LONELY PLANET'S OFFICIAL ITINERARY INFORMATION
Itinerary: The Glacier Express
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7½ HOURS / ZERMATT TO ST MORITZ
Of the many remarkable railway trips on offer in Switzerland, this is the most breathtaking. The 272km trip through Alpine country, surrounded by icy peaks, high mountain pastures and pretty towns, winds its way through 91 tunnels and over 291 bridges.
Although not quite as long as the Trans-Siberian, the classic rail journeys of Switzerland make up for the length in horizontal travel time with the spectacle of the vertical. Of the several scenic mountain rail trips on offer, perhaps the best is the Glacier Express, which runs from Zermatt, high in the southern Alps of Valais canton, northeast to St Moritz, via Chur, in Graubünden.
As Switzerland’s Alpine resorts became increasingly popular with Europe’s hoity-toity in the early 20th century, the idea for a train linking Zermatt and St Moritz grew. In 1930, the inaugural steam-train journey between the two Alpine towns took place. The excursion hasn’t lost its appeal since. The 7½-hour trip can be done year-round and the literal high point of the trip is the crossing of the Oberalp Pass, at 2033m.
Starting in Zermatt, the train winds slowly north down the valley to Brig . From there it swings northeast along the pretty eastern stretch of the Rhône valley towards the Furka Pass (which it circumvents by tunnel) and descends on Andermatt before again climbing up to the Oberalp Pass. From there it meanders alongside the Vorderrhein river, passing through Disentis/Mustér before arriving in Chur. The main train continues to St Moritz, with a branch line heading northeast to Davos.
The trip can be done in either direction.
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