Giessbach Funicular

Geschichte

The Giessbachbahn is a historic funicular in the Swiss canton of Berne and municipality of Brienz. It links a landing stage on Lake Brienz, served by shipping services on the lake, to the Grand Hotel Giessbach and Giessbach Falls above. The funicular is owned by the hotel, but since 1983 has been operated by a preservation foundation.The funicular, opened in 1879, was the first Swiss funicular to be built specifically for the transport of tourists. It has a length of 345m and overcomes a vertical distance of 104m with a maximum gradient of 32%. There are two wooden cars dating from 1879, operating on a single track of track with a central passing loop and a Riggenbach rack rail for braking purposes. Originally operated by water ballast, the funicular is now electrically operated and a single journey takes 2 minutes.The line has the following parameters: