MySwissAlps.com features ads, commercial and non-commercial Wengen to London by train or plane?
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Hi all,
4 of us will be leaving Wengen for London on the 15th of June. I am still contemplating between taking a flight from Zurich or Basel. However, the check-in baggage fees seems exorbitant. Considering the train ride to the airport would take close to 2hrs, check in and all another 1.5hrs, flight itself probably 1hr.. All in all will take almost 6hrs. That being said, wouldn’t it make more sense for me to take a train to London which I understand is close to 7hrs… Any advice?
1) Will the SHF be applicable to the train to London?
2) How should I proceed to take the train from Wengen to London? Do the trains have sufficient space for 4 large luggages and comfortable legroom for a proper rest? What are the fees ranging from?
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1. If you mean the Swiss Half-fare Card then it will only provide a discount to the Swiss border (ie as far as Basel).
2. You can use the Swiss Train Timetable (http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable) to search for Wengen to London. The fastest I could see was 11 hours 6 minutes via Basel and Paris. Seats will generally be better than on cattle class in aeroplanes and it is much easier to wander around, go to the bar etc. You should be OK with luggage.
11hours? Then i shall stick to planes.
You’re welcome.
Hi Rockoyster,
I loved both of your replies. 😉
Hi,
When I read your trip timetable, I thought “What about catching an overnight train? That can be fun!”, so I looked it up. Take the plane! The train departing Wengen at 1937 takes almost 15 .5 hours with 9 changes including one bus section! I love Swiss trains, but I have to draw the line somewhere. The quickest one I found leaves at 0538 and is only (only?) about 10 hours with 4 changes. That’s the bulk of your day gone. I know faffing around airports can be hard work, but this time it might be the better option.
Good Luck,
Alan
Yes, the only good overnight trains (at least schedule-wise) I’ve found (as there are few other if any in Europe now) are with ÖBB in Austria. Great options between Vienna, Zurich, Berlin or Hamburg! And a very nice experience!
Switzerland is such a small country that there isn’t enough time to get a decent sleep before you get to one of its borders, no mater which route you pick (even a “long” one like Geneva to St. Gallen), and even if you cold find a foreign train with sleeping cars. When I was young the only overnight trains I recall were the ones running from Germany through Switzerland to Italy. The big disadvantage in my mind is that when you are on a night train you are sliding by all kinds of interesting scenery and missing it all. I should add that not all scenery is created equal.
One of my current projects is to go across Russia on the Trans-Siberian. I’m sure I’ll be missing some interesting scenery but if I got off the train to sleep at a stop each night, that would probably double the total time required to complete the trip, from one week to two. But it might be worth it for some parts of the run.
I wonder if the Copenhagen – Oslo, Oslo – Stockholm, and Stockholm – Copenhagen overnight trains are still running.
Hi Peter,
I did the Trans-Siberian about 10 years ago and it was quite the experience! I spent about 18 days doing the total trip (got off for a few days at 5 different cities). That was in December – I hope to do it again in the summer soon. Russia is always an exciting travel experience!
Hi Lucas,
I once saw a program by Les Grands Explorateurs that featured the Trans-Siberian, and the presenter did showed the trip in Winter and in Summer, and ever since then I have thought I would like to do it in both seasons. Lake Baikal must be stunning in Winter. I imagine I would take more time to do it in Summer because the temperatures outside of the train wagons would be much more inviting; quite continental, in fact. So far I have watched many videos on YouTube and they have been pretty good, but no substitute for doing the real thing. My only concern is being able to find food that agrees with me. I don’t relish smoked fish. Maybe I should pack a whole lot of health bars.
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