afternoon, it casts its triangular shadow over Lake Thun, lending a spectacular effect to the panorama. These features have led the “Swiss pyramid”, as Mount Niesen is nicknamed, to catch the eye of numerous artists, beginning with Ferdinand Hodler and Paul Klee. The mountain has also been immortalised in several engravings, which have made the mountain’s outline famous the world over. There is also a practical element to this fame: the Niesen is easily visible (from Thun, for example), but a perfect peak such as Dent Blanche (Valais) cannot be seen from the plain. The journey from Berne to the Oberland itself is the oldest tourist trail in Switzerland. “Before the train, people used to travel to Mount Niesen by carriage,” recalls Anker, who has written monographs on the largest Swiss mountains. Today, the trip from speed record for the course is just under 56 minutes. This is equivalent to climbing 1,600 metres in an hour, whereas a physically fit hiker would cover around 500 metres in the same time. Outside this competition, the Stairway is merely a maintenance route. It must remain accessible all year round, including in the winter. “Climbing the Stairway without authorisation is prohibited,” according to public limited company Niesenbahn, under penalty of a fine. But there are exceptions: a pass costing 490 Swiss francs lets holders use the stairs between three and seven in the morning, with a free shower and transport back down included. Very few people actually hold this pass. This reporter had planned on climbing the Stairway at night from the halfway station to the peak, but that turned out not to be possible. “We’re not looking for any additional publicity for the Niesen Stairway,” explained Urs Wohler, the manager of Niesenbahn. Moonrise So the “Swiss Review” made the journey by train. From the peak, the visitor can look out over the Bernese Alps, with a bird’s-eye view of the lakes of Thun and Brienz. You can see as far as the Italian side of the Grandes Jorasses mountain. In perfect weather, you can make out the Vosges and the Black Forest, reports Berne author and journalist Daniel Anker. While at the summit, you can enjoy a light meal at the Niesen Kulm restaurant. You can also spend the night in one of the hotel’s charming wood-panelled rooms. A perfect spot for watching the moon rise above the Bernese Alps. This mountain ticks all the boxes for tourism in Switzerland, a country whose primary appeal comes from its countryside and its mountains. Besides, Niesen has been a popular destination for a long time, as a guide published by German geologist Johann Gottfried Ebel in 1793 shows. The work devotes four pages of its index to Mount Niesen, as against only a page and a half to Mount Titlis (Uri), as Anker reveals. “Mount Niesen is one of the first Swiss mountains to be described in literature,” according to the 71-year-old mountain climber. To what does it owe its success? “Its shape, which looks like a child’s drawing, is perfect. It’s reminiscent of the pyramids of Giza,” he says. In the Top left: The fastest athletes climb the 11,674 steps in just under 56 minutes. Below: The summit offers breathtaking views of the lakes and summits of the Bernese Alps. Top right: The steep, red Niesenbahn goes up a mountain that has been one of Switzerland’s main tourist destinations since the 18th century. Photos: Keystone Swiss Review / July 2025 / No.3 Report 20
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