The small idyllic mountain village of Gimmelwald is situated at 1400 meters above sea level at the very end of the Lauterbrunnen valley. It is one of the six villages in the municipality of Lauterbrunnen and has no road connection. The village has only been made accessible by the Schilthorn cable car since 1965. The remaining eight mountain farming families continue to cultivate the diverse mountain landscape. The village has largely retained its character as a mountain farming village, which is why it is extremely popular with tourists from all over the world and is considered as an insider travel destination. Overnight accommodation is provided by three accommodation establishments and some holiday apartments.
The fate that Gimmelwald faces is the same as that of many small mountain villages, although this may not be apparent to outsiders. Historically the village population increased until the middle of the twentieth century, but since then there has been a gradual migration from the village. Around 1950 the village still had over 200 inhabitants. Today there are only 85. The old houses are grouped along the narrow village road, but many are now only used as holiday apartments for a short time of the year
Because of this continuous migration from the village, the village shops, the post office and the village school have already disappeared. The villagers however no longer want to be idle bystanders watching over such a negative development. The acquisition of the school building now offers the double opportunity of providing affordable apartments to rent and a meeting place for the village.