Things To Do in Grindelwald
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Grindelwald Shopping
There are a lot more shops in Grindelwald than the seasonal local economy can sometimes support (many shops, hastily opened to capitalize on the influx of tourists, last for only one season). Most of them line the crowded edges of the resort's main thoroughfare, a sometimes traffic-clogged highway. A half-dozen of these shops specialize in sporting goods and ski equipment, many stockpiling inventory from prestigious, high-tech manufacturers from around Europe and North America. The best of them include Buri-Sport, Hauptstrasse (tel. 033/853-14-27), and Bernet Sport, Hauptstrasse (tel. 033/853-13-09; www.bernet-sport.ch). If you're in the market for a timepiece, Casa Grande, Beim Bahnhof (tel. 033/853-50-15), has a wide inventory of all kinds of Swiss watches and -- to a much lesser extent -- simple jewelry.
Grindelwald Nightlife
After sundown, Grindelwald transforms itself into one of the liveliest towns in the Bernese Oberland. In addition to the following choices, many of the hotels sponsor get-together parties at least once a week for residents, and each contains at least one bar. Bars that aggressively seek the patronage of nonresidents include the Cava Bar, in the Derby Hotel (tel. 033/854-54-61), which is located near the railway station and throws in the occasional live band, and the Challi Bar, in the Hotel Kreuz & Post (tel. 033/854-54-92), which does a roaring business -- mostly from drinkers, less so from dancers -- inside what looks like the re-creation of an alpine barnyard lined with roughly textured planks. Both bars are only open in the winter.
Don't be fooled by the name of the Espresso Bar, in the Hotel Spinne (tel. 033/854-88-88), a cramped, hot, and crowded venue with the inner walls of a log cabin and a penchant for suds and schnapps. Only a handful of its clients actually opt for coffee. The same hotel is the site of everybody's favorite ethnic hideaway, the Disco Mescalero. Here, tacos, tortillas, and refried beans are served until around 10pm, after which lots of very danceable music is unleashed. Over the summer, the Mexican restaurant is closed; the disco, however, still opens 3 days a week. Offhandedly elegant are Regina Bar, the entertainment focal point of the Grand Hotel Regina (tel. 033/854-86-00), and Le Plaza-Club, a prosperous-looking disco favored by prosperous-looking people in the Hotel Sunstar (tel. 033/854-77-77). Finally, the Gepsi-Bar, in the Hotel Eiger (tel. 033/844-31-31), is appealingly conducive to dialogue and flirtation. There's no dancing here, but musicians sometimes arrive to perk things up a bit.
