Wetterhorn cable car, Aerial lift in Grindelwald, Switzerland

The Wetterhorn cable car is an aerial tramway system in Grindelwald that once connected the base station at Hotel Wetterhorn to a mountain station on the alpine slope. The route climbed up the mountainside using cable technology to transport passengers across the steep terrain.

Wilhelm Feldmann began construction in 1905, and the first section opened on 27 July 1908 from the Hotel Wetterhorn to the Enge mountain station at 1,677 m. It was Switzerland's first passenger-carrying aerial tramway, built with two carrying and two traction cables. Operations ceased on 10 September 1914 after tourists stayed away at the outbreak of World War I; the concession expired in 1927 and the line was dismantled in summer 1934.

The name Wetterhorn Elevator came from the 116% average gradient of its cables, which made the ride feel like a vertical lift. The two cabins held 16 people each, eight seated and eight standing, and covered the 420-metre height difference in 8.5 minutes. An original cabin drive is kept at the Swiss Museum of Transport in Lucerne, and a replica cabin stands by the Hotel Wetterhorn.

A replica of the original cable car cabin is displayed near Hotel Wetterhorn with information panels about how the system worked. You can view this reproduction and learn about early cable transport technology.

The mountain station at about 1,671 meters elevation remains visible on the Wetterhorn mountainside today showing early 20th-century construction. This preserved structure serves as a rare surviving example of pioneering cable car technology.