marmot. If you are lucky, you might also have the chance to see some of the creatures along the way too. From Schilt, you can either continue the hike to Grosse Scheidegg, or follow the same trail back to First. 

The most challenging route will be the hike from First to Schynige Platte as it takes around six hours to complete. It is one of the top hikes in the Swiss Alps. The trail is deceptively long and steep with a lot of uneven rocks and loose gravel. Therefore, it should only be attempted by experienced hikers.

If you are not a big fan of hiking, you can also enjoy a leisurely stroll through the lush green alpine meadows and rocky mountain terrain. At an altitude of  2,184 meters, Grindelwald-First offers beautiful panoramic views of the Bernese Alps, including the iconic Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau peaks. 

Grindelwald-First is a popular paragliding take-off site. The take-off takes place down a gentle slope near the First Flyer. We spotted a couple of paragliders waiting to take off down the slope. 

It was a beautiful sunny day on the day we visited. There were several paragliders flying high above the Grindelwald valley while surrounded by mountain scenery of Wetterhorn, Schreckorn and Eiger North Face.

We spent the rest of the day chilling out on the bed in our apartment. The past few days of travelling had tired us out. For dinner, we bought some pork skewers from Coop because they were at 50% off. Other than the pork skewers, we also bought fresh lettuce to eat with the meat. We chose to pan-fry the marinated pork skewers until crispy. It was so delicious! We love the lettuce as well. They were so fresh and crispy. 

This was the last day in the Jungfrau region. We will be heading back to Zurich the next day where we will be spending the last day of our Switzerland trip. If you are interested to know more about our trip, you may want to check out my 11D10 Switzerland Trip Itinerary + Overview post. Be sure to follow me on my Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to get the latest updates on my blog!