Chur

Bern to Chur by train

How to take the rail journey from Bern to Chur

The Swiss capital is now connected to Chur, the gateway to the best of north-east Switzerland, by direct trains

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Routes

From Bern to Chur

Travel Information

Final Destination: Chur

All trains also call at: Landquart
Connect at Landquart into RhB trains towards Klosters and Davos.

Arriving in Chur:

Connect at Chur into RhB trains on towards St Moritz and Arosa.

Also connect at Chur for buses to the Laax-Flims-Falera ski resort, check the Chur station guide to access more info.

1 x train per hour

Final departure of the day is usually before 19:40.

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

These trains are operated by SOB and tickets can be booked on its website.

Tickets are also sold on the SBB, Swiss National Railways, website

When booking on the SBB website there are two things that are worth looking out for:
(1) If you want to to specifically travel by direct these trains on the more scenic route, look for IR in the ‘travel with’ column; SBB will also offer other options, which involve taking 2 x express IC trains and connecting in Zurich.
(2) Cheaper ‘Supersaver’ tickets (those with a % symbol on a red button) are available on these IR trains between Zurich and Chur
You’re most likely to find these Supersaver tickets if you book around 4 - 8 weeks ahead.
You may need to search through the departures to find these 'Supersaver' tickets using the ‘earlier’ and ‘later’ buttons, so try and be flexible with your departure and arrival times.

Though if you want to make a day trip from Bern there's a possibility that a Saver Day Pass, will be a cheaper option.

Using Eurail or InterRail Passes

If you have a Eurail or InterRail pass you can just hop on these trains.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
SOB *
SBB *

SBB Guide

SBB is the main national rail operator in Switzerland, but tickets for journeys by the other significant operators including BLS and SOB can be be booked on the SBB website.

SBB also sells tickets for journeys to many destinations which involve a combination of SBB trains and services provided by the many independent operators who serve the Alpine resort towns.
However, if you will be making a long-distance return day trip, look out for he possibility of SaverDay passes being cheaper than tickets.

Though if you download the SBB app, booking tickets on SBB's mobile services can be simper than using the website.
Also watch out for the fact that booking international tickets can be comparatively quirky.

Happy rail *

Happy rail Guide

Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.

HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - YesLake viewsLandscape (Hills / Mountains)

Good to Know

If you'll be happy to change trains it can be possible to save around 40mins of travel time by taking an IC train from Bern to Zurich HB station and then connecting there for a second IC express train on to Chur.

Journey description:

This a journey of three distinct phases.

  1. The first phase is the journey through a pleasant rolling landscape between Bern and Olten, these trains take the more picturesque route now bypassed by the express trains, as they take the newer and straighter railway.
  2. The second part of the ride from Olten on to Zurich is the least scenic.
  3. This is the journey which saves the best 'til last, as once the trains emerge from the long tunnel , which they will travel through shortly after departure from Zurich, the remainder of the route on Chur is wonderful.

From the left of the train (when facing the direction) of travel, there are fabulous views over Lake Zurich...

and then over the Walensee...

...before the train calls in Sargans.

Then between Sargans and Chur there are very pleasant views of distant mountain ranges from both sides of the train.

Though as the will reverse direction on departure from Zurich take seats on the right-hand side when boarding in Bern in order to make the most of these views.

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