Brienzer Rothorn, Alpine summit in Emmental Alps, Switzerland

Brienzer Rothorn is a 2,348-metre limestone summit of the Emmental Alps on the border of the cantons of Lucerne, Obwalden and Bern, and the highest point in Lucerne. Its ridge has bare grey scree on one flank and grass on the other, with a cross at the top. A steam cogwheel railway from Brienz reaches a station at 2,244 metres, and a cable car comes up from Sörenberg.

The cogwheel railway was built in the late 19th century and made the summit accessible to visitors. This development changed the mountain from a remote destination into a popular tourist spot.

The mountain's border position across the cantons of Lucerne, Obwalden and Bern earned it the nickname "Dreiländerberg", three-cantons mountain. The summit holds a triangulation point with a pyramid of the national survey. Since 1894 the Hotel Kulm has stood just above the railway terminus, extended in 1987 by a terrace restaurant.

The cogwheel train departs from Brienz while a cable car runs from Sörenberg, each with schedules that vary by season. It helps to check ahead which transport option will be running on your visit day.

The summit is the highest point in the canton of Lucerne, though the mountain lies on the border of Lucerne, Obwalden and Bern, which earned it the name "Dreiländerberg". A colony of about 170 ibex lives on the mountain, protected by the Augstmatthorn hunting ban area; camping is forbidden here and on the Brienzergrat.