Swiss Travel Pass, Glacier Express with a toddler
A traveler named Kayy is planning a first trip to Switzerland with 2 adults and 1 toddler. They want advice on traveling from Zurich to Zermatt via the Glacier Express and need details about train connections and whether to spend the night in Zurich. They are also looking for tips on the best travel pass for their plans, including driving after visiting Zermatt.
- Take the fast train from Zurich to Zermatt if you're in a hurry; it’s about 3 hours with one change.
- Consider purchasing the Swiss Half Fare Card for discounted train and cable car fares, especially if you'll be using both trains and a rental car.
- Be mindful that some train changes may involve stairs, so check your connections beforehand.
- It’s smart to reserve seats, especially during busy seasons like spring break.
AI-generated summary-
Hi, would like some advice regarding my itinerary as this is my first time traveling to Switzerland – 2 adults and 1 toddler.
Flying in to Zurich and thinking of going to Zermatt, Lauterbrunnen/ Grindelwald and Lucerne.
1. Travel from Zurich Airport to Zermatt on Glacier Express – What’s the best way for this route? Any direct train that I can take to connect to Glacier Express? I read some advice to take to Chur and connect from there. Are the train platforms far from each other for this connection? As my flight lands ard 830am, am not sure if I can catch the connection or I should spend a night at Zurich city centre.
2. Swiss Pass – As I plan to drive after Zermatt @ VISP, please advise if which pass should I purchase as I will be taking train from ZRH airport to Zermatt, Zermatt to VISP, going to Kleine Scheidegg and some cable car ride.
Thanks for your time!
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Hi Kayy,
Welcome to MySwissAlps.
The fastest way to travel to Zermatt from Zurich is with the fast train (about 3 hours, with 1 train change). If you prefer to take the Glacier Express to Zermatt, you would need to travel to Chur first.
There are 2 Glacier Express services a day (up to May 2022, then 3 services in the summer), the first one leaves Chur at 11.06 am and the other at 12.15pm. Depending how fast you clear immigration and take the train from Zurich to Chur, you might be able to catch one of these connections. Switching between platforms is fairly easy. Five minutes is the standard transit time, longer for bigger stations such Zurich Airport and Zurich HB.
Alternatively, you can skip the rush and just take the fast train to Zermatt, explore Zermatt for a day or two, then take the Glacier Express from Zermatt to Chur. From Chur, you can take the Voralpen-Express via St Gallen to Lucerne, then onwards to Lauterbrunnen/ Grindelwald. Would any of this work for you?
Regarding railpass, if you plan to drive but still want to do mountaintop excursions, getting the Swiss Half Fare Card might be practical. You can calculate and compare the cost using this quick guide and spreadsheet: http://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses/practical/chooserailpass
Hope this helps you to plan ahead.
Regards,
Anna
When all is said and done, the Glacier Express is just another train. I don’t recommend it for your itinerary.
If you are going to visit Zermatt and the Jungfrau region you will see far more high mountains than you would see from the Glacier Express, and you can use ordinary trains to cover a choice of other routes. My Glacier Express facts will help you understand.
Glacier Express mythbuster
Take a moment to understand the Glacier Express concept.
The modern day Glacier Express brand is extremely well (some might say hyperbolically) marketed, but masks some facts, the most important one being that it doesn’t go past any glaciers! Geographically it runs East – West across the southern extremity of Switzerland, so does not fit in to all Swiss holiday itineraries.
If you already have lots of mountains and mountain peaks in your planned itinerary there is little point in adding the Glacier Express trip
Your currently planned itinerary falls into that category.
The Glacier Express trains are special trains on the Rhaetische Bahn (RhB) and Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB) railway company lines which run in addition to normal ordinary service trains. The ‘panoramic’ coaches on these trains require a reservation or supplementary fare to be paid in addition to the normal fare. In all cases ordinary trains can be travelled on on the RhB/MGB network without paying any additional fare.
In all cases if you choose (or find yourself on) an ordinary train you won’t miss the scenery as all Swiss train carriages on these lines have large windows giving good views.
The Glacier Express started as a single train once a day each way many years ago, running slightly (but not much) faster than the regular trains and conveying a restaurant car for the wealthy to travel between the two ‘elite’ resorts of Zermatt and St Moritz.
The Glacier Express trains now are such a money spinner that they operate as ‘exclusive’ trains on otherwise ‘normal’ railway; ie the Rhaetische Bahn (RhB) and Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB) railway company lines which run in addition to normal ordinary service trains. The ‘panoramic’ coaches on these trains require a reservation or supplementary fare to be paid in addition to the normal fare. In all cases ordinary trains can be travelled on on the RhB/MGB network without paying any additional fare.
The Glacier Express suits organised tours that rush you to Zermatt, then put you on the Glacier Express all day, then rush you off from St Moritz to somewhere else. But for independent tourists, there are a plenty of regular trains on these and all the other Swiss railways, so there are a zillion other sights to see in Switzerland which are ‘not’ on the Glacier Express!
Thanks Anna for your detailed explanation and 1960man for your advice! Really appreciate your perspective on this as I am wondering on the same too.
May I ask if the train change from Zurich to Zermatt involves changing of platforms that requires going up/ down flights of stairs? Just want to be mentally prepared for this situation, more so when I am traveling with a toddler.
I am inclined to purchase Swiss Half Fare card and would like to have a better understanding of this pass. I understand that fare will be half price and I will have to purchase ticket from point to point prior boarding. On this note, with this pass, should I also buy Swiss Day Pass as well or just a normal ticket (fast train) for my trip from Zurich – Zermatt and to Jungfraujoch?
With spring break in the first 2 weeks for April, I presume the train should be more crowded? Is it necessary for me to reserve seats in advance?
Thanks for your assistance on this!
Hi Kayy!
You already received some good advice. I agree that a Swiss Half Fare Card works well for a combined car and train trip. You could add discounted Saver Day Passes for days with long (thus expensive) journeys, such as the Glacier Express. Information about this is here: http://www.myswissalps.com/saverdaypass.
Be aware that driving in Switzerland comes with disadvantages too. A general comparison is available here: http://www.myswissalps.com/carversustrain. Note that many destinations you may want to reach from Lauterbrunnen or Grindelwald aren’t accessible by car.
You can read about the differences between the Glacier Express and local trains under “Glacier Express versus regular trains” at http://www.myswissalps.com/glacierexpress. I personally do love panoramic trains for their comfort, catering, the information about the route and the landscapes, and so on. To each their own :-)!
Hello kayy. I encourage you to make the Glacier Express ride and not use regular trains on this route. It’s a wonderful experience. I’ve been making lots of train rides in Switzerland, including the Glacier Express, and I enjoyed those special trains every single time. Yes, you’ll have to pay for seat reservations, but you’ll get a lot in return. The service and luxury seats are fantastic.
Hi kayy,
In addition to my previous post and to answer your remaining questions about the Swiss Half Fare Card:
- Correct, you need to get 50% discounted tickets before each trip. This page explains how the Swiss Half Fare Card works: http://www.myswissalps.com/swisshalffarecard/howtouse.
- For long and expensive trips, such as Zurich-Zermatt (whether or not via the Glacier Express route), a discounted Saver Day Pass can be cheaper than regular discounted tickets. Please see https://www.myswissalps.com/saverdaypass for details.
About the route options from Zurich to Zermatt:
- After arrival, I’d advise you to first spend a day at ease in Zurich: it’s a lovely city (https://www.myswissalps.com/zurich). Then catch an early train next day to Chur in order to board the Glacier Express to Zermatt. Or travel to Chur after arrival and spend the night there. You can study the Glacier Express timetable using the links at https://www.myswissalps.com/glacierexpress/gettingthere.
- If you prefer to go to Zermatt on your arrival day, you may like the scenic RegioExpress Lötschberger as an alternative: https://www.myswissalps.com/lotschberger.
About changing trains:
- Where and how you change trains depends on the connection you pick. For example: if you want to use the quickest train to Zermatt right from the airport, you may need a change only once in Visp. Other connections require more or other changes, for example at Zurich’s main station. You can find details for each connection with the aid of the advanced timetable. This page explains how to use and interpret it: https://www.myswissalps.com/timetable.
- Don’t worry about missing a train if connection times are tight and you need some time with your toddler. As long as you have a (discounted) regular ticket or Saver Day Pass, you can board any train that suits you and just catch the next one. Only special offers such as Supersaver tickets are for specific trains/departure times: https://www.myswissalps.com/traintickets/switzerland.
- This page might be helpful: http://www.myswissalps.com/train/practical/howtotravel.
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