Europe’s little James Bond village that can be reached by world’s steepest cable car

A tiny car-free Alpine village, accessible only by cable car and nestled high up in the Swiss mountains, boasts a rather glamorous history.

This pretty village offers breathtaking views of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau peaks that surround it and has provided the backdrop for several Bond films.

The Mürren-Schilthorn ski area has 13 lifts and a total of 56 kilometres of pistes. These lead from the village up to the summit of the Schilthorn at 2970 metres above sea level – making the ski area the highest in the Bernese Oberland. Due to the guaranteed snow, it usually remains open until the end of April so you still have time to make the most of the winter ski season.

But this pretty little village is just as stunning in the summer. From serene hiking trails and thrilling biking routes, Mürren welcomes all outdoor enthusiasts whatever the time of year.

The Alps, Europe’s highest mountain range, are shared by France, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. Shaped by glaciers 2,5 million years ago, this region has, apart from London, the highest density of Bond locations in the world.

Parts of the films Goldfinger, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, For Your Eyes Only, Goldeneye and The World Is Not Enough were filmed here.

But it is the little village of Mürren, which was one of the principal location for the filming of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (OHMSS) in 1969, that boasts the Piz Gloria, a revolving restaurant at the 2,970m (9,740 ft) high summit of the Schilthorn in Mürren.

The ring of tables along the windows takes an hour to do one complete revolution; enough time to tuck into a ‘James-Bond breakfast’ or ‘Spaghetti James Bond’ which are on offer. Help yourself to a free souvenir – menus and paper napkins with 007-logos are on offer.

Blofeld’s elaborate coat of arms (ARAE ET FOCI) is painted on the wall. There’s a James Bond Bar where you could indulge yor fantasies and order a martina, shaken not stirred of course, and a gift shop selling Bond souvenirs. But the real draw of course are the spectacular mountain views in every direction.

Mürren is a traditional Walser mountain village in the Bernese Highlands of Switzerland at an elevation of 1,638 metres (5,374 ft) above sea level. It cannot be reached by public road. The village features a view of the three towering mountains the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau.

Mürren has a year-round population of just 450, but don’t worry, it has 2,000 hotel beds and is a popular tourist spot in both winter and summer.

At the foot of the Schilthorn peak, which is accessible by cable car, it lies close to the Lauterbrunnen Valley, with its subterranean, glacial Trümmelbach Falls. Themed trails on the Allmendhubel peak include the Flower Panorama and North Face paths.

Mürren station is the terminus of the Bergbahn Lauterbrunnen-Murren which consists of a cable car and a connecting narrow guage railway that connects Mürren to Lauterbrunnen.

A series of four cable cars, known as the Luftseilbahn Stechelberg-Mürren-Schilthorn (LSMS), provide transportation from Mürren downhill to Gimmelwald and Stechelberg, and uphill to the summit of the Schilthorn and the revolving Piz Gloria restaurant. The Mürren station for these cable cars is approximately 800 metres (2,600 ft) south-west of the railway station at the other end of Mürren.

The cable car linking Stechelberg and Mürren is reportedly the steepest in the world as it climbs 775 meters over a track length of nearly 1,200 meters at an incline of 159.4 percent.

The area was a principal filming location for the 1969 Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is which Bond, played for the first and only time by George Lazenby made his escape from the headquarters of Ernst Stavro Blofeld played by Telly Savalas and fled four of Blofeld’s henchmen in a car driven by his girlfriend Tracy played by Diana Rigg.

In 1928, the Inferno Race was set up, and continues to this day. It comprises of cross-country, giant slalom and downhill races, is the longest (15.8 km, 9.8 mi) and largest amateur ski race in the world, with a limit of 1800 participants. It is held in January. The fastest entrants complete the 15.8 km from the Schilthorn to Lauterbrunnen in only 15 minutes, which is probably faster than even James Bond could manage.