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Writer's pictureIsabel

The world’s highest alpine rollercoaster on the Glacier 3000! Les Diablerets, Switzerland

One of the top attractions in Switzerland is a visit to the Glacier 3000! Located at the top of Col du Pillon in the town called les Diablerets, the glacier 3000 is exactly in between the cantons Vaud, Valais and Bern and there are quite a few activities on the Glacier itself. Aside from being a ski resort the whole year round, you can experience a ride on the highest alpine rollercoaster of the world, take a walk on the worlds first suspension bridge connecting two mountain peaks, enjoy a stroll along the glacier itself, have a Sunday brunch with an incredible view or even visit an ice castle in the summer. A lot happens at the Glacier 3000 and in this article, you can read about the different activities as well as some business history of how the Glacier 3000 came to be what it is today.



Le business History of the Glacier 3000 in a nutshell

It all started in 1959 by two local swiss committees, with the idea to link mountain peaks with a cable car connecting the canton Bern, Valais and a few years later also Canton Vaud. Two local companies, the LRD and TPD, constructed the cable cars and over the following 20 years various ski lifts were equally built in this mountain area. By 1997 the two organizations merged forming the swiss company Glacier 3000 Région Les Diablerets – Gstaad SA which renovated all installations and built the very known cable car, the Glacier 3000 cable car. In the year 2000 the restaurant Botta was built on the mountain peak by the renowned swiss architect Marion Botta. Following an unfortunate lack of tourism, the company filed for bankruptcy and by 2005 new owners had bought the whole mountain range. Under the newly formed company Gstaad 3000 AG, the business mogul Marcel Bach, Formel 1 chef Bernie Ecclestone and the business tycoon Jean Claude Mimran now took control over the area. They improved the experiences in this area immensely, by creating activities which attract many local and international tourists still today.



Various Activities

In summer and winter there are different activities which can be done at the Glacier 3000. Enjoy a lovely stroll along the Glacier itself, have a Sunday brunch with a view, go skiing, have a ride on the alpine roller coaster, visit an Ice castle, observe marmots running along the snow, have an occasional paraglider or wingsuit flyer perform a show over the mountains or simply take the main cable car, walk the suspension bridge and enjoy the breathtaking view over the alps!


Cable Car

A huge cable car will take you all the way to the top in two steps.



Peak Walk by Tissot

The first suspension bridge connecting two mountain peaks in the world! Cross the bridge and enjoy incredible views over the alps! If you manage to go on a day with a full blue sky you will have extremely breathtaking views able to see whole mountain ranges! And it is free of charge!



Worlds highest Alpine Rollercoaster

Take a ride on the highest alpine rollercoaster. With a couple of curves and some jumps, the coaster gains some speed allowing you to enjoy the views whilst experiencing a fun ride! (A little Tipp: Do check if it is operating on the day when you go.)



Incredible Views from the top

It’s the highest point of the Alps in the Canton Vaud, and depending on the weather conditions you will have a completely different experience. Going on a day with a full blue sky gives you a spectacular view over the whole alpine mountain range, its truly incredible! On the day I went it was mid-June and somewhat cloudy, and below you can see part of the alpine mountain range on some pictures.



Information for the Glacier 3000

General opening times of cable car lift and most activities:

∞ November 06 – May 02: 09:00 - 16:00

∞ May 03 – November 05: 09:00 - 16:00

Price: Cable Car lift all the way to the top (return)

∞ Adult: 80 CHF.- ∞ Child (or half price) 40 CHF.-

Tel.: +41 21 492 33 77

Address: Col du Pillon, 1865 Les Diablerets, Switzerland

Parking: parking spaces near the entry of the cable car

For more information for visiting and to see the exact opening times of different activities, click here.



If you want to experience that feeling of almost flying, then take a walk along the Tissot Peak Walk, let your inner child be free and give it a try!


We are generation change.


Enjoy! Yours truly,


© Isabel

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