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Zürich / Zurich to Chur by train
How to take the rail journey from Zurich to Chur.
SMTJ has compiled a list of the Europe's most epic journeys by regular express trains, but this Zurich to Chur rail journey didn't make the cut, because of is comparatively short length.
However, journeys by Intercity express trains of less than two hours don't get more fabulous than this!
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Routes
From Zürich HB / Zurich main station to Chur
Journey Summary
1hr 15min (approx)
Daily
Travel Information
Three of the daily departures, those which are usually scheduled to leave Zurich at 10:00 and 14:00 and 18:00, are by ICE4 trains that have travelled from Germany.
Final Destination: Chur
All trains also call at: Landquart
Connect at Landquart into RhB trains towards Klosters and Davos.
Departing From Zurich HB:
These trains will depart from the street level platforms/tracks at Zurich HB - gleis 3 - 18.
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.
From Zurich Flughafen/Airport:
There are now hourly direct trains between the station at Zurich Flughafen/Airport and Chur, but those trains take an indirect route via St Gallen.
So it's possible to save around 50 mins on a train journey from Zurich Airport to Chur, by changing trains at Zurich HB station.
Making the transfer will be much easier if you take a train from Zurich Flughafen to Zurich HB which uses the same part of Zurich HB station (platforms/tracks/gleis 3 - 18) that the trains on to Chur depart from.
So when taking a train from the airport target either;
- the trains on route S24 heading to Zug - every 30 mins.
- the IR trains to Luzern - every 30 mins.
- the IR train to Basel via via Brugg - 1 x train per hour.
1 - 2 x trains per hour
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes - If you book Supersaver tickets (more info is available on the the SBB ticket guide below)
You may need to search through the departures to find these 'Supersaver' tickets using the ‘earlier’ and ‘later’ button. So try and be flexible with your departure and arrival times.
Online bookings open: up to two months ahead of the travel date
If you will be making a return day trip to Chur from Zurich, be open to the possibility that Saver Day Passes are likely to be a cheaper option than booking return tickets
Seat reservations:
Seat reservations are optional on Swiss IC trains, so seats won't be assigned when booking online.
You can book reservations online for journeys by these IC trains, AFTER you have booked a ticket, by using the SBB (Swiss national railways) seat reservation service OR request a reservation when booking at a station ticket office.
Travelling with a rail pass:
Rail pass users can jump on any train, without having to make reservations.
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| SBB | * | |
| Trainline | * | |
| Happy rail | * | |
| Omio | * |
On this journey
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
The timetable is arranged so that connecting into the Rhaetian Railway (Rhb) trains on to St Moritz is a simple as possible.
The train from Zurich will arrive at an adjacent gleis (platform/track), so all that's required is to walk across the gleis to the St Moritz train, which will be awaiting departure, it will leave around 5 mins after the train from Zurich has arrived.
Journey description:
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 makes its first station call in Sargans
Then between Sargans and Chur there are very pleasant views of distant mountain ranges from both sides of the train.
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