Hi friends, welcome back to my Switzerland series! Today I’ll be sharing part one of my favorite day of our trip. Today was the day I was finally going to accomplish my bucket list dream of paragliding for my 30th birthday. Thankfully the weather cooperated because I didn’t have any backup bucket list excursion. When planning our trip I knew I wanted to paraglide in the Lauterbrunnen Valley, so I found this experience through Viator. The listing had a great rating, free cancellation for up to 24 hours ahead of time, and the meeting point was relatively easy for us to get to. We took the train down to Lauterbrunnen from Wengen, a cable car from Laturenbrunnen to Grutschlap, and then a little train over from Grutschlap to Murren (all covered by our passes).
Jon and I got to Murren extra early so we walked around the picturesque town to kill time. I was more nervous about missing a train and being late than I was to paraglide. Jon dropped me off with my guide and then he took the cable cars down to meet at the landing point. I hiked up with my guide to the takeoff spot and he got the paraglider ready, explained the process of how to get in the air, and double checked that we were securely fastened to the harness and paraglider. I definitely felt more excited than nervous as we were standing ready to go.
In order to get airborne, you start jogging down the hill and then the paraglider catches the air. My guide told me to try to run as long as I could and not sit down in the harness until my feet weren’t touching the ground. On the first attempt we started jogging and the paraglider caught air and was pulling us back a little, so we started running harder to keep moving forward. My pilot was taller than me so I was off the ground while he was still running and then the wind shifted so we sort of tripped over each other and fell. I wasn’t spooked by this so he reset everything and we made our second attempt. This time in the beginning the paraglider didn’t fill up all the way with air, so we stopped and reset. Some other guides were up there so they were making sure it was all good during our takeoff, and as they say, third times a charm. We were starting to peacefully glide away from our takeoff spot.
The ride was so peaceful and smooth as we floated atop the Lauterbrunnen Valley. My guide had a GoPro to take all of these pictures and it’s a great souvenir to have for only 40CHF extra. At first I was holding onto the harness very tightly, but after taking pictures with my arms out I relaxed into my harness.
In the air it was so quiet except for the sound of our paraglider cutting through the air. My guide pointed out some of the main waterfalls and landmarks in the valley.
Such a neat perspective and more than I dreamed it would be!
My pilot asked if I wanted to steer or do any tricks, but after a few hiccups with the takeoff, I wasn’t going to take any chances. I wanted to peacefully enjoy every second of the roughly twenty-minute ride.
I could’ve stayed up in the air all day, but I could see Jon below getting bigger and bigger. I was impressed he could see me in the air to capture these pictures. When it was time to land, we gracefully put our feet down and stopped right where we were. I was expecting a crash landing, but it was incredibly smooth. After unclipping my guide airdropped me the pictures and we were on our way. It was such an amazing experience and I’m so happy I was able to do it! I’d also recommend this company to anyone looking to paraglide in Switzerland. The communication beforehand was great, and my guide was prepared and made me feel safe.
I know this kind of excursion isn’t for everyone, but if you’re on the fence, it was such a peaceful, steady, and smooth ride down to the valley. The takeoff spot is also not anywhere close to the edge of the cliff, so it’s not like the action movies where you run, jump, and hope for the best. It’s very safe and the guide has a backup parachute if anything goes wrong. I’d definitely consider more paragliding adventures on our trips. I was on cloud nine after my paragliding experience, but the day was only getting better! Stay tuned for our favorite hike of the trip 🙂
Good for you Lyssy. I love it when a plan comes together. I take it Jon did not have the same bucket list dream. How long was that selfie stick? I take it that it was tethered to your tandem partner. Hate to drop anything from up there. Beautiful memories of your 30th. Have a wonderful Monday. Allan
I was very happy it all worked out, not sure when we will get the chance to go back anytime soon. I did book a spot for Jon just in case, but the gondolas were enough adventure for him. I think it was probably about 3 feet and it does have a wrist strap at the end. Seems hard to steer and photography, but that’s why he’s the professional!
That looks wonderful and oh so beautiful!
It was a dream come true!
What an amazing experience, you look so relaxed through it all!
It was a lot more relaxing than I expected once we finally got up! Such an incredible experience for sure.
This is so cool, and definitely something I would try. I know this is a few months ago now, but happy birthday! What a way to celebrate!
I can see you really loving paragliding! Thank you 🙂
Congratulations! Fabulous photos but I’ll pass on this experience.
Thank you! Jon preferred to keep his feet on the ground too.
Wise boy!
So much fun! We went paragliding in Nepal, it’s such a great way to see the views! Happy belated birthday!! Maggie
Thank you! Oh wow I bet it was just stunning in Nepal! Such a great way to see the view for sure, I felt like a bird flying through the sky.
That’s quite the thrilling experience to celebrate your 30th birthday! I’m not too sure I’d feel confident steering or doing any tricks either! Glad to see the weather cooperated and you got some fantastic shots of the scenery and yourself in action!
It was such an incredible experience! HE said the tricks would shorten the ride and I didn’t want to do that either. I’m so happy it all worked out!
You answered my initial question before I could ask it: I wondered about the feeling in that split-second where you leave “terra firma” behind. “More excited than nervous”, and you handled the couple of false starts better than I would have! Also wondered what it was like to be way up there all alone with a stranger – everything so quiet all around you – but it sounds like it wasn’t awkward. Glad your adventure worked out so perfectly – a hard-to-top birthday present to self!
It was a good thing Jon wasn’t with me or he might’ve been like nope this is a sign to not paraglide haha. Nope not awkward, he was narrating what we were seeing and busy capturing it all so I could just enjoy it all. I still can’t believe all the good luck we had with the weather! Maybe by the time I turn 40 I’ll think of something to top it, but I’ll probably have kids by then, so Jon will nix anything too adventurous like skydiving. The only thing I wouldn’t do is bunji jumping, I don’t like the snap of the cord.
At first I LOL’d about how Jon would’ve reacted to the false starts but then I thought – yep, I’d be the same way if my wife was in your shoes – so kudos to him. Thinking about 40 already, huh? Shark cage, perhaps? 🙂
Perhaps not, cage diving sounds terrifying! Maybe I would want something relaxing and find a bucket list hotel or something. A safari would be cool, but a hard sell to Jon. I would love to go to Antarctica but I am afraid of the Drake Passage. I have many nightmares of capsizing on boats. I think maybe from my dad having no mercy pulling my sisters and I tubing at the lake.
This looks like such a fun adventure! I have always wanted to try this, and it seems less scary after your description of how it works. The views also look incredible!!!
It’s as such an incredible adventure! I hope you get to try it one day, it is not as scary as it seems at all. The views were incredible!
You couldn’t have had a lovelier landscape to look down on, Lyssy. I think I’d have been a bit panicked by the 3rd start but you look like you haven’t a care in the world.
It really was the perfect place to paraglide! I was not expecting to not get off on the first try, let alone the second, but I am glad it all worked out 🙂
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Ahhhh what an adventure. It looks magical floating over the mountains like that, and you look so tiny in the snaps John has taken from the ground. What a special experience to have had, wow!
It was so magical! I’m glad I had two photographers so I could just enjoy it all 🙂
That looks incredible! Paragliding looks like a lot of fun, although I don’t know if I have the courage for it. Viator is a great place for booking tours, and I’ve used it for many tours before. What a way to usher in your 30th birthday!
It was such an incredible experience! I’m so relieved I could do it and not have to plan another time to go. I’m not a daredevil so I was surprised I had such the urge to do it.
It will be a birthday to remember, it was a brilliant idea. I wish you can celebrate more birthdays with experiences like this.
It was such a great way to ring in the decade! I agree I prefer experiences over presents.
Wonderful Lyssy. I’d perhaps like to give it a try sometime too and you couldn’t have wished for a more scenic location!
I think you’d really enjoy it, especially if you go somewhere so scenic.
What an amazing experience and looks like the perfect location for it! Very brave, I’d love to have the guts to do something like this
It was really such a dream, especially the weather and location! It’s definitely not something for everyone, but having the parachute was good to ease my mind.
Wow, what an amazin experince, Lyssy! I have always been wondering about how it feels to fly over a beautiful scene or iconic place. I like it how, unlike skydiving, where you jump from an airplane, paragliding allows you to take off and land directly from the ground. This eliminates the need for an aircraft or airport, making it a more convenient and straightforward experience. Thanks for sharing, and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx
It was such an incredible experience! I haven’t gone skydiving but you are right, there are a lot more logistics involved and I think I’d be screaming for most of it until they pull the parachute. Paragliding was defiantly a great way to get a relaxing birds-eye view.
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Good for you! What a wonderful experience!!!
It was such an incredible experience!
Time for me to go back to Switzerland 😍
Take me with you!
Hi Lyssy! Your travel blog is really amazing. I have been to Switzerland, but couldn’t have the paragliding experience. However, your pictures are giving me major adventurous goals, and I wish to go there again to do this activity along with exploring new places. Glad to connect with like-minded travel bloggers like you. Have a lovely weekend!
Ever since I watched “Crash Landing on You” I’ve wanted to paraglide. It looks so peaceful and exciting.
You guys are a lot braver than me! Nice shots!
Wow! I’d love to try paragliding one day
A very cool experience to have had and even more special on your special day! You look happy, relaxed, and so tiny in Jon’s photos.