Interlaken is a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the Canton of Bern in Switzerland, a well-known tourist destination in the Bernese Oberland. Interlaken is located between Lake Brienz to the east and Lake Thun to the west in the area called Bödeli. The town takes its name from its geographical position between the lakes (in Latin inter lacus). The Aare River flows through the town connecting the lakes.
The town is a base from which to explore the surrounding areas by train or bus. One of the main attractions is the Jungfrau, (4,158 m (13,642 ft)) and the Jungfraujoch railway station (3,450 m (11,320 ft)). Many hotels are located along the Höheweg. Mystery Park, a paranormal-based theme park owned by Erich von Däniken, was closed in 2006 after three years because of financial difficulties but re-opened in 2009. Interlaken is a destination for backpackers throughout the year. Interlaken has numerous backpacker-friendly hostels and companies providing guided services in skydiving, canyoning, hang gliding, paragliding, and skiing.
Interlaken has two railway stations Interlaken Ost and Interlaken West and two funicular railways, the Harderbahn and the Heimwehfluhbahn. Train connections in Interlaken serve the Jungfrau region via the Berner Oberland Bahn, and the narrow-gauge lines of the Zentralbahn extending over the Brünig Pass to Luzern. The main line connects Interlaken with the cities of Spiez, Thun and Bern. There are also regular bus links to the neighbouring town of Thun. Boat services across Lake Brienz to Brienz and across Lake Thun to Spiez and Thun are operated by BLS Lötschbergbahn. Interlaken also has an airport, Interlaken Airport. It serves the cities of Matten and Interlaken.
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 5.3% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 21.4% and transportation infrastructure made up 16.0%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 4.0%. 20.9% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.6% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 6.5% is used for growing crops and 16.3% is pastures, while 1.6% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.
