Engelberg-Titlis Cliff and Glacier Walk

If you are in Engelberg or central Switzerland, the Engelberg-Titlis Cliff and Glacier Walk is one of the best ways you could spend half a day in this corner of central Switzerland. Fantastic landscapes, a cliff walk and a glacier cave tour all within a short distance.

Inside the Titlis Glacier Cave

Engelberg is a renowned ski resort town surrounded by a fantastic mountain landscape. The best way to experience the mountains is arguably the cable car ride up to Titlis. At 3,238 meters above sea level, Titlis is the highest mountain in the Uri alps and offers sensational panoramic views of the surrounding mountains.

Not only that but also a suspension bridge cliff walk and a glacier cave tour. Both are connected, and neither requires a guided tour, so you can easily do it on your own. This is the ultimate, easy-to-reach glacier and cliff walk experience.

Additionally, Engelberg is well-connected to Luzern or Zurich and easily reachable by train. This makes it an ideal day trip if you are staying in that area. You can visit this attraction year-round too.

View from Titlis of the snow-capped peaks of the Swiss Alps.

Table of Content

Overview of the Engelberg-Titlis Cliff and Glacier Walk

This is an easy walk, albeit slippery (in the glacier cave) and not for those afraid of heights (the cliff walk). The tour can easily be completed in 20 minutes. However,  I’d recommend not rushing it to enjoy it best.

The suspension bridge Cliff walk

How to get Titlis to and Parking

Reaching the Titlis Glacier is only possible via cable car ride. However, the Valley station is just a 10-minute walk from the train station, and ample, paid parking is available.

• Driving Directions: Engelberg can be reached from Highway A2, either south or north. Take the exit at Stans, where you will see road signs for Engelberg. If you are looking for car rental options, I’d recommend to search for & compare the best deals on Discover Cars. Here you can compare the prices of all the major car rental companies and find the very best deals.
• Parking: Ample, paid parking is available around the TITLIS Bergbahnen station. Follow the signs and directions of the staff, as this is a busy place.
• Public Transport: Engelberg is very nicely served by public transportation. Trains run directly from Lucerne’s train station to Engelberg, which takes about 45 minutes. From Engelberg’s train station, it’s a 10 minutes walk to the Gondola lift station.

The cable car ticket ride is 72 CHF at the time of writing (2023). However, the price is only 48 CHF if you have the Halb Tax card (half-fare card). Therefore, if you travel by public transport and stay in Switzerland for more than a few days, I’d highly recommend getting one from SBB.

You can also purchase the cable car ticket in advance if you wish to do so. The cable car ride to the top will last approximately 30 minutes, and the views are incredible all along the way. There are two intermediate stations on the way up; Trübsee (stay on!) and Stand, where you will need to change the Cable car for the Rotair. The latter is a rotating gondola allowing you to enjoy the surrounding landscape even more.

The station on top of mount Titlis.

The Engelberg-Titlis Cliff and Glacier Walk

The Cliff walk on the suspension bridge and the glacier cave are connected in a loop. Still, the connecting structure is usually closed in winter due to snow drift accumulating on the connecting system. However, no worries if that is closed; you will still be able to access both attractions and have to turn back to reach the other one.

Also, you can first do whichever you choose to do first, as both attractions are accessible directly from the mountain station of the Cable car. Let’s review both:

• The Cliff walk: you can reach the Cliff walk by crossing the glacier outside of the 5th floor of the Titlis mountain station. It’s a short, five minutes walk. Obviously, not for those afraid of heights, but the views are stunning.
• The Glacier Cave: you can access the Glacier Cave directly via the third floor of the station. The cave has some beautiful lighting and colors changing constantly. This created an atmosphere of awe and wonder, and it really feels like being in a magical place.

Ready? Go!

Lastly, here are some tips: the glacier outside the mountain station and the Glacier cave can be very slippery. So practice caution and, if possible, bring shoes with a good grip. Second tip: you can stop at any intermediate station on the cable car ride. I’d recommend you do this so you can also enjoy multiple locations on the mountain on the same trip.

The hut outside the last station before the summit.

Photos and Photography tips

The Views from the top of Titlis are just stunning in all directions. Mountain peaks as far as the eye can see in one direction (west and south), and the vast landscape of the Swiss pre-alps (east and north). I’d recommend having a medium size telephoto lens here, anything up to 100-120mm. This will allow you to capture the mountain peaks around Titlis with more reach and details.

Additionally, you may want to have a wide-angle lens with you too. The glacier cave is a relatively small space, with plenty of reflections and shapes in the glacier walls to create interesting compositions. Here are some of my favourite photos from this walk:

View from the Cliff walk.

Glaciers on a nearby mountain.

Detail of the peaks around titlis, to the west.

The view to the north, toward Lake Lucerne and mount Pilatus.

One of the many turns of the Glacier Cave.

Lights will constantly change color.

As you can see, the whole floor is part of the glacier, hence slippery.

Frozen Liquor. Still, it appears someone may have attempted to break through it :)!

Map of the Engelberg-Titlis Cliff and Glacier Walk

As you can see, this is a really short walk

Where to stay

Plenty of hotels and accommodations in Engleberg. There are several hotels and guest houses in town. If you want to start early and beat the crowds, you could stay at the Berghotel Trübsee, the first stop on the gondola ride.

Additional Resources

• If you are in Engelberg in winter and not planning on skiing or snowboarding, check out these snowshoe hikes: Obertrübsee and Ristis.
• Here you can check the status of the trails in Englelberg.
• Check my main Switzerland page for more info and Photo Hikes in Switzerland.
• If you are looking for car rental options, I’d recommend to search for & compare the best deals on Discover Cars. Here you can compare the prices of all the major car rental companies and find the very best deals.