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Thanks. I am travelling from Lausanne to Zermatt through Bern primarily to cover the Lotschberger as well. Hence I plan to take Lausanne to Bern (07:20 – 08:26), Bern to Brig (RE – 09:39 – 11:18) and Brig to Zermatt(12:26 – 13:51). hope this is correct planning. Many thanks.
Many thanks, I will take a point to point upgrade from St.Moritz to Tirano for that trip only then on swisspass login. THANKS.
We have a quite long travel on 27th Dec. We take Bernina Express from St.Moritz to Tirano (08:48 to 11:00). I checked 2nd class reservations however it took me direct to 1st class ONLY. Upon checking with the support, they also confirmed because 2nd class reservations were all already taken. hence I went ahead to book the available 1st class immediately. From Tirano, we start our return ride to , Samedan, Lower Engedine route to Landquart (11:41 to 16:10) and then on to Chur 16:18 to 16:26. Hope this is all correct. Many thanks for your continued guidance.
As we did not have enough seats available on 26th Dec on glacier, we booked a day earlier on 25th itself, This cut short our stay in zermatt (missing gornegrat) but adding a day in St.Moritz. Please suggest day trip in St.Moritz for 26th Dec – is this possible “visit the mountain tops of Lagalb or Diavolezza”?
You now say you are ‘missing Gornergrat’. This railway is far more spectacular than the Lotschberg route so I repeat my comment that I do not think it is worth going Lausanne – Bern – Brig – Zermatt.
If you leave Lausanne at 07.20 you can reach Zermatt direct at 10.14, giving you most of the day to travel on the Gornergrat railway.
It is a simple trip to get to Lagalb and Diavolezza, although it will repeat your journeys on the Bernina Railway. As you can see from the attached PDF timetable, Diavolezza is 7 stations out from St Moritz.
One other comment – the 08.48 St Moritz – Tirano isn’t a Bernina Express – it is a local train with panoramic coaches added, so there will be some unreserved seats available. The 07.48 from St Moritz is also a local train – I expect that to have seats available, especially if you get there as early as possible.
OK Noted, we will omit the RegioExpress Lotschberger and take direct from Lausanne to Zermatt and get some more time at zermatt as well. Many thanks again.
Hi Balaji pitch,
A trip to Mount Corvatsch is a good idea when you are in St Moritz. You can get an amazing view of the Upper Engadine lakes from the top. You can find more day trip options here: http://www.myswissalps.com/stmoritz/activities
Regards,
Anna
OK noted, will check weather and do this trip, MANY THANKS Anna and the Team.
To underline my point – here is a picture I took from the Gornergrat train in December 2008:
Attachments:Given we are reaching Zermatt at 10.20AM on 25th Dec, will we have enough time to do the peak2peak trip instead of only Gornergrat. I see this covers 2 sights with a cable car in between and also cheaper than doing them separately as well as seems to be taking lesser time overall instead of returning fully back to Zermatt and starting the 2nd part. Please advise, MANY THANKS.
Hi Balaji pitch,
Yes, it’s possible to combine the excursions to Gornergrat and Matterhorn Glacier Paradise in one day. However, it might be a little impractical and rushed to try and fit both in one day if this also includes travelling to Zermatt from outside the region on the same day. An important thing to remember is that in December, daylight hours are shorter. My personal suggestion would be perhaps to stick to just one mountain excursion and allow yourself time to explore the village and return to your base before it gets dark.
Regards,
Anna
I agree with Anna, except that you originally stated you would arrive in Zermatt on 24th morning and leave 26th morning. This means you would have time to do both excursions
Though that was the original plan, due to the glacier reservations not available for the whole family on 26th, had to prepone and take the earlier day glacier on 25th, cutting short zermatt stay to one day and night only as attached.
Attachments:
Right. In that case it’s best to pick just one mountain excursion near Zermatt. My personal recommendation would be Gornergrat: https://www.myswissalps.com/gornergrat.
For our 3 full days in Jungfrau on 29-31/12, should we buy this pass – http://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/jungfrau-ski-region/buy-skipass/. We do not know or plan to do active ski, just go around the slopes. We will already have STP during the days, and we also need to go top of Europe through a pass ( I dont see the winter version online yet). THANKS.
Hi Balaji pitch,
If you won’t be skiing, the pass you mention won’t be of much use. Your Swiss Travel Pass already grants free traveling and discounts in the Jungfrau Region (see https://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass/validity).
If you plan to use lots of trains and cable cars in this area, an additional Jungfrau Hiking and Sledging Pass could be worth it: https://www.myswissalps.com/jungfrauhikingsledgingpass. But you’ll have to calculate whether that’s the case based on your specific plans. Calculation help can be found here: https://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses/practical/chooserailpass.
I agree with both of Arnos answers to your latest questions.
1) Zermatt:
Stick to Gornergrat. It is the ‘original and best’ As you have already seen from my winter photo posted earlier. And you musn’t forget that the Zermatt is not ALL about the Matterhorn! Zermatt is know as the ‘village of the 4000’ers, as it surrounded by numerous peaks all over 4000m. Also, Gornergrat summit is closer to the highest mountain in Switzerland – the Dufourspitz which is facing you when you alight from the train at the top Gornergrat station. This all comes with the warning that – as you are only visiting for a short period – lovely sunny weather is not guaranteed.
2) ski passes:
Buying a ski pass and ‘being on the slopes’ is not a good idea. Walkers and skiers/snowboarders do not mix well and as a ‘walking tourist’ you are advised to stick to official winter walks, panorama viewing areas, cafe and restaurant terraces etc
Many thanks for your insightful feedback, will do accordingly.
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