
It should not come as a surprise that Switzerland, which has some of Europe’s highest peaks would also have the longest staircase in the world which can be found in the Bernese Alps on Mt Niesen. Thanks to its near perfect geometric shape, the mountain is also known as the “Swiss Pyramid” and from its summit (2632 m) offers some of the most spectacular views of the valley below which includes the interesting Lake Thun – where the Swiss dumped an armoury of WWII guns in 1964.
The conventional way to summit this mountain is by funicular, however once a year 500 adrenaline junkies get the privilege of climbing the 3.4 km staircase that runs parallel to the funicular ….not for the faint hearted as it has 11674 steps with an altitude climb of 1669m. For some perspective this is 4 times the Burj Khalifa or 33 times the Statue of Liberty!
