Booking choice: The airplane jump, from $513 per person. Check dates Compare the options below
Both jumps exit at about 4,000 metres. Both give you roughly forty-five seconds of freefall and five to seven minutes under the canopy. The tandem master, the equipment and the training standard are the same.
What differs is how you get up there, where you exit, what it costs and, crucially, whether you can book it before you arrive.
The quick answer
The freefall is identical. The airplane jump climbs for about fifteen minutes from Reichenbach, costs $513 on the platform or CHF 425 direct, and is the only one sold online. The helicopter jump climbs for eight to ten minutes from Lauterbrunnen or Wilderswil, costs CHF 490, must be arranged with the operator, and at one operator can only be booked in pairs.
What is the actual difference?
The climb and the exit point. The freefall is the same.
From an aeroplane you sit on the cabin floor while it spirals up over Lake Thun, then shuffle to a sliding side door. From a helicopter you sit with your legs out and step off into open air after a shorter, more scenic climb. Everything after the exit is identical.
| Airplane | Helicopter | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $513 platform, CHF 425 direct | CHF 490, direct only |
| Bookable online | Yes | No |
| Exit altitude | 4,000 m | 4,000 m |
| Freefall | About 45 seconds | About 45 seconds |
| Climb | About 15 minutes | 8 to 10 minutes |
| Departs | Reichenbach airfield | Lauterbrunnen or Wilderswil |
| From Interlaken | 20 to 25 minutes | About 20 minutes |
| Total time | 3.5 hours | 2 to 3 hours |
| Booking quirk | No | One operator takes heli bookings in pairs only |
Why is the helicopter jump not on GetYourGuide?
Nobody has listed it. It is a platform gap, not a discontinued product.
Both Interlaken operators sell a helicopter tandem at CHF 490 today. The URL that used to carry one on the platform now resolves to a category page of scenic helicopter flights, none of which involve jumping out. If the helicopter exit is what you came for, contact the operator directly before you book anything else.
Which one has the better view?
The helicopter, marginally, and only on the way up.
A helicopter climbs with the doors off or open and no wing in the way, and the Lauterbrunnen exits put the Eiger, Moench and Jungfrau in front of you rather than behind. The aeroplane climb has its own case: fifteen minutes of spiralling over Lake Thun through a cabin window, which is longer than the helicopter gives you.
The airplane jump is the one you can secure today, with free cancellation a day before.
Check dates for the airplane jumpWhich should a first-timer book?
The airplane jump, unless the helicopter exit is specifically the thing you want.
It is bookable in advance, it is the cheaper of the two at most exchange rates, it has 657 ratings behind it rather than a phone call, and the cancellation terms are better. What the day feels like is the same either way.
The only airplane tandem on the platform, from 4,000 m over the Kander valley. Reserve now, pay later.
Explore the airplane jumpIs there anything higher?
Yes, and it is a different kind of purchase.
One operator sells Lauterbrunnen helicopter jumps at 4,300 m for CHF 540, named Eiger and Jungfrau jumps at CHF 690, and a high-altitude jump from about 5,500 m with a private helicopter at CHF 2,990, with media included and one slot a day. Those are specialist bookings made direct, not platform products.
Frequently asked questions
Is the helicopter jump more dangerous?
There is no published evidence either way. The exit is different, the canopy flight and the training standard are the same, and no Swiss authority publishes a breakdown by aircraft type.
Can I switch to a helicopter jump when I arrive?
You would be making a separate booking with the operator, and your platform booking cancels under its own terms. Decide before you pay, not at the airfield.
Why does the airplane take longer overall?
The airfield is twenty-five minutes away at Reichenbach and the climb is longer. The helicopter leaves from closer to Interlaken and gets up faster.
Ready to book
Pick the jump, or the thing that is not a jump
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before on every option. Prices are from-prices in USD and move with the season.
Airplane Skydive over the Swiss Alps
- Safety briefing, all equipment and one tandem master per jumper
- Shuttle from Interlaken to the airfield at Reichenbach
- About 15 minutes of scenic climb to 4,000 m, then a 45-second freefall
From Zurich: Skydive and Scenic Flight
- Return coach from Zurich with a driver guide
- 15-minute scenic flight and the skydive from 4,000 m
- All skydiving equipment and a professional tandem master
Bern-Belp: Lake Thun Helicopter Flight
Twenty-six minutes over Lake Thun with the doors shut. Nobody jumps, and it leaves from Bern
