Plateau Rosa vs Jungfrau?
Saharsh, an Indian living in Moscow, is planning a short trip to Italy for sightseeing and wants to visit a mountain in Switzerland for one day. They are looking for advice on which peak to choose that is easily accessible from Milan given their tight schedule.
- Visiting the Jungfrau or Titlis from Milan in one day is unrealistic due to travel time; better options are the Bettmerhorn or Eggishorn, which have shorter travel times.
- If you consider driving, be aware that reaching Zermatt requires parking in Täsch and taking a train from there; trains are generally easier and more relaxing for this trip.
- The Matterhorn Glacier Paradise is a feasible option for a one-day trip, allowing for stunning views.
AI-generated summary-
Hey there. I’m Saharsh, an Indian living in Moscow,Russia.
We’re coming to Italy for a short trip of 4 days for sightseeing, and I’ve kept one day to visit one of the mountain peaks. We have the entry to Switzerland and I’ve seen hell loads of pictures of Lauterbrunnen! Looks lovely.
We are going to reside in Milan, and we plan a quick one-day trip to one of the mountains. We plan to come back to Milan on the same day.
Can you please help me choose one of the peaks which we could wrap up in a day? I’m really in a tight schedule. So I’ve gone through Plateau Rosa which is on the Italian side, The Jungfrau and Titlis as well.
Please help us choose a peak which is easily accessible.
Switzerland and Italy have such beautiful mountains and literally so many of them, that it makes really hard to choose one.
Your suggestions will be appreciated, Thanks in advance 🙂
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Hello Saharsh,
It is not possible to go from Milan to Jungfrau or Titlis on one day and go back on the same day to Milan. See the traintable. To visit the nice mountains of Switzerland, you must go some days to Switzerland.
I don’t no of visit plateau Rose possible is, this is in Italy and not in Switserland.
Hello saharsh!
Welcome to MySwissAlps. Making a day trip to the Swiss Alps from Milan is quite challenging. The timetable allows you to check traveling times, and as you’ll see a single journey to Jungfraujoch takes about 5h30, to Titlis even longer. That’s definitely too long for a day trip in my opinion. The Plateau Rosa is a (summer) ski area and not the most obvious choice as it requires additional ski lifts to get there. Visiting one of the other peaks near Zermatt, e.g. Klein Matterhorn or Gornergrat, which are both close to the ski area you mentioned, could theoretically be doable. You’d have to leave very early and return late though, as these destinations require single journeys of about 4h15. That’s still a whole lot of train traveling for such a short visit.
Better options would be the Bettmerhorn or Eggishorn (single trips of about 3h00 from Milan), allowing for beautiful views overlooking the Aletsch Glacier.
Viator offers a day trip on the Bernina line from Milan: http://www.viator.com/tours/M ilan/Swiss-Alps-Bernina-Express-Rail-Tour-from-Milan/d512-2872ZV15. It’s not what you asked for, but it’s one of the few easier day trip options from Milan.
Thank you all so much for the replies.
I was looking into Matterhorn Glacier Paradise. Its around 188kms from Milan and we can do it in a day! Also heard about it being the highest cable car ride in Europe. It’s a little away from Plateau Rosa but that is okay 🙂
Yes, that’s indeed an option. Please see the Klein Matterhorn link Annika gave you for all details. Klein Matterhorn is the actual name of the place, and Matterhorn Glacier Paradise is how it’s mostly advertised in the tourist industry. Please see here for train tickets from Milan to Zermatt. I don’t recommend to drive.
Have fun!
Ah may I know why don’t you recommend to drive? We have rented a car in Milan. We thought of driving to Täsch and then taking the bus to the place!
Hi again,
Well, that’s indeed one reason: you can only drive to Täsch, then pay for the parking and pay for the train to Zermatt (there’s no bus). It’s a pretty long drive of 230 km, including the Simplon pass road and the narrow road to Zermatt. Scenery wise it’s very nice, but it takes quite a lot of time and the driver has to pay attention to the road at all times, not to the scenery. Just to get to Täsch will take 3.5 to 4 hours. Then park and switch to the train. In all it takes 4.5 hours to get there, and again to get back. Driving in Milan isn’t much fun I think (very busy), but you already have the car so that’s not really relevant here.
By train it’s much simpler: if you pick the fastest connection it only takes 3.5 hours all the way to Zermatt, with only one change in Brig. You can relax and look out of the windows, and it’s the eco-friendlier option. The only disadvantage here is that you won’t see the Simplon pass as trains use the faster tunnel.
Of course this is just a recommendation; it’s all up to you.
Arno said it several words.
My opinion is simpler top express –
The trains are easier to use, faster, and allows the driver to enjoy the scenery.
On the other hand, if you are used to driving high alpine roads, and enjoy the hard work…go for it.
Slowpoke
Thanks you both! I’ll talk to dad about the train.
What is the cost of the train from Milan?
He loves driving tbh. I saw the Simplpn pass photos. Need to show him that for approval if we go by car! Is it risky though?
If you drive 9 hours through the mountains yo will e exhausted, and have less time at Zermat than if you take the train. The return drive, if it is in the dark, is no fun.
If you had two days, the drive there and back would be challenging, and, of course , not let the driver see anything but the road, but it would then at least be a reasonable possibility.
It would surprise me immensely if anyone would risk that drive in one day over unfamiliar mountain roads.
Slowpoke
The problem is, I think your trip is to long for one day. When you are in Zermatt after a long trip, you must also by cablecar into the mountains. Your are a very short time high in the mountains, but you make a very long day.
You can also go to the Lago Maggiore. It is no long trip from Milan by car or train, and a beautiful lake whit Island.
Hey guys! I’m back to Moscow. Landed today in the evening!
I had a short yet fruitful vacation. We went to Venezia, Roamed around in Milan, Lake Como, Manarola-Cinque Terre!
Yesterday was the day for Matterhorn. As you all suggested, we decided to take the train upto Zermatt with a change in Brig. We reached Milano Centrale at 10:30AM and went to buy the tickets. 600 EUROS!! Plus the train was full for the 11:23am Departure and that meant we would miss the last cable car to Matterhorn. (Eventully which we did)
So. We decided to drive to Täsch! The road was beautiful and it was not at all risky, infact fun! The Samplon pass is very safe(atleast during the summers) and we reached Zermatt at 16:07, just 7 minutes after the last cable car.
So we finally took the Gornergrat train. Boy-o-boy, It’s no less than a beauty. What stunnings views! I thank you all for helping me out!
Glad to hear that it all worked out for you.
Your comments on the route are appreciated.
Did you have any trouble driving back in the dark, or, was it still light?
Slowpoke
Glad to hear you enjoyed your visit! The train ticket price seems incorrect to me, I don’t know why they came up with that number. A 2nd class return ticket costs about € 150, or less for people with a travel pass.
Anyway, thanks for reporting back!
@Slowpoke, We reached at 16:07 and our train departed 10 minutes after that. We came back to Zermatt by 6 and had food at some restaurant.
We started driving by 6:50PM and we crossed the Samplon pass in another hour! After entering the Italian boundary we continued to one Autostrade(Motorway) and reached Milan by 10 at night! It got dark by the time we reached Milan. It’s summers so the sun stays up for a while 🙂
<<“and reached Milan by 10 at night! It got dark by the time we reached Milan. It’s summers so the sun stays up for a while :)”>
H sahaaarsh-
спасибо
You have more stamina than I do. ;-). Seems like you had about 8 hours of total driving time?
Slowpoke
Пожалуйста, мой друг!
Well the whole credit goes to my dad! He’s the captain of the ship. I just told him the way 😛
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