[Anonymous]

4 May 2022 at 23:12:16 #827082

I am planning to reach St. Moritz via Glacier Express. this is 8 hr train ride. Stay one night at Moritz.

Next day take a train from St. Moritz to Tirano – question on this part of journey is – does it follow same scenic route if i board the train from St. Moritz?

Then stay one night at Tirano. Next day from Tirano to Zurich – change train at Chur. Not sure what time should i take the train since I am planning to fly same day when I reach Zurich. So I will be taking late evening flight back to USA – by 6 pm or so.

Is the above plan possible?

I was not really interested in going to Tirano. But not sure which part of Bernie express is more scenic – Chur to Moritz or Moritz to Tirano. After doing Glacier Express will I be missing a lot if i dont go to Tirano and just be at Moritz and do local villages.

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[Annika]

Reply 1 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 5:24:02 #941447

Hello Vader, thanks for joining MySwissAlps!

The ride from Pontresina (which is close to St. Moritz) to Tirano is part of the Bernina Express route, and you’ll see the exact same scenery, whether you ride in panoramic Bernina Express trains or normal regional trains. You can read all about it here: https://www.myswissalps.com/berninaexpress. It’s extremely varied: you’ll get to see lots of different types of nature and scenery within a few hours. So yes, I think it’s worth it, even after the Glacier Express (https://www.myswissalps.com/glacierexpress). And you’ll manage to get from Tirano to Zurich in time for your late-afternoon flight if you leave early. A single ride takes about 6 hours. You can check details for each trip in the Swiss timetable: https://www.myswissalps.com/timetable.

Having said that: there are alternatives that might be more relaxed overall, and that prevent you from backtracking the section between St. Moritz and Chur which you’ll already have experienced on your Glacier Express ride. Examples:

• Do the full Bernina Express route including the bus to Lugano. Then spend one night in Lugano (https://www.myswissalps.com/lugano/hotels) instead of Tirano. Travel to Zurich via the Gotthard route, either over the scenic mountain route or with quicker trains that use the Gotthard base tunnel. The quickest connections Lugano-Zurich Airport only take about 2h15, so that might be more relaxed for the day of your outbound flight. Please see https://www.myswissalps.com/gotthardpanoramaexpress.
• Spend a day in the beautiful Upper Engadine: https://www.myswissalps.com/upperengadine. Or ride the Bernina Express to Tirano and return to St. Moritz on the same day. Then travel to Zurich Airport via Zernez, Klosters and Landquart on your last day. St. Moritz-Zurich Airport via this route takes about 3h30-3h40.

I hope this helps!

[User]

Reply 2 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 12:58:20 #941448

Thanks for superb explanation!! I like your options, But I am trying to fit in this schedule. Wondering how to do this. How to add this part in last leg of my journey or completely change the direction and start with Bernia first. Let me know .. My current plan is

28th Day 1 Drive to Brienz from Zurich 1 hr 30 min

Night at Brienz

29th Day 2 Brienz to Interlaken 17 min drive

From Interlaken go to Lauterbrunnen to Grindelwald – top of the world Stay at Lauterbrunnen

30th Day 3 at 2pm start driving towards Zermatt – stop at Lake Oeschinen

31st Aug Day 4 at Zermatt – overnight at Zermatt – so i get 1 day at Zermatt

1st Sept Day 5 next day – Glacier Express – 8 hrs to St, Moritz

Starts 8:50 am

Reach 4:30 pm

2nd Sept Day 6 St. Moritz – Visit Fex Valley second night at Moritz

3rd Sept Day 7 bernia express from St. Moritz to Tirano stay at Tirano

4th Sept Day 8 Tirano to Zurich and back to USA

2nd to 4th Sept is where my confusion – how to do Bernia and from where and also not to make it too hectic …make it more relaxed..

so i started from interlaken side and then went west side then went down to Zermatt and then towards east to moritz and then that back and forth is happening because of Bernia…

So I am thinking if i should reverse the direction and start with Bernia as you explain and then try to fit everything else somehow..

What i did above is mix 2 scenic villages ( which i did Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald stays ) along with 2 scenic train rides..plus Fex Valley.

Anyway that was my plan and now I am thinking how to take your option and how to add it in my above itinary

As i read more about Lugano – seems to be more scenic and lot to do in that area – All towns are so beautiful – very confusing to plan 🙂 if i add 2 days in Lugano my entire plan changes and i have to drop something..

Thanks for all your suggestions

[User]

Reply 3 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 14:24:38 #941449

You say you are doing some driving, but I can’t see any of your itinerary that would be better by car. Why don’t you take the train for the whole trip?

Personally I think your current itinerary is OK. There is absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t do the Bernina Railway both ways. I have been travelling on trains throughout Switzerland for 60 years and you can be sure that you will spot something on the way back that you missed on the outward journey. It’s amazing how a scenic view from a train can look different on outward and return trips.

My advice would be to stick you your current plan and also try not to get confused by the ‘marketing hype’ of certain ‘famous trains’

Here are some fact and advice that I hope will help

Chur – St Moritz is the UNESCO Heritage Albula Railway. It is traversed by the Glacier Express but also has regular express trains Chur – St Moritz every hour. If you travel Chur – St Moritz on the Glacier Express it will travel via Filisur. On your journey back to Zurich from Tirano you can take the regular Bernina Railway train to St Moritz and then go via the Engadine valley, Vereina tunnel and Klosters to Landquart, where there is a quick change to fast trains to Zurich.

A better alternative to going Tirano – Zurich in one day might be: Do the Bernina Railway St Moritz – Tirano and return in the same day, and break your journey at a couple of places on route. Alp Grum is a spectacular station to stop at for an hour or two. Then travel St Moritz – Zernez – Landquart – Zurich the next day

The Bernina Railway is also a normal railway – see my ‘mythbuster’ below

Bernina Express mythbuster

It is important to understand the difference between Bernina Express and the actual railway infrastructure that the Bernina Express trains travel on. The Bernina Railway is the railway linking St Moritz, Pontresina and Tirano, the only railway to cross the high Alps without a summit tunnel. Elsewhere the Bernina Express train travels over other routes of the Rhaetische Bahn (RhB), ie the Albula Railway.

In recent years the RhB railway company decided to make it easier for tourists by making the ‘Bernina Express’ a through train all the way from Chur to Tirano, but only half the journey is on the actual Bernina Railway, the other half of the journey is on the Albula Railway en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albula_Railway

The Bernina Railway is the (independent until 1947) railway built separately from the rest of the Rhatische Bahn railway. There are ordinary trains on this line and short distance Bernina Express services. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernina_Railway

From St Moritz to Chur via Samedan is the UNESCO World Heritage Albula railway. It has express trains once per hour St Moritz – Chur, which have large windows and special photographer’s coaches so that when you get to the famous Landwasser viaduct at Filisur you get a good view

[Annika]

Reply 4 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 14:28:37 #941450

Hi Vader,

There’s really not much you should change in your original itinerary. All of my above suggestions concerned Sept 3 and 4. So just do day 1 to 6 as planned, and then choose what to do with day 7 and 8:

1. Stick to your original plan with an overnight stay in Tirano.
2. Do the full Bernina Express route including the bus on day 7 and spend a night in Lugano, then travel to Zurich on day 8.
3. Spend an additional day in or near St. Moritz, or ride the Bernina Express to Tirano and back on day 7, and then travel to Zurich on day 8, either via Filisur-Chur or via Zernez-Landquart.

And of course there are even more options :-). It’s up to you to decide what appeals to you most.

It will be useful to consult the Swiss timetable. This page explains how to add via-stations in order to see other routes than the quickest/most direct ones, plus many more tips: https://www.myswissalps.com/timetable.

I do advise you to reconsider driving. Swiss public transport is excellent and all of your destinations can easily be reached by train and mountain transport. A few destinations on your list, e.g. Zermatt (https://www.myswissalps.com/zermatt/travel), can’t even be reached car. You’ll have to consider parking costs too, and it looks like you won’t be using a car after day 3 or 4 anymore, so you’ll have to drop it off somewhere. Here’s a comparison: https://www.myswissalps.com/carversustrain. More tips about driving in Switzerland are here: https://www.myswissalps.com/car.

[Annika]

Reply 5 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 14:32:34 #941451

Looks like 1960man and I were posting pretty much simultaneously :-). And we seem to agree on the overall outlines of your plans, plus the car versus train issue. I hope these tips help you choose!

[User]

Reply 6 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 15:02:30 #941452

Thanks for the additional info. I will stick to this plan.

My final plan:

We are 3 of us – big luggage with us.

I added driving to enjoy some driving in swiss.

Also i could not find better / faster way to reach Zermatt from Grindelwald / Lauterbrunnen without car

28th Aug Arrive Swiss – Drive to Brienz Night at Brienz

29th Aug Stop at interlaken then drive to Lauterbrunnen – ( car or any other faster way)

Night at Lauterbrunnen

30th Aug Around 2 pm drive to Zermatt (if not car then any other faster way)

Night at Zermatt

31st Aug 1 full day at Zermatt

Night at Zermatt

1st Sept Glacier Express – to St. Moritz

Night at St. Moritz

2nd Sept Fex Valley – Overnight at St. Moritz

3rd Sept Bernia Express to Tirano

Overnight at Tirano

4th Sept Tirano to Zurich ( via Bernia Express)

Hoping to reach airport by 3 pm. This is my only worry. Is it too risky?

So have to take first train from Tirano

Thanks for all your help

[User]

Reply 7 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 15:46:56 #941453

You cannot drive to Zermatt. You have to park in Tasch, down the valley, and travel to Zermatt by shuttle train.

But then you said you were taking the Glacier Express, so where did you plan to drop the car?

[User]

Reply 8 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 15:57:28 #941454

I added driving to enjoy some driving in swiss.

Fair enough, I like both driving and train riding in Switzerland, but a car is most valuable where you are not directly paralleling railway routes with frequent trains, which is the case for most of the ‘car’ section of your itinerary

Also i could not find better / faster way to reach Zermatt from Grindelwald / Lauterbrunnen without car

That is not true. Lauterbrunnen – Zermatt can be done in 2 hours 42 by train.

Driving takes around 2 hours 30 minimum but that does not factor in:

1) you can only drive as far as Tasch, then you need to park a car, then take a train to Zermatt

2) heavy traffic which may well make it slower

3) any extra time waiting to board the Lotschberg tunnel car carrying train.

[User]

Reply 9 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 16:09:41 #941455

Tirano – Zurich to arrive by 3pm

Most convenient times:

Tirano 0741 – St Moritz 10.11

change trains

St Moritz 10.47 – Landquart 12.37

change trains

Landquart 12.47 – Zurich HB 13.53

change trains

Zurich HB 14.03- Flughafen 14.12 (or any suitable alternative)

[Arno]

Reply 10 of 10 • 5 May 2022 at 16:33:24 #941456

I agree with 1960man on the car vs train dilemma. There’s not much you can do with a car in the Jungfrau region (Lauterbrunnen), and a car can’t enter Zermatt at all. The trip from Lauterbrunnen to Zermatt is quicker and much less hassle by train. Personally I’d drop the car in Interlaken.