European Railroad Discussion > Glacier Express

In September we took a ride on the Glacier Express. Many on TO have done so, but I thought I would add my pics for those who can't make such a trip. We began our day in Appenzell, Switzerland. I wanted to ride the Appenzeller Bahn over to Altstatten, but declined that idea because of time constraints. It would have been an awesome ride down into the river valley!

Here is
1) SBB Alstatten station:
2) typical SBB intercity equipment
3) beautiful ride down the valley to Chur

---

---

---

In the Chur station, it is a typically busy place:
4 - 6 are platform shots

---

---

---

Then we boarded the Glacier Express first class car for the 5+ hour ride to Zermatt, Switzerland. We proceeded basically southwest in Switzerland, before turning south to Zermatt.
7) car interior
8) car exterior
9) galley car

The food service on the Glacier Express is very nice BUT very expensive. We did not order the meal, but most of the car did, as they were on a tour and it came with their tour package. Service was nice, by courses, but food quality seemed moderately good. About $30 for the lunch.

---

---

---

10) Glacier Express loco
11) professional pic of train from Zermatt website
12) Other Glacier Expresses arrive at Zermatt. There were actually three trains per day each way out of Chur: 9:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m. & 11:30 a.m. You could of course get off at intermediate stops, but most people rode at least to Brig.

---

---

---

13 & 14 are professional pics from the Zermatt website
15) After going through the Furka Base Tunnel, the train arrived overlooking Andermatt. I could not imagine, how the train was going down such a hill into the town, but in typical Swiss engineering fashion, we wound back and forth on the cog rails, and came down into the town!

---

---

---

Last pic in on the train platform in Andermatt, after descending down the hill.

---

Wow! Very nice pictures ! I have that on my bucket list ! Thank you for sharing!!! :):):)

MEKoch's photos at Andermatt reminded me of my ride through Andermatt on the Glacier Express; in my case up hill and in winter. So here are two photos I thought I would share.
The first shows the same view as Michael's final photo but with lots of snow.
The second shows a telephoto view of the station and yard from the hill -- it looks almost like an aerial view. And one interesting thing is that according to the timestamps on the photos it took us only 3 minutes to climb up the hillside. And take a look at the neat array of puzzle switches in the yard. You don't usually see an array like this in a yard in a tiny town.

WP17

---

---

I rather like the effect of the point (switch) heaters in the last photo.

I much prefer the older cars previously used on the Glacier Express. I believe they are still used on the local trains? While the newer cars provide great viability, there is something to be said about open windows (maybe not in Winter) for both photography and really feeling like you are part of the countryside.

It was open windows back in 1954 when I rode it. In fact any train that year in Germany and Switzerland had open windows. Remember loading luggage through the windows to your seat. It sure saved boarding time.

andersonb109 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I much prefer the older cars previously used on
> the Glacier Express. I believe they are still used
> on the local trains? While the newer cars provide
> great viability, there is something to be said
> about open windows (maybe not in Winter) for both
> photography and really feeling like you are part
> of the countryside.

I agree with you very strongly, as there is nothing to beat the experience of riding a train with your head out of the window, being able to take in the breeze. My very first experience of North America was in 1976 on Canadian National when I recall the pleasure of the ride from Jasper to Prince Rupert along the Skeena Valley at a snail's pace but being able to revel in the clarity of the air. And of course what is the point of having a steam locomotive if you can neither hear it nor smell it, let alone see it through the window?

Sadly, the curse of air-conditioning has hit us in Europe as badly as it had earlier in North America, together with the dreaded plague of health and safety regulations. Modern railway cars seem to all be identical with each other and to try to avoid as many elements that may remind the passengers that they are on a train. I remember riding in November 1992 on the Empire Builder through from Chicago to Seattle, and most of the way being able to have the vestibule window open if only for my personal filming purposes. (If any really wanted to see any clips I could be persuaded to post something, but they are antiques of little interest to most on this board). I believe now (though I stand to be corrected) that it is completely forbidden to stand by an open vestibule window in the US.



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 01/02/18 17:11 by spflow.