12-Day Swiss Alps Grand Rail Tour

Arrive early and acclimate!

For more peace of mind, add the Pre-Tour Airport Meet-and-Greet option when booking the 12-Day rail tour. Click here for more details....

Old Town, Lucerne

Day 2 is a delightful introduction to the Swiss transportation experience in Switzerland, a travel system of interlocking parts, all of which are perfectly synchronized.

In the morning we will visit Mt. Pilatus, it's the mountain you see from Lucerne. In getting to the top, you will experience different modes of transportation such as;  local bus, gondola, cable car and cogwheel rail,  still the steepest (48% grade) cogwheel train in the world.

In the afternoon in addition to visiting a mountain, "Aschwanden", cheese-dairy farm & hearing first-hand how cheese is made, you will see where Switzerland was founded, "Rüetli" in  1291 and enjoy the magnificent Swiss Alps scenery. In returning to Lucerne you will travel via funicular and enjoy dinner in the first-class section on one of Lake Lucerne's historic Lake Steamers.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Continental Park Hotel (or comparable lodging)
Transport: Mt. Pilatus Rail, local bus and Lake Steamer

Descending Mt. Pilatus on the world's steepest cogwheel railway

We depart on the Voralpen Express, traveling through the rolling landscapes of Eastern Switzerland to St Gallen where well visit the Abbey Library–one of the oldest libraries in the world. Built in the 9th Century A. D., the library maintains priceless manuscript collections from the Carolingian and Ottonian period. In the afternoon, we'll continue on to Chur, where we will change the train and pass by breathtaking Eastern Swiss mountain landscapes before arriving in St.Moritz.

Once in St. Moritz, we will take the legendary Muottas Muragl Funicular where we have dinner on top of the mountain overlooking the Engadin valley, between the towns of Samedan, St. Moritz and Pontresina.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Hauser Hotel (or comparable lodging)
Transport: Volrapen Express, Glacier Express

Glacier Express crossing the Landwasser Viaduct, Albula Railway

Our group boards the Bernina Express to travel across the highest railway in the Alps, a route that offers spectacular views of mountain peaks, glaciers and waterfalls. These are the Alps at their most impressive. In the afternoon, after we have visited the 9,700ft  Diavolezza summit and return to St. Moritz, there is an opportunity to do a 1 ½ hr leisurely walk through the forest on the public path from Pontresina to St. Moritz. The rest of the day there is time to stroll around St. Moritz and explore on your own.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Hauser Hotel (or comparable lodging)
Transport: Bernina Express

Corvatsch

Day 5 provides another opportunity to take the Glacier Express route with panoramic train cars, universally acclaimed as one of the world’s great railway journeys. You'll cross the Albula line and Landwasser Viaduct a UNESCO world heritage site. The train continues along the Rhine Gorge (Switzerland’s ‘Grand Canyon’) and up to the Oberalp Pass (2033 meters/6000 feet). Enjoy a rarity, a hot meal at your seat, as the train climbs over 1000 meters from Disentis to Oberalp, before arriving at Andermatt in the early afternoon.

In the afternoon you will have options of things to do. You can go to the hotel and relax, walk around the village of Andermatt, explore the Chedi hotel, and/or walk or take the train to the famous Devil’s Bridge. The Devil's bridge, which was built from wood back in the 13th century and replaced by a stone bridge in about 1585, provides access to the Schöllenen Gorge today and carries traffic across the Gotthard pass from north to south and vice versa. The stone bridge has been replaced and extended several times over the years. The newest bridge dates back to 1956.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Crown Hotel (or comparable lodging)
Transport: Glacier Express, Furka Cogwheel Steam Train

In the morning, we'll ride up to the Gotthard Pass summit to get a sense of Switzerland’s defence system during World War II. A Swiss military historian will be on hand when we visit the formerly top-secret Elsasso Gothardo military bunker built to protect Switzerland’s southern flank from invading forces. If you tire of military relics, there are plenty of trails and beautiful mountain scenery to explore.

In the afternoon, the group will take a two hour ride on the Furka cogwheel steam train, a historic train, fully restored to its original condition. The second highest rail crossing in Europe, after the Bernina, the Furka steam train offers unparalleled views of the Rhone and Mutt glaciers.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Hotel Crown (or comparable lodging)

Swiss Artillery Fort Furggels near the village of St. Magrethenberg

Today we say adieu to Andermatt, as we travel through the Furka Tunnel linking the German-speaking region of Switzerland to the Swiss Canton of Valais where both Swiss German and French is spoken. Notably, the Swiss German dialect in Valais is renowned for its complexity, often proving a challenge to understand.

The Furka Base Tunnel, an integral part of the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn's Furka–Oberalp railway line, facilitates the east-west railway connection between the cantons of Valais and Uri.

Our destination is the charming Zermatt, where we'll arrive early enough to leisurely explore the town, where views of the iconic Matterhorn await at every turn. You'll even have time for some shopping and the opportunity to indulge in the wellness offerings at our hotel.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Resort La Ginabelle (or comparable lodging)

Approaching the Matterhorn

Experience breathtaking views of Mt. Matterhorn and the Alps in an excursion that combines a cogwheel train ride with an easy to moderate day hike. You'll ride on Europe’s second highest railway and the highest open-air railway on the continent, the Gornergrat cogwheel train, climbing up to 10,134 feet (3089 meters) offering incredible views of the Matterhorn along the way.

Our group will walk up to the 360-degree platform area, providing a panoramic view of 29 alpine peaks higher than 13,123 feet (4000 meters), including the world-famous Matterhorn. Our 1-2 hour guided hike travels will take you along sign-posted trails of an alpine nature reserve, featuring awe-inspiring views of the Matterhorn mirrored in pristine alpine lakes.

Along the way, you'll learn about the origins of Zermatt and the people of the canton of Valais (French) or Wallis (German).

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Resort La Ginabelle (or comparable lodging)

The Gornergrat Cogwheel Rail Train

Travel through the French speaking Canton of Valais – known as the fruit basket of Switzerland offering delightful views of terraced vineyards and fruit trees. We arrive in Montreux and change trains to the Goldenpass Line, a panorama train or Belle Epoque train, connecting Montreux with Interlaken

The latest enhancement on the GoldenPass Line is the implementation of a variable gauge bogie system, enabling the train to seamlessly transition between metric track and standard track. This Swiss technological innovation eliminates the need for train changes in Zweisimmen, allowing us to remain aboard the same train from Montreux to Interlaken. This not only saves valuable time but also elevates our travel experience by eliminating the inconvenience of train transfers.

In Interlaken we stop for an immersive Chocolate Workshop. You will learn all about the origin of chocolate making as well as how to identify and understand the different tastes of chocolate.

The professional Chocolatiers will show you how to create your own masterpiece chocolate bar all the while enjoying a pleasurable and fun experience.

We continue on the GoldenPass Line through the Préalps of the canton of Fribourg and through the beautiful Simmental Valley known for the sturdy brown and white cows and the world famous resort town of Gstaad, home to many Hollywood stars.

View Alpine valleys and rolling hills, green pastures and grazing cows, wooden chalets and picturesque villages as we journey to the Jungfrau region – one of Switzerland’s oldest and most popular resorts in the UNESCO World Heritage Jungfrau region.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Hotel Alpina, Grindelwald (or comparable lodging)

Goldenpass Rail Line

On day 10 our journey begins with a scenic train ride to the Jungfraujoch, nestled between the Mönch and Jungfrau mountains, offering unparalleled views of Europe's largest glacier, the Aletsch Glacier. Here, amidst a vast expanse of mountains, snow, and ice, you can relax in deck chairs, enjoy tubing, or take a serene walk on the glacier, immersing yourself in the beauty of nature.

In the afternoon, we board a train to Lauterbrunnen and transfer to a postal bus en route to the mesmerizing Trümmelbach Falls. This natural wonder consists of ten glacier-fed waterfalls concealed within the mountain, accessible via a tunnel-funicular complex built in 1913. These falls cascade with the force of up to 20,000 liters of glacier meltwater per second, crashing over 20,000 tons of boulders, creating a continuous spectacle that resonates with the sheer magnificence of nature.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Hotel Derby, Grindelwald (or comparable lodging)

Observatory and restaurant at Jungraujoch

In the morning we board the local public Grindelwald Bus for a scenic ride over the Grosse Scheidegg pass where we see the 12,000ft Wetterhorn mountain peak written up by British climbers in 1856 that ushered in the so-called golden age of alpinism, the exploration of the Alps by British mountaineers. 

We ride past alpine meadows and chalets to reach the Schwarzwaldalp. We change buses with time to visit the old Schwarzwaldalp sawmill. 

Continuing our journey, we pass by the renowned Reichenbach Falls, famously featured in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Final Problem" as the dramatic setting for the climactic showdown between Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty.

Once in Meiringen, we transfer to the Zentral Railway and travel over the Brünig Pass to  Lucerne where we connect to the train to Zurich.

In Zürich we will have lunch at a local restaurant in the heart of town. Afterwards there is time for your Guide to provide a walk-through in the old parts of Zürich. Towards evening we head to the Zürich main station and take the train to our Zürich airport hotel and check you in.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Accommodations: Hotel Hyatt-Place (or comparable lodging)
Transport: Grindelwald Bus, Zentral Railway

POST-TOUR TOUCH OF ITALY

Not ready to go home? The Post-Tour option extends your rail tour with 3 days of Italian flair, both in the Swiss canton of Ticino and the Lake Como-Bellagio-Lugano region of Italy. Click here for details....

Add to the memories by selecting the Post-Tour option when booking a 12-Day or 3-Day rail tour.