International Railroad Discussion > Swiss Trains

Planning a trip to Switzerland next year. Since I can't see it all, what would be the best train trips to take within the country while there.
Thank you in advance.

All of them! But seriously. If I had to choose one, it would be the Bernina Express from San Moritz down to just across the Italian boarder. Spectacular mountain scenery. Tip: Take a local train without the newer all glass observation cars. They are older cars and the windows open. Great for photography but the locos don't like the windows open very much. The Glacier Express route between San Moritz and Zermatt is also very nice. If in season, the route over the original Furka Pass is not to be missed. Others that come to mind are the run up to the top of the Jungfrau (but much of it is in a tunnel), and the line from Lucerne to Interlaken. Near Interlaken you will find the Briez-Rothorn Bahn. A mostly steam worked rack railroad to the top of the Rothorn mountain. Get a Swiss Pass. Much cheaper than individual tickets. You might also want to cross post on the European board as it seems to get more views. Hope this helps.

Ride the Rhaetian Railway from Chur to St. Moritz! The trip takes about 2 hours each way and departures are hourly.

There are some obvious but somewhat touristy choices:

- The Glacier Express St. Moritz - Zermatt
- the Raethian Railways St. Moritz - Tirano (IT) line (Bernina-Express)

But there are a few other hidden treasuers without many tourists. The city of "Aigle" (Eagle) in the french part of Switzerland ( is the end point of 3 different narrow gauge railroads:

- The Aigle-Sépey-Diablerets Railways
- The Aigle-Ollon-Montey-Champéry Railway
- Aigle-Leysin Railway

All of thgese are beautiful little treasures
And then of course the Montreux Oberland Bahn (MOB) from Montreux to Zweisimmen

Best Regards, contact me if You have more questions,
Lukas (Basel/Switzerland)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/07/14 07:10 by rosenth.

I don't know what city you will be staying in but let me suggest a rainy day idea.

If you have a rainy day it is possible to start out in one direction and loop back to return from the opposite direction. This gives you a whole day of train riding and very good scenery while doing so.

I usually stay in Bern which is pretty centrally located for out and back traveling.

DaleR

Some images of the ASD...

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Many great options mentioned. I would add some of my favorite "regular" routes.
The already mentioned Lucern to Interlaken narrow gauge route is amazing, but the regular Bern to Interlaken is also fantastic.
Montreaux to Geneva. Love that ride through vineyards with the lake on the left and the Alps beyond.
And the ride from Zurich to Milan, an engineering marvel through the Gottard pass.

Several years ago I spent hours in the Montreaux station and it was like sitting inside a 1:1 layout. I was expecting more regular freight, but I guess the town was by -passed of most freight traffic.
Have fun!