Being now semi retired and having last year made our inaugural cross Europe rail trip through Belgium, Germany, Denmark and Sweden and thoroughly enjoying the experience, we are now thinking of next year's adventure.
We rather like the idea of travelling on the Bernina Express from Chur (Switzerland) to Tirano in Northern Italy. It looks to be a superb trip. Does anyone have any experience of it or any tips?
We are , at this stage, thinking possibly April next year and are considering the following options :
London to Paris
Paris to Zurich
Zurich to Chur then the Bernina Express to Tirano.
Tirano to Ballano on the shores of Lake Como
Ballano to Milan
Milan to Venice
Then possibly Venice to Rome
Either back by train (Rome-Paris to London ) or by air.
We would spend a night or two in several of the locations.
Any thoughts or tips would be much appreciated whilst we are still at the planning stage.
Hi
We are booked to drive to Davos next year, so was also looking at other options
I came across the link below
https://www.greatrail.com/tours/glacier-express-winter-spring-chur-kandersteg/?tlUrl=%2Fholiday-types%2Fwinter-rail-holidays%2F#GYW6 (https://www.greatrail.com/tours/glacier-express-winter-spring-chur-kandersteg/?tlUrl=%2Fholiday-types%2Fwinter-rail-holidays%2F#GYW6)
Not quite the itinerary that you had in mind but to see Chur and travel on several expresses in the Winter snow. We must do that trip one year
I compared the 8/9 days for that with the price of the Easter Chieftain for 4 days and I know which is better value for me
Can't help with the railway side of things, Martin, but having been to Lakes Garda, Como and Maggiore I would say Como is the most picturesque of the 3 so any time spent there I'm sure you and Mrs. P-P would love.
Hi Martin,
That's quite a nice trip you are planning :thumbsup:.
If you are staying for a day or 2 in Chur you might consider a ride by train to Arosa.
This is a lovely route with spectacular views.
The old city of Chur is also beautiful.
The trip from Chur to Tirano takes about 4 hours.
We only did a small part of this route (from Tiefencastel to st Moritz) and it was great.
Especially the part Filisur-Bergün-Preda is breathtaking.
In Bergün you will find the Bahnmuseum Albula, also nice to visit.
André
Definitely go on the Bernina Express, a wonderful and spectacular journey. I, also, second the suggestion of the train to Arosa from Chur. Starts in the station and goes through the streets then on into the hills and over a spectacular viaduct.
There's a Paul Klee museum in Chur that's well worth a visit.
So......Mrs PP and I have now completed our second European rail adventure to Switzerland and Italy. Having travelled through Belgium , Germany, Denmark and Sweden last year.
We started with the Night Riviera Sleeper to Paddington from Redruth then Eurostar to Paris Nord followed by lunch in the French Capital.
We then travelled from Paris (Gare de Lyon) to Zurich then on to Chur in the Swiss Alps for 3 days.
Chur is lovely (and so typically Swiss). A highlight was the rail trip up to Arosa higher in the Alps and lots of snow.
We then took the fabulous Bernina Express from Chur to Tirano in Italy (a fantastic trip through truly spectacular scenery and via some amazing engineering miracles).
From there we took a short trip to Verenna on the shores of Lake Como for a lovely relaxing break.
After 3 days its on the train again to Venice for a few days where we had a great time. What a treat to find a city with absolutely NO traffic. Fantastic. Great food, great wine, great coffee and absolutely lovely weather.
Finally we take the Vaporetta (water bus) to the airport for a flight back to Bristol then the train home.
Already planning our next great rail journey.