How to book the Glacier Express in 2024: 7 hacks

This post was published on 10 February 2024 and last updated by Annika on 19 March 2024.

Must-knows about securing your Glacier Express seat

Buying a Glacier Express tour package provides the best chance of getting seats in time: tour operators can book earlier than you can do as an individual traveler.
If you make reservations yourself, you can do so from 93 days before your train ride.
Try both trains on your preferred date, and switch between travel classes to see all available options.
If you can’t get seats, try again later: seats that were initially not available may then be released.
Just focus on the seats. You can worry about a rail pass or ticket later.

Why is booking early important?

The Glacier Express train between St. Moritz and Zurich is immensely popular in 2024. Seats can get booked out quickly. It’s especially important to book as early as possible if:

you want to travel in the Excellence Class. Only one train a day with an Excellence Class coach operates in each direction. And there are just 20 seats in an Excellence Class coach.
you’re traveling with a group and want to be seated together.
you’re traveling in high season. This is mostly from mid-December to February, and from June to September.

But in other scenarios too, seats for your preferred class and date may get booked out quickly. So how to avoid disappointment, and how to secure your seats in time?

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1. Book a Glacier Express travel package more than 3 months ahead

Instead of booking seats, tickets, and accommodation separately, you can get a Glacier Express package. Packages contain everything you need for the ride (including reservations), as well as a hotel in Zermatt and St. Moritz.

As an individual traveler, you can reserve your seats from 3 months before your intended trip. But several tour operators have earlier access to the booking system. That’s why a tour package offers the best chances to secure your seats in time.

2. Book your seats 93 days in advance

If you don’t get a package, you can reserve your Glacier Express seats yourself. You can do so from 3 months before your travel date, or 93 days to be exact. Bookings usually open up at 01:00 (Central European Standard Time / GMT + 1). In many cases, not all 2nd or 1st class seats for one travel day get fully booked within hours. There are two Glacier Express trains a day in both directions, and each train contains about 160 to 210 seats.

But if you don’t want to run any risks, regardless of the class or your travel party, here’s what I recommend: count 93 days back from the date on which you want to ride the Glacier Express. Then arrange for your bookings on the first possible day (maybe even at midnight in Switzerland) or shortly after.

3. Try alternatives on the same travel date

There are usually two trains a day in both directions. So if your preferred train is full, try the other one.

Also, you can check if seats are available in another travel class. Don’t assume that all seats in another class are fully booked: the reservation system may show those as “not available”, but that’s because it may only display empty seats for the class you’ve selected. So switch between 1st and 2nd class (or even Excellence Class) to see all the options.

4. Try again closer to your travel date: 27 days & shortly in advance

27 days before your travel date: group seats may be released for individual travelers

A part of the Glacier Express seats is meant for individual travelers, and another part for groups. Seats that were meant for groups, but that haven’t been reserved, are released for individual travelers 27 days in advance. So if you haven’t been able to secure your seats earlier, it makes sense to give it another try 27 days before your intended trip.

At any time in advance: travelers may have canceled their journey

Even though Glacier Express reservations are generally not refundable, there will always be travelers who have to cancel their journey. So it makes sense to keep trying closer to your travel date: seats that were previously booked may then be available.

You can even give it a last-minute try, online or at one of the manned rail stations in the Valais or Graubünden, on the last day(s) before you’d like to take the Glacier Express.

5. Don’t spend time on the rest yet (tickets, rail passes, catering, hotels)

In many cases, your seat reservations are the only thing to take care of well in advance when it comes to your Glacier Express trip. The rest can wait, so just focus on securing your seats to begin with.

Getting a ticket or pass for the Glacier Express: no rush

You need two things to ride the Glacier Express:

One is your seat reservation. Seats can run out, so it’s best to book them early.
The other thing you need is a rail pass or ticket. With this, you’ll pay for the actual ride. Seat reservations are completely separate from a rail pass or ticket. So you can go ahead and book your seat reservations without having a rail pass or ticket. Most tickets and rail passes don’t sell out: you can get them until shortly before boarding the Glacier Express! It’s worth it to first map out your overall holiday plans, and then find the pass or ticket that’s the best match. Take your time for this.

A few nuances:

If you’re considering not buying a pass or ticket, but booking a Glacier Express package instead, it makes sense to do so early. Such packages include seat reservations, and those can run out.
If you’re considering a Saver Day Pass, booking early generally gets you the best price.
If you’re traveling with a group of 10 people or more, don’t forget to look into group discounts. It may take a few days to arrange for this, so don’t wait too long.

Worry about catering later, or not at all

In most cases, there’s no need to arrange anything for the on-board catering. The Excellence Class reservation already includes a complete catering package. Catering bookings for the 1st or 2nd coaches aren’t necessary either. You can just pick your snacks, drinks, or warm plates from the à la carte offer on the train.

In some cases, catering reservations are required. But you can make them shortly before the ride. Examples:

The “dish of the day” and the multi-course menus require reservations. You can do so up to one day before the ride.
Catering reservations are always obligatory if you travel with a group of 10 or more.

Choose accommodation later

Do you plan to spend a night in Zermatt or St. Moritz in the high season months (late December to February, and July-August)? In that case, I recommend booking your hotel or holiday apartment early: these are popular towns that attract many visitors in high season. But in other cases, you can wait. You may even find last-minute discount deals.

6. Consider not booking seats for children under 6 years old

If you’re traveling in 1st and 2nd class, and don’t mind having children aged 5 or younger on your lap during most (or all) of the ride, you could skip reservations for them. This might make it easier to book adjacent seats for the older kids and the adults of your travel party.

These are the rules on Glacier Express reservations for children:

All travelers aged 6 and older need their own seat reservation, whether it’s in Excellence Class, 1st class, or 2nd class.
In Excellence Class, reservations are obligatory for every passenger, even those under 6 years old.
In 1st and 2nd class, kids up to 5 years old don’t require seat reservations.
Without a seat reservation, kids under 6 years old are not entitled to their own seats. They can sit on empty seats, if those happen to be available. But that’s no guarantee, and the children will have to make room if passengers show up who have reserved those seats. They’ll have to sit on the adults’ laps in that case.

7. Settle for the same journey on regional trains

Normal trains are available on the Glacier Express route too. If you can’t get hold of a seat, you can still enjoy the entire stretch in regular trains without reservations. It’s good to learn about the differences between the Glacier Express and regional trains first though. Arno has made a comparison in our Glacier Express guide.

Last but not least: know your cancellation options

Even though I recommend booking your seats early, I also want to warn you: only make reservations if you’re sure you’ll be making the train ride. That’s because reservations for Swiss trains are mostly not refundable, and that goes for the Glacier Express too. The only exception is proven incapacity to travel, and you’ll have to fill out an online form for that.

The rules can be more flexible for group reservations, the rail pass or ticket you use, or your travel package. Check out details in the price section of our Glacier Express guide.