Bernina Express or Glacier Express, from Zurich
Samir is planning a one-day trip from Zurich to either ride the Bernina or Glacier Express. He seeks advice on which route offers better scenery and whether he can return without needing a reservation on the Bernina route. He also asks about seat selection and amenities on the train.
- Choose the Bernina Express for the most spectacular scenery, especially between Chur and Tirano.
- You can return from Tirano without a reservation by taking regular trains.
- Both trains offer large panoramic windows, so seating choice is less critical for views.
- The Bernina Express provides free Wi-Fi on board, so you can stay connected during your journey.
AI-generated summary-
Team
We kept one day in Zurich to ride either Bernina or Glacier. Please help.
Bernina – Early morning from Zurich – Chur and take Bernina Express (Chur to Tirano) and again back to Zurich in same way
Glacier – Zurich 10.10 -> 10.38 – Chur 11.52 -> GE PE 12.14 Chur to Brig 4.40 pm (Make Reservation) -> Brig 4.48 – Zurich 6.58
If Bernina is more scenic, then is there any train which runs on specific Bernina route so that during return journey, I’ll not go for reservation and simply ride with STP.
Regards, Samir
-
All the railways over which the Glacier Express (GEX) and Bernina Express (BEX) travel are ordinary railways. They have regular normal trains. The GEX and BEX are just extra trains with panoramic carriages aimed at overseas tourists, However all trains on all lines have big windows and the views are just the same.
I recommend the Bernina route. The Bernina Railway Pontresina – Tirano is acknowledged as the the most spectacular through train route in the Alps. It is the only trans-alpine through railway that crosses the Alps without a long summit tunnel.
The Bernina Express travels over two railway routes, Chur – Samedan (the Albula Railway)and Samedan – Pontresina – Tirano (The Bernina Railway) . If you take the Bernina Express from Chur to Tirano, you can indeed come back north on any train. In fact one of the best things you can do is to come back via the Engadine route, which lands you back in Landquart – closer to Zurich. This will help your return journey and give some variety.
So if you stick to your Bernina plan (and add my variant) the routes would be:
SBB Inter city: Zurich – Chur; Bernina Express: Chur – Filisur – Samedan – Pontresina – Tirano
RhB regular train (change at St Moritz): Tirano – Pontresina – St Moritz; St Moritz – Zernez – Vereina Tunnel – Klosters – Landquart; SBB inter -city: Landquart – Zurich
Hi Samir,
Both the Glacier Express and Bernina Express offer beautiful views of the Swiss landscapes.
You can check out the route descriptions below:
- Bernina Express: http://www.myswissalps.com/berninaexpress/gettingthere
- Glacier Express: http://www.myswissalps.com/glacierexpress/gettingthere
The Bernina Express features a shorter route but as a day trip from Zurich might end up being longer. As suggested by 1960man, you can take regular trains for the return journey, which will require you to switch trains several times.
The Glacier Express from Chur to Brig takes you across the most panoramic sections of the GE route. From Brig, there are fast and regular trains that will take you back to Zurich in 2 hours. Brig is a nice little town and fairly easy to explore on foot. You can check train schedules on the SBB timetable: http://www.myswissalps.com/timetable
Choosing one panoramic train over another is a personal preference. Go with the one that fits your itinerary and timing.
regards,
Anna
Thank you so much for making my life easy with a proper guideline. You are simply amazing. With your tips, I’ve planned this following way with the help of SBB app. Please approve if this sector you are talking about
Zurich HB 7.07 – Chur 8.22 -> Chur 8.28 – Tirano 12.49 via Bernina PE ->
Return – Tirano 1pm – St.Moritz 3.11 -> St.moritz 3.37 – Landquart 5.37 -> Landquart 5.47 – Zurich HB 6.53
Regards, Samir
Also please help me to understand which side we must seat (while reserve the Bernina PE).
Thank you
Hi Samir,
Suggestions on which side of the train is best are provided in the links (see previous post). However, you won’t be able to tell the direction of travel when booking your seats online. You will just have to do a wild guess. But both the Glacier Express and Bernina Express have huge panoramic windows so you won’t miss the views regardless your seating arrangement.
Regards,
Anna
Thank you for the complements regarding my advice. You have found a version of exactly what I was suggesting. However, since all services on all routes are 1 per hour I recommend you consider taking a 1 hour break somewhere, otherwise you will be on the train almost continuously for 12 hours. My suggestion would be to take the train you plan to take from Tirano northwards, but stop off for 1 hour at the extremely scenic Alp Grum station.
I also advise you to get used to using the European standard 24 hour clock so that you don’t miss something when glancing at the timetable or a station departure board during your trip.
Dear 1960man (seems it not your original name, apologise me)
First of all, consider a high gratitude from our family for such wonderful advise to habituated with EU 24 hrs timezone.
About Giving an hour at Alp Grum, Initially I thought of the same but while check in detail, I’ve noticed that while to & from, the train will give almost 12 minutes break- on top of that our source destination would be Kloten, hence almost 14 hours and we are travelling with my mom, daughter & wife so they won’t feel comfortable.
As am going with 3 women, do you feel that train WC is clean especially during morning time.
Do you know whether Bernina offers free WIFI? for sure return time, we won’t get wi-fi. So that atleast family members won’t get bored and can send some good pic on social media to enjoy themselves.
Kloten6.25 – Zurich HB 6.40 -> Zurich HB 7.07 – Chur 22 -> Chur 8.28 – Tirano 12.49 (via Bernina PE)
Tirano 13.00 – St. Moritz 15.11 -> St. Moritz 15.37 – Landquart 17.37 -> Landquart 17.47 – Zurich HB 18.53 -> Zurich HB 19.19 – Kloten 19:35
Many thanks.
Regards, Samir
Hello Samir,
In general I would say the WC facilities are adequately clean on the trains. I think it would be unfortunate if the WCs were not adequately cleaned.
Whilst on board the Bernina Express, there is free Wifi, more information can be found here : https://www.myswissalps.com/berninaexpress or if you are interested in Wifi during your trip in Switzerland, here is another useful link. https://www.myswissalps.com/simcard
As always, feel free to reach out with any further questions.
Kind regards,
Yolanda
- The thread ‘Bernina Express or Glacier Express, from Zurich’ is closed to new replies.
