The first stage of the straightforward journey by train and gondola from Geneve to the resort town of Villars is to take the train to Bex.
Final Destination: St Maurice
In 2019 the train service to Bex from Geneve was altered, with what could be a sporadic service of IR trains replaced with a typically hourly regular service of RE (Regional-Express) trains.
Unlike those IR services, these RE trains to Bex don't depart from the station at Geneve-Aeroport, so a connection is required at the main station in Geneve.
However, they do commence their journeys at Geneve-Eaux-Vives station, so Bex is easily accessed by train from the south side of Geneva city centre.
1 or 2 trains per hour (an hourly service is the norm)
Book early and save: No
The discounted 'Supersaver' tickets are not available for journeys by RE trains.
Also end-to-end tickets are not available online for journeys to Villars-sur-Ollon or Col-de-Bretaye, so tickets for the onward train will need to be purchased on arrival at Bex station.
Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
---|---|---|
SBB | * |
To Villars
The BVB railway (operated by TPC connects Bex SBB to Col-de-Bretaye via Villars-sur-Ollon.
The connecting time between trains at Bex will be around 7 mins.
There is 1 x train per hour between Bex and Villars-sur-Ollon, but in ski season there are 2 x trains per hour between Villars-sur-Ollon and Col-de Bretaye.
Direct trains don’t operate the full length of the BVB line between Bex and Col-de-Bretaye.
Connections have to be made at Villars-sur-Ollon, so don't exit at this station if you want to head directly to the ski lifts, take the other onward train instead
From the terminus at Col-de-Bretaye there are multiple lifts/gondolas leading up to the slopes of the Villars ski resort.
The station at Col-de Bretaye is closer to the lifts than the stations in Villars-sur-Ollon village and La Barboleuse.
The journey from Bex to Col-de-Bretaye takes around 1hr with a change of train of Villars-sur-Ollon; the part of the journey from Bex to Villars-sur-Ollon takes around 40 mins.
A plus of the fact that seat reservations aren't available on these trains between Geneve and Bex is that when boarding, you can choose your seat(s).
Those facing forwards on the right (when facing the direction of travel) have the best views.
The highlight of the journey is between Lausanne and Villeneuve (to the south of Montreux), when the train travels on or near the shores of Lake Geneva.
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