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How to take the fabulous rail journey from Zurich to Tirano
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Zürich / Zurich to Tirano by train
The railway which winds through the Bernina Pass and on to Tirano in northern Italy is undeniably fantastic and a journey by it is easily managed from Zurich!
Routes you can take to go from Zürich / Zurich to Tirano
When travelling between most cities by train there is only one logical option, though on other journeys there is a choice between different trains or alternative routes. If different options are available you can use the info to decide which is best for you.
Choose one of the following options:
Looking for connections?
Route Information
Via stations: Chur, Samedan and Pontresina
Option 1 - taking the regular trains
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
5hr 45min (approx)
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
1 x connection per hour
Purchase Tickets
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Trainline Guide
Other Ticket Providers
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.
Travel Information
Don't be put off by the need to make four connections, none of them are complicated and you efforts will be rewarded by riding the most fantastic Swiss rail journey!
The timetable is usually arranged so that all that's required at each station is to step off one train to board the next, which will be leaving from the opposite side of the platform / track.
If you will be spending time in Zurich while using a rail pass, you can ride this entire route to Zurich without incurring additional charges.
Making the connection in Chur
The connecting time between trains at Chur station will only be around 4 mins, but this is Switzerland so making the connection can be virtually guaranteed.
To enable a stress-free transfer at Chur station. the train on to St. Moritz will depart from the opposite side of the same platform that the train from Zurich will have arrived at, so all you will have to do is walk across the platform from one train to the other.
If you will be travelling with any type of rail pass, including Saver Day Passes, you can just jump on the train to St. Moritz.
If you opt to travel with tickets, definitely book tickets for the end-to-end journey on SBB's booking service you won't have time to book tickets for the next RhB train to depart, on arrival at Chur station.
Making a return day trip:
To make the day trip to and from Tirano, the final departure which can taken, usually departs Zurich HB station at 10:38 (depart from Basel SBB at 09:33)
This journey is made up of 3 changes.
Train 1
Between Zürich HB / Zurich main station and ChurYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
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.
Train 2
Between Chur and SamedanYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Step on board for a journey on the incredible Albula Railway!
Sit on the right (when facing the direction of travel) when joining the train at Chur and face forwards for the best views of the Landwasser Viaduct and tunnel.
The videos were taken from a train travelling in the opposite direction.
Overall the best of the views are from the right of the train when heading south...
..but you'll still experience an incredible journey if your seats are on the left hand side.
Train 3
Between Samedan and PontresinaYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
This part of the route takes less than 10 minutes.
Train 4
Between Pontresina and TiranoYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
these trains also call at: Poschiavo
What makes it special:
This train ride on the Bernina Route of the Rhateian (RhB) Railway is a journey of six distinct phases
1: St Moritz <> Bernina Suot via Pontresina
2: Bernina Suot <> Alp Grum
3: Alp Grum <> Cavaglia
4: Cavaglia <> Poschiavo
5: Poschiavo <> Miralago
6: Miralogo <> Tirano
What makes this train ride so special is that each of those parts of the journey have distinct highlights; note how it's the only route on this list with a 'yes' against all the four criteria!
The videos were captured when travelling in the opposite direction from Tirano to St Moritz.
As you head south from St Moritz and Pontresina, the best of the journey will be ahead of you
The train ride as far as Bernina Suot station is delightful, but it doesn’t have the wow factor of the second phase of this part of the journey between there and on to Alp-Grum station.
Between those two stations the trains travel through the stunning Bernina Pass, which due to its elevation and lack of vegetation, has an other-worldly quality in the height of summer....
.... but a snow covered landscape is pretty-much guaranteed between November and April.
As the train traverses the Bernina Pass, it passes by some small lakes, these can be seen on the right when heading south, so are on the left when travelling north from Tirano; the snowy scenes were captured by SMTJ on the second weekend in May.
The third phase of the journey comes when the train exits the pass just to the north of Alp-Grum station the on-board commentary available on all of the trains which follow this route, will point out the view of the glacier on the other side of Lago Palu.
The fourth phase of a southbound journey commences at Cavaglia station, between there and Poschiavo station the railway loops like a snake on the mountain side; and on this part of the route, at the top of this summit, there are second-to-none views from a train to revel in.
Because the railway loops across the mountain side, so that the trains can descend and ascend between Cavaglia and Poschiavo, there are incredible views back down the valley, from both sides of the train.
The highlight of the fifth phase of the journey between Poschiavo and Miralago station, are the beautiful views of the lake, the Lago di Poschiavo, along with the river to the south Poschiavo station, they are both on the left when heading south towards Tirano; so are on the right when heading north.
Between Miralago and Tirano the railway follows a valley and here the best of the views switch to the right when travelling south.
At the foot of this valley, just to the north of Tirano is the uniquely fabulous Brusio Spiral Viaduct.
Good to know:
This video was taken from a train travelling from Tirano to St Moritz and it showcases the weather extremes, which can be experienced on this trip.
The section of the route through the Bernina Pass had experienced a heavy snow fall on the previous day, but just a five minute train ride away to the south of the pass, there was no snow to be seen at all; so quite the wow moment, but sadly not guaranteed on every journey!
Tickets
Booking Tickets:
Tickets can be booked online for this end-to-end journey which involves taking a SBB train + the train(s) on to St.Moritz which are operated by RhB.
Online bookings open: up to six months ahead of the travel date
‘Individual tickets’ can be used on any train(s) on your travel date, but they tend to be comparatively expensive.
Supersaver tickets are cheaper, the portion of the journey by the SBB train can be discounted by up to 50%, but these tickets are train departure specific.
If you book a Supersaver ticket and a flight delay etc, causes you to miss a train you are booked on to, you will have to book another full-price ‘Individual Ticket(s).
You can then apply for a refund of the Supersaver ticket, but the application costs CHF 10.
Hence it’s worth comparing the ticket price of a journey with the price(s) of those Saver Day Passes; they might save you money and can also allow for a less stressful journey.
Using Saver Day Passes:
Now that the Swiss Transfer tickets have been discontinued a Saver Day Pass may save you money, if you can book at least a couple of weeks ahead (usually), so that you can obtain the pass at a discounted price.
They can be cheaper than tickets for the end-to-end journey, though they are more likely to be a money saver if you will be making a day return trip between Zurich and St.Moritz even if you can book in advance.
They can be used on;
- the trains between Zurich Fughafen/Airport and Zurich HB station
- the trains between Zurich HB and Chur
- the trains between Chur and St. Moritz.
They are not train specific, so can still be used in the event of a journey to Switzerland being delayed.
Though they’re only valid for one day’s travel, the clue is the name, so if you will be travelling back on another date, you’ll need to purchase another Saver Day Pass for your return journey.
However, they need to be booked at least a day ahead of your travel date, so won't be an option if you book tickets at the station on arrival in Switzerland.
They're also cheaper the further ahead that you book.
Route Information
Via stations: Chur
Option 2 - connecting into the Bernina Express
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
5hr 52min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
1 x connection per day
Purchase Tickets
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.
Travel Information
The train which typically departs Zurich at 12:07 connects in Chur to the year round afternoon Bernina Express, which departs at 13:34 and arrives in Tirano at 17:59 - in time to connect into a train on to Milano that is typically scheduled to arrive in Centrale station at 20:40
Though the arrival time in Tirano is too late to make an immediate return journey back to Zurich.
This journey is made up of 1 change.
Train 1
Between Zürich HB / Zurich main station and ChurYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
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.
Train 2
Between Chur and TiranoYou will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Chur to Filisur
When heading south, the best views are of;
- the River Rhine between Chur and Reichenau-Tamins,
- the Lake Alora north of Tiefencastel,
- the views looking down on that village and the village named Surava
- the valley to the north of the Landwasser Viaduct AND the viaduct itself, are all over on THE RIGHT.
So if you will be heading north from St Moritz try to find seats on the left; and if you want to see the viaduct, then occupy backwards facing seats.
Filisur to Pontresina:
The two wow moments on this part of the journey are a result of the railway using spiraling loops cut into the mountain side to gain height, as the trains ascend or descend there are spectacular views looking back down the valley.
These spirals are located just to the south of Filisur station...
....and between Bergun station and Preda station, to the north of the Albula Tunnel.
Pontresina to Tirano:
This train ride on the Bernina Route of the Rhateian (RhB) Railway is a journey of six distinct phases
1: Pontresina <> Bernina Suot
2: Bernina Suot <> Alp Grum
3: Alp Grum <> Cavaglia
4: Cavaglia <> Poschiavo
5: Poschiavo <> Miralago
6: Miralogo <> Tirano
What makes this train ride so special is that each of those parts of the journey have distinct highlights;
The videos were captured when travelling in the opposite direction from Tirano to St Moritz.
As you head south from St Moritz and Pontresina, the best of the journey will be ahead of you
The train ride as far as Bernina Suot station is delightful, but it doesn’t have the wow factor of the second phase of this part of the journey between there and on to Alp-Grum station.
Between those two stations the trains travel through the stunning Bernina Pass, which due to its elevation and lack of vegetation, has an other-worldly quality in the height of summer....
.... but a snow covered landscape is pretty-much guaranteed between November and April.
As the train traverses the Bernina Pass, it passes by some small lakes, these can be seen on the right when heading south, so are on the left when travelling north from Tirano; the snowy scenes were captured by SMTJ on the second weekend in May.
The third phase of the journey comes when the train exits the pass just to the north of Alp-Grum station the on-board commentary available on all of the trains which follow this route, will point out the view of the glacier on the other side of Lago Palu.
The fourth phase of a southbound journey commences at Cavaglia station, between there and Poschiavo station the railway loops like a snake on the mountain side; and on this part of the route, at the top of this summit, there are second-to-none views from a train to revel in.
Because the railway loops across the mountain side, so that the trains can descend and ascend between Cavaglia and Poschiavo, there are incredible views back down the valley, from both sides of the train.
The highlight of the fifth phase of the journey between Poschiavo and Miralago station, are the beautiful views of the lake, the Lago di Poschiavo, along with the river to the south Poschiavo station, they are both on the left when heading south towards Tirano; so are on the right when heading north.
Between Miralago and Tirano the railway follows a valley and here the best of the views switch to the right when travelling south.
At the foot of this valley, just to the north of Tirano is the uniquely fabulous Brusio Spiral Viaduct.
Tickets
On the Bernina Express website, click the hard to miss 'Book now' button, be aware that a ticket + a reservation are required to travel in the Panoramic cars/coaches and these can be booked separately.
Or if you have a valid rail pass, including Eurail, InterRail and Swiss Travel Passes, you will only need a reservation
Booking more than two months ahead
Note that when:
1: This is the price of the reservation.
2: Note that you are made aware that you will need to book tickets at a later date, they're available from two months ahead.
3: You can specify the number of travellers, the maximum per booking is nine.
4: It can be worth checking the specific seat availability on each departure.
5: These green buttons indicate the seat availability in the class you wish to travel by; one button = few seats left; 4 = very high availability.
If you will be using a valid rail pass...
... you can use the reductions options to select it, so that your pass will be on the reservation - you will need to travel with your pass and the reservation.
To book the tickets, return to the website
and book an 'Ordinary ticket'
Have your reservation to hand, as most of the options available will be for trains other than the Bernina Express departures and you need to book a ticket for the same train that you have reserved.
They're called Ordinary tickets, because these are what you can book if you don't want to travel in the panoramic cars/coaches; the additional cost to ride in the panoramic coaches is the reservation fee, which you will have already booked.
Booking up two months ahead
Note that...
... because the tickets are already on sale, that the cost of the reservation has already been included.
The total cost at top right is for the ticket + reservation.
However, if you will be using a valid rail pass you can click on the reductions to select your rail pass, as above.
You will then see:
1: The pass you will be using.
2: The ticket cost will be 0.
3: The price will have dropped to that which is charged solely for the seat reservation in the Panoramic coaches.
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