Glacier Express: Switzerland by Train
Enjoy some of most spectacular rail journeys in the world, including the Glacier Express and the Bernina Express, offering beautiful views over the Alps, from your bases at Interlaken and Chur - from where you can explore Switzerland by rail.
From £578 including rail and accomodation (based on two people sharing)
Greentraveller's Travel Advice: Switzerland is home to a world class rail network, making the train the sleek, stylish way to travel throughout the country. Visitors are continually impressed by its user-friendliness, efficiency, comfort and punctuality. Don't miss out: The world-famous Glacier Express and Bernina Express trains are only the most famous of a vast family of routes that hook over, scale around and disappear through Switzerland's spectacular mountains.
>> Read our Guide to Train Travel in Switzerland
Details of Glacier Express holiday
Travel on the celebrated Glacier Express and Bernina Express trains and take in the breathtaking Alpine scenery, whilst staying in the historic cities of Interlaken and Chur as bases to explore the rest of Switzerland by train.
Day 1 – London to Interlaken
Travel from London to Paris by Eurostar, before transferring onto the train to Basel and onward connection to Interlaken, where you'll spend 2 nights at the traditional Hotel du Nord, home to Interlaken's oldest wine cellar, as well as a bar and restaurant, a short walk from all the city has to offer (and the train station).
Day 2 - Interlaken
Day 3 - Glacier Express to Chur
Depart Interlaken after breakfast and head via the spectacular Lötschberg mountain via Kandersteg to Brig, where Glacier Express departs. This world famous train journey is a panoramic trip through the Swiss Alps from Brig to Chur, taking around 5 hours and travelling through mountain forests, peaceful Alpine meadows, and past rushing mountain streams and valleys.
Chur
On arrival in Chur check-in at the ABC Chur Hotel - a contemporary boutique hotel in the centre of Chur, close to the station. One of Switzerland's oldest cities, Chur is the capital of the Graubünden area, and has a historic old town full of traditional Alpine architecture, and is linked to winter and summer sport areas by a cable car.
Day 4 - Bernina Express
Departing from Chur the Bernina Express crosses the Alps, offering breathtaking views from the as you travel over spectacular viaducts, through sheer rock gorges and switch-back tunnels, alongside mountain streams and glaciers and climbing the 2253 metre high Bernina Pass. The entire trip is narrated, and food is available on board - this whole area is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Day 5 - Chur to London
Take the train to Basel where you connect with the highspeed TGV direct route to Paris. In Paris change onto Eurostar to the UK.
Holidays can be tailor-made for you to include different hotels, lengths of stay, departure dates and additional cities. The Glacier Express does not run between 1 November 2010 and 11 December 2010, but the journey can be made on local train services along the same route.
What price includes
- Eurostar and onward return travel from London
- Swiss Rail Pass
- Travel on Glacier and Bernina Express
- Hotel in interlaken with breakfast
- Boutique hotel accommodation in Chur
Location
Plan your journey by train
Meeting point:
London St Pancras International Station
London St Pancras
Transfer to meeting point:
Guests make their own way to meeting point
St Pancras station is connected both to the national and international train network and London underground (Kings Cross St Pancras station)
Plan your journey by train
Finish point:
London St Pancras International Station
London St Pancras
Transfer to finish point:
You will arrive back on the Eurostar to London St Pancras.
