Will Bad Weather Ruin My Kayak Tour?

Generic reports from global weather services aren’t very good at modeling how the mountains immediately surrounding us affect the incoming weather. We recommend that you use a Swiss weather report like Meteo Swiss or SRF Meteo. Even these aren’t completely reliable and often provide contradictory predictions, but they do a better job of understanding our local situation.

The weather changes quickly here. Forecasts beyond five days cannot be trusted with much reliability. Even predictions two days ahead aren’t accurate enough to say if the weather will impact the two hours of your kayak tour. Anything beyond a week can change so dramatically it isn’t really worth considering. It’s only until around one day before the tour that we start to get a clearer picture of what’s coming our way, but even this can and usually does change.

When thunderstorms are forecasted, it’s very difficult to predict whether they will appear over Lake Brienz or 50km away in another valley. They can also pass over quickly and return to blue skies after a short, intense downpour. We usually need to wait until the trip time before we know for sure if thunderstorms will develop in our area.

Kayaking on a pristine, flat lake with raindrops falling around you is an unforgettable experience. We encourage everyone to try this at least once; it’s not a drawback at all. You’ll be given wetsuits and jackets as required to keep you comfortable. Embrace the rain, and you’ll discover a new and captivating beauty.

Our Winter Kayak Tours are a truly special experience, and you might be lucky enough to be on the lake while snow is actually falling. The quiet beauty of the soft flakes settling on your kayak is absolutely magical. Dressed in a warm drysuit that completely protects you from the elements, you’ll feel like an astronaut on a spacewalk adventure!

Some wind is generally not a problem, and can create fun and playful conditions on the lake, but when it gets too strong, we need to stop running our tours. This can be caused by weather patterns that blow wind down the lake, picking up intensity and creating waves and difficult kayaking conditions. Fortunately, this doesn’t happen very often and usually only disrupts our operations on a handful of days each year.

Wind can also come from thunderstorms as they pass overhead. These are difficult to predict until we see them on the radar a few hours beforehand. Fortunately they usually don’t last long, we monitor them closely and wait them out if they pass over us.

Although the chances of being hit by lightning are incredibly low, we don’t go out onto the water while thunderstorms are above the lake. The thunderclaps sound dramatic as they resonate off the surrounding mountains, but thanks to accurate radar systems, we can closely monitor and track their paths.

Due to the reasons outlined above, we cannot make any cancellation decisions before the day of the tour. Until then, it’s not possible to know whether the conditions during the exact 2-hour window of the tour will prevent normal operations. If we see a high potential for disruptions ahead of time, we might reach out to warn you so that you are prepared for a possible cancellation. However, in most cases, we need to wait until the tour time to accurately assess the conditions on the lake.

Yes. If we cancel the tour, you will receive a 100% refund. The refund must be reclaimed directly from the place where you made your booking.

If we cancel your tour, we will offer you the option to reschedule at no further cost; however, we cannot guarantee availability at a time that suits you. Please note that if you choose to reschedule your tour before we have made a cancellation decision, it will be considered a customer-initiated cancellation.

You can choose to cancel your tour at any time, but refunds are only given according to the terms and conditions of the place where you made your booking. The complete cancellation policy for Hightide Kayak School bookings can be found in the General Terms and Conditions.