The ViaSbrinz, a historic route from Lake Lucerne over three passes into Italy, in SchweizMobil's five stages: up the Engelberg valley, over the Jochpass to Engstlenalp, down by Innertkirchen to Guttannen, over the Grimsel into the Goms, and over the Griespass to Ponte in the Formazza valley.
Best season: No published season; three passes above 2,200 m. No page we read gives a walking season. The route crosses the Jochpass (about 2,210 m), the Grimsel pass (about 2,206 m) and the Griespass (about 2,480 m), on white-red-white mountain paths from stage 2 on. The services close in October: the Bärghuis Jochpass ends its summer on 18 October 2026, the Engelberg youth hostel takes a break from 18 October to 27 November, and Hotel Hubertus in Obergesteln closes after 18 October until 25 November. The lake ships run their winter timetable from 19 October 2026. Before you go
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Plan your days
Your dates
Checking the seasons, closures and current conditions for today…
Five stages, SchweizMobil's own, of 12 to 28 km on our line. Every night is in a village or hamlet with a hotel; the trail ends at Ponte, where the bus leaves for Domodossola. The last stage, over the Griespass, takes 9 hours, SchweizMobil says, and no stay we could confirm shortens it: the Sbrinz-Route association lists places to stay at Riale, about 4 km before Ponte, but we have not read their own pages. Lifts and buses can shorten stages 2, 3 and 5. Choose a plan, or pick your own start, finish and nights below.
Hut seasons as published. 2026: 1 of 2 huts have published dates, open 13 June to 18 October.
Each day in its own colour, numbered where it starts; the rest of the Via Sbrinz in grey. Select a day for its elevation and 3D flyover.
Make your own plan
Changing where you stay suggests a new number of days: the fewest that keep each day under 8 h of walking and in daylight, where a place to stay allows.
Choose your nights (4 nights)
Days end where the route has a stay, a camp or a village.
7 hSchweizMobil time 7 h; measured on the mapped line 6 h 25
Stage 1: From the lake at Stansstad by Stans and Grafenort up the Engelberg valley: 26.1 km, 7 h, 700 m up and 140 m down, SchweizMobil says, on a yellow-signposted hiking path. Two closures are on this stage, and our line still crosses both: follow the signed diversion. At Staldifeld (km 6.7 to 7.9 of our line) the path is closed for the zentralbahn's double-track works until 18 December 2026; SchweizMobil's signposted detour there is about 4 km. Before Engelberg (km 22.7) the old path through the Aaschlucht is closed until the end of March 2027, because its bridge is destroyed; a new section is open, but its crossing of the gorge is not mapped: the official route here is not mapped yet, so our line still shows the old path: follow the signposts onto the new one. Our stage ends on the western edge of Engelberg, 0.9 km before the station where SchweizMobil's stage ends. The zentralbahn stops at Grafenort; the train from there to Engelberg saves about 450 m of climb.
Overnight
Jugendherberge Engelberg
Hostel or bunkhouse · Swiss Youth Hostels
Pick a date to check the season.
Season
2026 2026 dates not published Open on 13 October 2026, with a season break from 18 October to 27 November 2026, the hostel says.youthhostel.ch, read 13 October 2026
Closed
From 18 October 2026 to 27 November 2026. Season break: the hostel is closed from 18 October to 27 November 2026. youthhostel.ch, read 13 October 2026
Places
112 places in total
Booking
Book onlineBook online on the Swiss Youth Hostels page.
Our stage 1 ends on the western edge of Engelberg, where the line leaves the relation's approach ways into the town: SchweizMobil's stage goes on 0.9 km to the station, and its stage 2 walks the same 0.9 km back. SchweizMobil links eight stays in Engelberg.
Or a room in the village. Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
5 h 10SchweizMobil time 5 h 10; measured on the mapped line 5 h 05
Stage 2: Up from Engelberg and over the Jochpass (about 2,210 m) to Engstlenalp: 13.0 km, 5 h 10, 1,300 m up and 440 m down, on a white-red-white mountain path. Our stage starts 0.9 km into SchweizMobil's, on the western edge of Engelberg. Lifts can shorten it: the cable car from Engelberg to the Trübsee saves about 800 m of climb, the chairlift from the Trübsee to the Jochpass about 450 m, and the chairlift from the Jochpass to the Engstlensee about 300 m of descent, SchweizMobil says; check that they still run in late autumn. The Bärghuis Jochpass, at the pass, ends its summer season on 18 October 2026.
6 h 40SchweizMobil time 6 h 40; measured on the mapped line 6 h 33
Stage 3: Down by Innertkirchen and up the valley to Guttannen: 22.8 km, 6 h 40, 680 m up and 1,450 m down. Above Innertkirchen, at Gäntel in the Gental, the path is closed for forestry work until 31 October 2026: our line follows SchweizMobil's signposted detour there, 1.8 km in place of the closed 1.6 km. After that date, follow the signposts. The bus from Engstlenalp to Innertkirchen saves about 1,200 m of descent, SchweizMobil says. The stage ends in Guttannen, where our line is cut at its own point on the footpath along the east side of the village, about 180 m from the centre.
Stage 3 ends in Guttannen. Our line passes on the footpath along the east side of the village and is cut at its own point there, about 180 m from the centre on the main road.
Or a room in the village. Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
8 hSchweizMobil time 8 h; measured on the mapped line 8 h 13
Stage 4: Up the valley past the Räterichsbodensee to the Grimsel pass (about 2,206 m) and down into the Goms to Obergesteln: 24.4 km, 8 h, 1,450 m up and 1,200 m down. SchweizMobil calls it a long stage and points to the places to stay on the Grimsel pass; a PostAuto runs from Innertkirchen up to the pass, the Sbrinz-Route association says. Above the Räterichsbodensee, OpenStreetMap marks one stretch of the official path as closed to the public; SchweizMobil lists no closure there, so follow the signposts.
Overnight
Hotel Grimsel
Hotel
Pick a date to check the season.
Season
2026 2026 dates not published Open on 13 October 2026; the restaurant closes on Wednesdays. No closing dates on its page.hotel-grimsel.ch, read 13 October 2026
Stage 4 ends in Obergesteln, in the Goms valley, with trains of the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn. Hotel Hubertus here closes after 18 October 2026, until 25 November; the Hotel Astoria in Ulrichen, down the valley, is closed until 27 November.
Or a room in the village. Find your own accommodation; TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
9 hSchweizMobil time 9 h; measured on the mapped line 8 h 55
Stage 5: Over the Griespass (about 2,480 m) into Italy and down the Formazza valley by Riale to Ponte: 26.9 km, 9 h, 1,400 m up and 1,450 m down, the longest stage. The route crosses the Griespass, not the Nufenenpass. The bus from Ulrichen to Ladstafel saves about 600 m of climb, SchweizMobil says. The Sbrinz-Route association splits this day at Riale (23 km, 7 h 30), where it lists places to stay.
Days end at a stage end with a refuge or a village, or in a village the route passes through. Walking times are the times published by schweizmobil.ch where a stage has one, with the time measured on the mapped line beside it; a day that walks part of a stage gets a share of the stage's time by distance and climb. Running times use 7.5 km/h plus one hour per 700 m of climb: a steady reference, not a prediction. Daylight is sunrise to sunset where the day starts; the time left is for breaks, meals and delays.Refuge dates come from the operator's own pages; when they are not published, we say so. For villages we count the places to stay OpenStreetMap lists; we have not checked which are open. A plan is not a booking: reserve every night before you commit to these day lengths.
Huts and stays, stage by stage
Where each stage ends, the 2026 and 2027 seasons the operator publishes, and how to book. Read from the operators' pages on 13 October 2026; each stage page shows the sources and the grade profile.
Loading the forecast for low point (432 m) and high point (2,499 m)…
Weather by month
Typical weather on this trail: at the lowest point (432 m) and the highest point (2,499 m). Select a month to see why it is rated as it is.
Monthly climate averages and daylight
Month
Weather
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Poor
Poor
Poor
Poor
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Good
Good
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Poor
Stages rated good on typical weather
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High point, day / night
-4°/-9°
-5°/-10°
-3°/-8°
-1°/-6°
3°/-1°
9°/2°
11°/5°
11°/5°
8°/2°
4°/-1°
0°/-5°
-3°/-8°
Low point, day / night
6°/0°
7°/0°
12°/3°
16°/6°
20°/10°
23°/14°
25°/15°
24°/15°
20°/11°
15°/8°
10°/4°
6°/1°
Rain, mm
83
84
87
89
129
146
154
153
108
107
120
97
Snow at high point
Likely
Likely
Likely
Likely
Likely
Likely
–
–
Frost
Possible
Likely
Likely
Daylight
8 h 56
10 h 17
11 h 49
13 h 32
14 h 59
15 h 49
15 h 31
14 h 16
12 h 38
10 h 59
9 h 26
8 h 35
Source: TerraClimate 1991–2020 monthly averages. Averages for the area at each point’s elevation (4 km grid, corrected for height). Not a forecast or a report of current trail conditions. Snow at the high point is estimated with a simple snowpack model from these temperatures and precipitation, not observed; steep islands and high summits can hold more snow than it shows. Daylight is for the 15th of each month. Hut, transport and park seasons are separate: check them for your dates.
Before you go
Prepare for the Via Sbrinz
Arrange your stays, food and travel first, then check conditions again near departure.
Book hotels direct, and check October closures
No permit is needed: hotels book on their own sites, and the alp hut at Engstlenalp and the Bärghuis Jochpass take bookings by phone or e-mail. In October, check every night: the Bärghuis Jochpass closes on 18 October 2026, the Engelberg youth hostel from 18 October to 27 November, and Hotel Hubertus in Obergesteln after 18 October. Riale and Ponte are in Italy; the Sbrinz-Route association lists their hotels.
Two closures on stage 1
Our line still crosses both: follow the signed diversion. At Staldifeld, near Dallenwil, the path is closed for the zentralbahn's double-track works from 1 June to 18 December 2026, with a signposted detour of about 4 km. Before Engelberg, the old path through the Aaschlucht is closed until the end of March 2027 because its bridge is destroyed; a new section is open, but the official route there is not mapped yet, so follow the signposts onto it (SchweizMobil's detour records, read 13 October 2026).
Above Innertkirchen, at Gäntel in the Gental, the path is closed for forestry work from 24 September to 31 October 2026. Our line follows SchweizMobil's signposted detour, 1.8 km in place of the closed 1.6 km. After 31 October, follow the signposts (SchweizMobil's detour record, read 13 October 2026).
Several stays close now. The Bärghuis Jochpass ends its summer season on 18 October 2026 and opens for the winter on 5 December. The Engelberg youth hostel (112 beds) is closed from 18 October to 27 November. Hotel Hubertus in Obergesteln ends its summer with departures on 18 October and opens again on 25 November. The Hotel Astoria in Ulrichen is closed from 4 October to 27 November: that is a hotel notice, not a trail closure. Hotel Bären in Guttannen and Hotel Grimsel in Obergesteln were open (the stays' own pages, read 13 October 2026).
SchweizMobil names lifts and buses that shorten the stages: the zentralbahn from Grafenort to Engelberg, the cable car to the Trübsee and the chairlifts over the Jochpass on stage 2, the bus from Engstlenalp to Innertkirchen on stage 3, and the bus from Ulrichen to Ladstafel on stage 5. We could not read the lift and bus timetables: check them before a late-season walk. The Bärghuis Jochpass, by the chairlifts, ends its summer on 18 October 2026 (the Bärghuis Jochpass page, read 13 October 2026).
From stage 2 on the route follows white-red-white mountain paths over three passes. SchweizMobil calls stage 4, over the Grimsel, a long stage (8 h), and stage 5, over the Griespass, takes 9 h. The Sbrinz-Route association walks the route from Lucerne to Domodossola in ten stages, with a break at Riale on the last day (SchweizMobil's stage records and the association's stage pages, read 13 October 2026).
Google Maps journey searches, not confirmed services. A mountain endpoint may need a booked transfer or an additional walk.
To the start at Stansstad
The zentralbahn runs from Lucerne by Stansstad up to Engelberg all year. The Lake Lucerne ships also sail from Lucerne to Stansstad: they run their winter timetable from 19 October 2026 to 16 April 2027 (the lake ships' timetable page, read 13 October 2026).
The zentralbahn stops at Stans, Dallenwil, Wolfenschiessen, Grafenort and Engelberg on stage 1. Buses run from Engstlenalp down to Innertkirchen and from Innertkirchen up to the Grimsel pass. Obergesteln has Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn trains along the Goms.
The trail ends at Ponte in the Formazza valley, in Italy. A bus runs from Ponte down to Domodossola, SchweizMobil says; we could not read its timetable.
Prepare each stage while you still have a connection: the signal can be weak in the gorges and on the passes.
Keep your route and maps on your phone for places without a signal. For multi-day trips, prepare them in the installed TrailSplits app.
Open this trail in the app.Install TrailSplits, then open this trail there. On iPhone, downloads in a browser may not be available in the installed app.
Choose your route or stages. Choose Prepare offline above. Wait for the route and maps to finish downloading.
Try it before leaving coverage. Switch offline, close and reopen the app, then use My Hikes to start navigation. Repeat for every part you will need.
Saving a bookmark is not a map download. Storage can be cleared by your device; keep a backup map for remote trips.
Via Sbrinz — frequently asked questions
How long is the Via Sbrinz, and how many days does it take?
SchweizMobil gives 115 km in five stages, about 35 h 50 of walking, with 6,300 m up and 5,400 m down, in 5 sections on our map. The guide's day planner offers a 5-day plan on the overnight stops, and you can choose your own nights.
When is the best time to walk the Via Sbrinz?
No published season; three passes above 2,200 m. No page we read gives a walking season.
How do you get to the start of the Via Sbrinz, and back?
The zentralbahn runs from Lucerne by Stansstad up to Engelberg all year. The "Connect your journey" section has the travel details, with 2 more travel notes.
Do you need to book on the Via Sbrinz?
No permit is needed: hotels book on their own sites, and the alp hut at Engstlenalp and the Bärghuis Jochpass take bookings by phone or e-mail.
Can I download the GPX of the Via Sbrinz?
Yes: the whole route and every section, free, for a GPS watch or a phone. The guide also saves your plan for offline use in the app.
Is the Via Sbrinz open? Where are closures announced?
Closures we know of are shown on the days and sections they affect, in the day planner and on the stage pages. We watch 9 official notice pages (Hotel Hubertus Obergesteln: seasons; Bärghuis Jochpass: seasons; SchweizMobil: route 40 stage 1 detours; SchweizMobil: route 40 stage 2 detours; SchweizMobil: route 40 stage 3 detours; SchweizMobil: route 40 stage 4 detours; SchweizMobil: route 40 stage 5 detours; SchweizMobil: route 40 closure and detour records; Engelberg youth hostel: season break); the date we last read them is shown with the notices on this page. Check them again before you set off.
Route & sources
Route map & sources
SchweizMobil publishes the ViaSbrinz as regional route 40, Stansstad to Ponte in Italy: five stages, 115 km with 6,300 m up and 5,400 m down (its five stage lines measure 113.1 km), with an official stage time for each, shown beside ours on every stage. The line here is the route on OpenStreetMap (relation 2169030, from the planet of 11 October 2026): 111.4 km from Stansstad to Ponte, the whole route, cut at SchweizMobil's stage ends and walked in its direction. Our stages measure 25.2, 11.8, 22.8, 24.0 and 27.6 km, against SchweizMobil's 26.1, 13.0, 22.8, 24.4 and 26.9. Most of the difference is at Engelberg: our line ends stage 1 where it leaves the relation's approach ways into the town, 0.9 km short of the station where SchweizMobil's stage ends, and starts stage 2 there. On stage 3 our line follows SchweizMobil's signposted detour round the forestry closure at Gäntel, in force until 31 October 2026. Two closures on stage 1 are still on our line, at Staldifeld (until 18 December 2026) and in the Aaschlucht before Engelberg (until the end of March 2027): our line still crosses them: follow the signed diversion. Our climb is measured on terrain heights, so short steep steps are smoothed out.
Official guidance and mapped-source comparison checked 13 October 2026. Map data is a route reference, not confirmation of today's path, weather or accommodation availability.
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