London to Switzerland by train

Travelling by train from the UK to Switzerland in a single day is typically straightforward, and the journey is only is around two hours longer than when heading to Scotland from London by train.
Though making an overnight journey isn't an option, because there are no sleeper trains over the Franco/Swiss border.

Somewhat inevitably direct trains aren't available, but the usual connections have easily timed transfers.
Though making the journey in either direction on the fastest routes requires a transfer across Paris city centre between two of the city's finest stations, the Gare Du Nord and the Gare De Lyon.
The stations are linked by local cross-city RER trains, so you won't have to squeeze on to the Metro - and the connection typically takes less than 30 minutes.
The end-to-end journey options all typically allow at least 80 minutes to make the transfers, so there's usually no need to race against the clock.

The other key piece of practical information is awareness of the check-in times for the Eurostar at St Pancras International station - at the Gare De Lyon in Paris you simply hop on board.

Note that this guide is steering away from specifying the time required - and it also doesn't include specific departure and arrival times of the trains, the reason being that these timings can be fluid.
For example, Eurostar has made multiple changes to its recommended check-in times and the specific train details can vary due to works on the lines.

The specific details of the trains on your travel dates can be looked up when booking tickets.
However, if you can't see the usual train service, referenced in this guide, there are two factors which can affect this:

• the usual service is being disrupted on your travel date, or
• the ticket agents is pre-filtering the options and is only offering the simplest / fastest combination of trains for end-to-end journey bookings - meaning that separate tickets will be required for alternative routes and options.

Eurostar does not sell tickets for the journeys from London to Switzerland, but they can be booked with Trainline.
It will sell tickets for the end-to-end journey options which involve taking the Eurostar to/from Paris + the direct trains between Paris and Switzerland + journeys on to other destinations in Switzerland
Though Trainline's tech can tend to automatically favour what the majority of travellers logically require, namely the cheapest price and fastest end-to-end journey times = at the departure time and date which are being looked up.

When travelling to destinations served by the trains from Paris, tickets can be available up to 6 months ahead of the travel date; it depends on when tickets become available for the Lyria trains on from Paris and not when tickets are released for the Eurostar.
Though the booking period will be shorter if you want to travel after the second Sunday in December, tickets for travel on and after this date aren't usually placed in sale until October.

If you're used to children aged 5-15 travelling at a 50% discount on British trains, it may be a surprise that these terms don't apply to journeys by train between Britain and Switzerland.
There's no discount on the route at all on the most direct route for those aged 12 to 15 at the time of travel, so those in this age group are charged the Adult fare.
That's because the French national child ticket policy with a discount of 50% only applies to travellers aged 5 to 11 and under
However, the child discount for those aged for 5 to 11 for the journeys by the Eurostar and by the Lyria trains to Switzerland, is even less generous at only around a third off the Adult rate.

Children aged 4 and under travel for free if you travel with them on your lap.

There is no discount available on the journeys for Senior Travellers, as Eurostar doesn't offer a discount and those aged 60 and over can only travel at a reduced rate on the Lyria trains if they also have the required railcard.

If you will be traveling by train from outside the London area to the capital in order to connect into a Eurostar, special discounted tickets are available, which are known as tickets to 'London International CIV'; the CIV ensures that they offer the protection into a subsequent Eurostar departure in the event of the train to London being delayed.
Though they can only be booked at station ticket desks; if you go to the station and book in advance (shortly after you have booked your Eurostar ticket) they will be cheaper, though they can also be booked on the travel date.

This information was gleaned from the ever fabulous Seat61.

Aside from the novelty of the tunnel under the English Channel combined with the speed of the train, the Eurostar route from London to Paris isn't particularly scenic, though it has some wow moments...

Around ten minutes after departure from Paris the Lyria trains move on to the LGV Sud East on which they travel at more than 285 km/h.

Though the trains don't travel on the Swiss scenic rail routes - the stations in Basel and Geneve are close to the border.
The only scenic highlight of the journey to Basel and Zurich occurs from around 10 minutes prior to arrival in Dijon, where sweeping views over the landscape can be seen from right-hand side of the train.

The final hour is the most scenic section of the journey to Geneve, which is after the train has left the high speed line and passed through Bourg-en-Bresse.
Two lakes are passed on the left and after Bellegarde, the River Rhone is on the right, but the views can only be best appreciated from the upper deck of the trains.

There are direct trains on from Paris to Basel with double-deck TGV trains branded as 'Lyria' used for all departures.

The usual easiest option when travelling from London is to take the Eurostars which typically provide a generously timed 1hr 20mins to make the transfer from the Gare Du Nord to Gare De Lyon into these Lyria services.
On Trainline look for the options with the Eurostar and Lyria logos.

The timings of the Eurostars from London St Pancras International which offer good connections on from Paris vary according to the day of the week, so the latest departure times of the day can vary from around 12:30 to around 14:00 (2pm)

The ticket agents will only sell end-to-end journeys by train from Britain to Switzerland which involve travelling from the Gare Du Nord to the Gare De Lyon, as it is the fastest and cheapest route.
However, it's possible to avoid the transfer across the French capital when travelling from London to Basel by train.

The two route options will involve the booking of separate tickets for parts of the journey so they are more expensive, but they can be easier.

The first daily option, that's typically available, is to take these trains:

1. The Eurostar which departs London at around 11:00 for Lille,
2. Around 35 mins after the Eurostar should have arrived, a TGV will depart Lille at around 14:00 for Strasbourg,
3. Around 30 mins after arrival in Strasbourg a train will depart, which is due into Basel SBB station shortly after 19:00.
   The end-to-end journey time will be close to seven hours, so not much slower than travelling via Paris, but separate tickets are usually required for the London to Lille journey and the Lille to Basel journey - but if a delay to the Eurostar causes a missed connection, the ticket on to Basel will need to be re-booked.

The other daily option, on which different precise combinations of trains are available according to the travel date is to travel via Bruxelles and Koln/Cologne:

• by Eurostar from London to Bruxelles-Midi;
• by ICE train from Bruxelles-Midi to Frankfurt Flughafen - an exceptionally easy station in which to transfer between ICE trains;
• by ICE train from Frankfurt Flughafen to Basel bad bf - a different station in Basel.
  Though the end-to-end journey time is around 8hr 30mins, and both completing the journey in this time - and the validity of the ticket for the Bruxelles to Basel trains, are dependent on making a 20 min connection at Midi station.

There is an overnight train from Koln to Basel, but it arrives in the city before 06:30 - and the connections into this train from London can be summarized as inconvenient.
The departure time, for those who will be happy to have an evening meal in Koln/Cologne in the 3 hour + gap between trains, is shortly after 15:00 - which is only around an hour after the final daytime connection will have typically left London.

Users of Eurail and InterRail passes have to pay mandatory rail pass reservation fees on some European train services.
Two of the three services with the most expensive of these fees are Eurostar and the Lyria trains betweeen Paris and Switzerland.

Though for British residents, what can tip the balance in favour of InterRail is that the journeys to and from London, to connect in and out of the Eurostar, will be covered by the pass.

Booking seats on Eurostar

The Eurostar ticket prices can be more than 4x more expensive than the rail pass reservation fees, so Eurail and InterRail can be value for money, particularly if you have first class pass.
The quota of seats available on each Eurostar departure is is limited and it's not unknown for it to sell out on some departures months ahead, particularly for travel in June to August and around holiday dates at other times of year.
Reservations on Eurostar trains can now be booked up to 330 days ahead of the travel date.

Because you will need to travel by a specific Eurostar departure when travelling to and from Switzerland, you'll want to check that rail pass reservations are available for the train you need to take prior to buying a pass
The availability can be looked up on B-Europe as it will show which trains are still available - and you don't need to already have a pass to check this

Also avoid thinking, 'great I can see the reservations on B-Europe, so I'll book the pass now and go back to B-Europe tomorrow' - because at busy times the reservations can be sold out by the time you go back online.
It can be a good idea to return to B-Europe to book the reservations as soon as you have made a pass purchase - and therefore have a pass number.

Avoiding the Lyria trains

The rail pass reservation fees for journeys by TGV train solely within France, are more than 50% cheaper for rail pass users, compared to the riding the Lyria services.
And the Lyria services can be easily avoided as there are TGV trains from Paris on to Colmar, Mulhouse and Strasbourg - and from all three stations there are TER trains on to Basel, which don't incur any fees at all.
Though for those planning to stop over in Paris on route to Switzerland, it's possible to leave Paris before 09:00 and travel to Basel on cheaper alternatives to paying the fees on the TGV trains.

However, it's also possible to travel from London to Switzerland in a day by train and only pay the rail pass reservation fee on the Eurostar - though the end-to-end journey time will be around 8hr 45mins.
If you travel via Bruxelles and Frankfurt, making reservations on the pair of ICE trains that need to be taken on from Bruxelles is optional when travelling with an InterRail or Eurail pass.
The connection between ICE trains in Frankfurt Flughafen station is an easily timed 30 mins - and making the transfer here is recommended, as the train on to Basel will depart from the same set of gleis (platforms/tracks) that the train from Bruxelles will arrive at.
The potential complication is that when departing London at around 09:00, 11:00 or 13:00, the ICE train on from Bruxelles-Midi station will be departing around 20 mins after the arrival of the Eurostar.
Ideal if the Eurostar arrives on time, but it doesn't allow for much contingency in the event of a delay, though when opting to leave London at around 09:00 or 11:00 there will be option of taking a subsequent ICE train on from Bruxelles, if need be.
Alternatively there is typically a Eurostar departure from London at around 08:15, which then allows more than an hour to make the connection in Bruxelles-Midi.

Basel is a great base for exploring Switzerland by train, but it is also where connections can be made with trains on to Bern and on to Luzern/Lucerne and on to Interlaken.
These destinations do not have direct trains from Paris, but Basel SBB station has been configured to make the transfer between trains as simple as possible - note that the Lyria services from Paris will arrive in the main part of the station.

To ski resorts from Basel
Connect in Luzern for Engelberg.
Connect in Interlaken for Grindelwald and for Wengen.

There are direct trains on from Paris to Geneve with double-deck TGV trains branded as 'Lyria' used for all departures.

The usual easiest option when travelling from London is to take the Eurostars which typically provide a generously timed 1hr 20mins to make the transfer from the Gare Du Nord to Gare De Lyon into these Lyria services.
On Trainline look for the options with the Eurostar and Lyria logos.

The travel time of the end-to-end journey from London to Geneve typically ranges from around 6hr 30mins to around 8hrs, depending on which Eurostar is taken from London St Pancras International.
The variation is to do with the gaps between the arrival of the Eurostar and the departure of the train on to Geneve, the faster end-to-end journeys allow slightly less than an hour between trains, so the longer journey tines make the going easier.

On Mondays to Saturdays the final connection of the day typically involves departing London at around 14:00, though on Sundays not leaving London until around 16:00 is usually an option.

The ticket agents will only sell end-to-end journeys by train from London to Geneve which involve travelling from the Gare Du Nord to the Gare De Lyon in Paris, as it is the fastest and cheapest route.
However, it's possible to avoid the transfer across the French capital when travelling from London to Geneve by train.

Though it involves the booking of separate tickets for parts of the journey so it is more expensive - but the journey time of around 7hr 30mins* is quicker than the end-to-end journey options, which allow more than two hours to cross Paris.
*=the journey is an hour longer on Saturday.

The daily option, that's typically available, is to take these trains:

1. The Eurostar which departs London at around 11:00 for Lille,
2. Around 35 mins after the Eurostar should have arrived, a TGV will depart Lille at around 14:00 for Lyon,
3. On Monday to Friday and Sunday, around 35 mins after arrival in Lyon-Part Dieu station, a TER train will depart, which is due into Genve station shortly after 19:30 - on Saturdays the connecting train departs Lyon an hour later.

However, separate tickets are usually required for the London to Lille journey and the Lille to Geneve journey - but if a delay to the Eurostar causes a missed connection, the ticket on to Geneve will need to be re-booked.

Users of Eurail and InterRail passes have to pay mandatory rail pass reservation fees on some European train services.
Two of the three services with the most expensive of these fees are Eurostar and the Lyria trains betweeen Paris and Switzerland.
Though for British residents, what can tip the balance in favour of InterRail is that the journeys to and from London, to connect in and out of the Eurostar, will be covered by the pass.

Booking seats on Eurostar

The Eurostar ticket prices can be more than 4x more expensive than the rail pass reservation fees, so Eurail and InterRail can be value for money, particularly if you have first class pass.
The quota of seats available on each Eurostar departure is is limited and it's not unknown for it to sell out on some departures months ahead, particularly for travel in June to August and around holiday dates at other times of year.
Reservations on Eurostar trains can now be booked up to 330 days ahead of the travel date.

Because you will need to travel by a specific Eurostar departure when travelling to and from Italy, you'll want to check that rail pass reservations are available for the train you need to take prior to buying a pass
The availability can be looked up on B-Europe as it will show which trains are still available - and you don't need to already have a pass to check this

Also avoid thinking, 'great I can see the reservations on B-Europe, so I'll book the pass now and go back to B-Europe tomorrow' - because at busy times the reservations can be sold out by the time you go back online.
It can be a good idea to return to B-Europe to book the reservations as soon as you have made a pass purchase - and therefore have a pass number.

Avoiding the Lyria trains

The rail pass reservation fees for journeys by TGV train solely within France, are more than 50% cheaper for rail pass users, compared to the riding the Lyria services.
So the cheaper option when travelling from London to Geneve in a single day is to follow the route described above which involves making connections in Lille and Lyon.

The Geneve ↔ Brig railway is the gateway on to other locations in western Switzerland.

Its stations including Aigle, Bex, Martigny, Montreux and Sion aren't served by trains from Basel or Zurich.
Though all of the trains along this route also call in Lausanne around 40 minutes after departure from Geneve, hence many of the end-to end journeys on to these locations to the west, which are sold by Trainline, involve connecting in Lausanne rather than Geneve.
Whether the transfer is made in Geneve or Lausanne makes little difference to the journey time, or how easy the journey will be.
The stations in Geneve and in Lausanne have similar layouts, the access to and from the trains is by passages under the tracks, some of which have lifts / elevators up to the platforms, with the alternative access being by slopes.

To resort towns from Geneve (or Lausanne)

• on to Andermatt by connecting in Brig,
• on to Champery, Les Diablerets and Leysin, by connecting in Aigle,
• on to Crans-Montana by taking a bus on from Sierre,
• on to Villars-sur-Ollon, by connecting in Bex,
• on to Gstaad by connecting in Montreux,
• on to Morel, by connecting in Brig,
• on to Saas-Fee and Saas-Grund, by bus from Visp,
• on to Zermatt, by connecting in Visp.
  Visp also has trains from Basel, so some journey options to Zermatt which can be found online, involve connecting there.

The direct trains on from Paris to Lausanne take one of two routes; some of the trains to Geneve are extended to Lausanne - so some journey options offered by Trainline have an additional connection in Geneve, while other trains take a different route between Dijon and the Swiss border.
Though one route isn't exceptionally more scenic compared to the other - and it also makes little difference to the journey time.
The end-to-end time from London is typically around 7hr 5mins to 7hr 45mins - this is due to variations in the gap between arrival and departure in Paris and therefore the time in which to make the transfer from the Gare Du Nord to Gare De Lyon,
Double-deck TGV trains branded as 'Lyria' are used for all departures.

The only direct trains between France and Lausanne are the Lyria services from Paris and local trains from towns to the south of Lake Geneva.
So the options for avoiding Paris and saving money while using rail passes, are the same as those as when heading to Geneve, but with an additional connection required - there are typically at least four trains per hour from Geneve to Lausanne.

The trains from Paris to Lausanne which don't take the route through Geneve call in Frasne, where guaranteed connections are available with trains on to Neuchâtel.
The Eurostars from London which typically connect with the trains which call in Frasne, are those which depart from St Pancras International at around 07:00 on Monday to Friday and around 13:30 on Monday to Saturday.

The trains from Geneva to Aigle, Bex, Brig, Martigny, Montreux, Sion and Visp also call in Lausanne around 40 minutes after departure.
Hence many of the end-to end journeys on to these locations from London, which are sold by Trainline, involve connecting in Lausanne rather than Geneve.

The direct trains on from Paris to Zurich are the same departures which head to Basel, they call there during the journey, so double-deck TGV trains branded as 'Lyria' are used for all departures.

The usual easiest option when travelling from London is to take the Eurostars which typically provide a generously timed 1hr 20mins to make the transfer from the Gare Du Nord to Gare De Lyon into these Lyria services.
On Trainline look for the options with the Eurostar and Lyria logos.

The timings of the Eurostars from London St Pancras International which offer good connections on from Paris vary according to the day of the week, so the latest departure times of the day can vary from around 12:30 to around 14:00 (2pm).

The alternative journey options for both avoiding Paris and travelling with rail passes are the same as when travelling to Basel, but an additional connection will be required there into a train on to Zurich.

Zurich HB is an enormous multi-level rail station, but the trains from Paris and the trains on to other locations in Switzerland - which can be most easily accessed from London when connecting in Zurich, all use the same part of the terminal.
So the transfers between arrival and departure in Zurich HB simply involve walking from one train to another.

Many of the trains from Zurich on to Chur and to Landquart commence their journeys in Basel, so some of the end-to-end journey options available on Trainline involve making a connection in Basel instead of Zurich.

The lakeside resort towns of Locarno and Lugano have direct trains from Basel and from Zurich - which all also call in Bellinzona.
So some of the end-to-end journey options from London to these locations involve connecting in Basel, while others involve making the transfer between trains in Zurich - avoid the options which have an additional connection in Arth-Goldau.

To resort towns from Zurich

• on to Andermatt, by connecting in Goschenen,
• on to Arosa, by connecting in Chur
• on to Davos, by connecting in Landquart
• on to Klosters, by connecting in Landquart