St. Gallen & Voralpen Express – from Zurich

  • Removed user
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    19 March 2018 at 18:49:43 #814859

    Hi all,

    I made a last minute trip from Zurich to St. Gallen today and then on the Voralpen Express train to Arth-Goldau and back to Zurich. The Voralpen Express route runs from St. Gallen to Lucerne in about 2 hours and 15 minutes.

    You can see a picture of the route attached below along with some other photos of the day.

    The Voralpen Express train itself is quite standard. The Express designation may lead people to think it is a panoramic train like the Glacier Express or Bernina Express trains – it isn’t. 🙂

    It wasn’t a super nice day today (we got a few inches of snow last night) so it wasn’t terribly scenic. I would guess this route in the summer is quite nice. I tried getting ready to take some photos of the viaducts on this route but they came and went to quickly for any images (and I think the snow-white scenery didn’t help me notice that I was above a valley all of a sudden!

    It was nice to see St. Gallen though. I went to see the library (The Abbey library of Saint Gall & in German: Stiftsbibliothek) which was constructed in the mid 1700’s (Carolingian-era monastery).
    Entrance is 12chf but I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures (with my DSLR or my cell phone) so I declined to pay the fee. Attached is a picture of a picture of the inside of the library. 😉

    If you have the time and can handle a detour going between Luzern & Zurich it is a good choice in the summer. It is a great choice if you are heading to that region of Switzerland specifically (Appenzell or on to Davos or St. Moritz from central Switzerland.

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    Removed user
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    20 March 2018 at 3:27:06 #879237

    Hi Lucas, thanks for the trip report and photos! I have dim memories of that route, which I last travelled on over 7 years ago, but some beautiful green rolling hills left a lasting impression on me. I hope to find time to do it again on a future trip.

    Alpenrose

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    21 March 2018 at 7:23:13 #879238

    Yes, I think a summer ride would be quite a bit nicer that right now. 🙂

    rockoyster
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    8889 posts
    28 March 2018 at 6:58:50 #879239

    Hi Lucas,

    I missed this when you posted it. Thanks for sharing. We went that way last year on our way from Luzern to Konstanz. Wishing now we had stopped off at St Gallen for a look see. Looks great.

    Not only is the Voralpen not a panoramic you would be hard pressed to call it an express. 😎 Nice ride nonetheless.

    Removed user
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    28 March 2018 at 12:32:09 #879240

    Yeah, they are optimistic on the name eh? haha. In the summer it would be quite lovely.

    Did you see the viaducts at all just before St. Gallen? I missed them in the snow…hard to see from train at any time I think.

    rockoyster
    Participant
    8889 posts
    28 March 2018 at 19:34:48 #879241

    Unfortunately the viaducts flash by. You would need sharp reflexes to get any sort of photo.

    cam223
    Participant
    97 posts
    28 March 2018 at 20:47:55 #879242

    We took a train from Chur to St. Gallen years ago. The library was spectacular–glad we were able to see it. As I recall the train trip on a sunny day was quite nice.

    Removed user
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    29 March 2018 at 5:22:33 #879243

    The library indeed looks spectacular. I was too annoyed by the fact I couldn’t take pictures that I stubbornly refused to pay and go in. haha. I think the receptionist was surprised.

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