My Swiss rail trip now with part 2

[MinZaPint]

We started off from St Pancras on the Eurostar to Paris where we transferred to a TGV on the left!



And sped through France to Strasbourg at speed!!



320 KMH! or 198.8 miles an hour! Very impressive and smooth too,
Our hotel for the night was right opposite the station a lovely old building with a futuristic façade seen here



The old frontage



Then train to Basel change to Zurich, 2 of the trains we travelled on



And the speedy one



And then to Chur where we transferred to the metre gauge Rhatischen Bahn to take us to our hotel for 6 nights at Tiefencastel
View from our bedroom balcony (there were only 3 balconies out of 100 or so rooms goodness only knows how we got one!)



Our first day, back on the train to St Moritz, unfortunately raining, very expensive so just a picture of the Posh Choccy shop



The weather cleared up for the rest of our trip and the next day we crossed over the border to Tirano in Italy on the Bernia express, much cheaper (beer in particular!) On the way we passed over the Landwasser viaduct where the line goes straight into the rock face.



And up to Alp Grum



As it was



The train



View from the train



Then on via the Bruisio viaduct



There is a lovely model of this in the museum at Bergun which we visited later in our trip

Then into Tirano where metre gauge meets standard gauge



And a sad sight in the yard



Interior of the spacious coaches on the way back



A view of the train on the return journey



Guess that'll do for now I'll post the rest of the trip later, cheers for now  David

[kirky]

Thanks Minzapint
We did the Bernina express about 5 years ago. Your photos brought back some lovely memories.
Switzerland was expensive then, so god knows what it like now with weakness of the £ and all?

Thanks again
Kirky

[Newportnobby]

Thanks for the great pics, David.
I'd very much appreciate a PM advising how you booked this i.e. was it a package or did you book everything yourself etc etc?

[kirky]

@newportnobby
When we did our trip we booked it all our selves. We booked flights Zurich on a cheap airline - cant remember which. We booked a two centre holiday first stay in Zurich and the second stay in Interlaken. We booked our accomodation on line making sure they were within walking disatnce of the stations.
We booked the equivalent of a Swiss rover which allowed us to travel on the trains for a week. Most trains were covered but some like Glacier express required a supplement. You also had to book well in advance.
It wasnt cheap. The hotel in interlaken was particularly expensive but it was August. the Zurich one was cheaper and nicer. We liked Zurich. We paid about twenty quid for a pizza I seem to remember, although I dare say you could go cheaper.
We wanted to go on the train that goes up through the jungfrau but it was stupidly expensive - like well over a hundred quid each and this was before the collapse of the £.
We loved it though, it was a really nice holiday and we loved bookig it all ourselves, for us that was part of the enjoyment. A bit like doing research before you plan a model railway.
The Bernina express was just fantastic and although Minzapint pictures are lovely they dont do justice to the scenery - it is very reminisent of a model railway actually.

Hope this helps

Kirky

[daffy]

Lovely pics David, and I'm as envious as hell as we missed a planned holiday to Switzerland this year due to ill health.

Thanks for the great pics, David.
I'd very much appreciate a PM advising how you booked this i.e. was it a package or did you book everything yourself etc etc?

Nobby, if you like I could post a few details of travel to and in Switzerland as my wife and I have travelled there on packages and independently on a dozen or so occasions this side of the Millennium, so have a pretty good knowledge of costs, rail passes and flights etc.
Yes, it is can be expensive  - far more so today as the £ v CHF exchange rate has dramatically dropped. In 2000 we got 2.44 CHF for £1; today you would get 1.24Chf. And you have to tell yourself it's a 'holiday of a lifetime' every time you go but travel there is sublime with everything (mostly) running like the proverbial clockwork, with buses, trains and lake boats all working in unison.
Book a flight, get a rail pass and a Swiss Card, book your hotel or what-you-will, and just enjoy the ride!
And marvel at the trains that just swish along on the main lines  - with no "da da da dum, da da da dum" - due to the continuously welded rail.

[Bealman]

Great pictures of what was obviously a fantastic trip. 

I love seeing and hearing about your extensive wanderings! Looking forward to the next episode!

George 

[Newportnobby]

@kirky @daffy @MinZaPint

Thanks for the replies so far, chaps.
It's just a pipedream at present as I don't even have a passport (I let it lapse when I finished work on the basis I was fed up with flying baggage class and swore if I couldn't afford an upgrade I wouldn't travel). In the mid 70s a mate and I went on a European tour on our Triumphs and we did stop at Interlaken and took in the cable car trip up to the Piz Gloria revolving restaurant (as seen in the Bond film). Switzerland was hellishly expensive then so I am not surprised it still is
I am praying my early retirement pot will still have something left in it in 2 years time and will then maybe treat myself to a holiday by train, especially having seen Mr Portillo's Swiss adventure last night.

[Bealman]

Not the way you buy up black steamers and green diesels, Mick 

[Newportnobby]

Not the way you buy up black steamers and green diesels, Mick 

Yeah - but I'm saving £200 a month having kicked the smokes, George

[Bealman]

  If I give up the beer I might be on the same train 

[daffy]

Yeah - but I'm saving £200 a month having kicked the smokes, George

So, at current Swiss prices you are saving enough for one day in the Alps each month! In two years time that's a good three week holiday.
Just kidding. I think?   

But we're highjacking David's thread so I'll say no more and await his next instalment.

[Bealman]

Yeah, me too. David's travelogues here are wonderful. Educational and great to read. 

[port perran]

Great photographs and a wonderful trip.
We did a very similar one back in April (Redruth-London-Paris-Basel-Chur (where we took a trip high up into the Alps to Arosa in deep snow) then on to Tirano then Lake Como and on to Venice.
That was the third across Europe rail trip we've done and have thoroughly enjoyed them all. I really enjoy the route and timetable planning.
I can thoroughly recommend it.

[keithfre]

I can recommend the Paul Klee museum in Chur. Often I find paintings in museums disappointing and prefer the reproductions, but the Klees have something special seen in the flesh.

A shame that Switzerland is soooo expensive...

[MinZaPint]

The following day hopped onto the train using our half price rail cards with some lads we'd teamed up with to Diovolezza and up in the cable car



For the view



The 3 n'r do wells



The 2 on the outside are involved with the Isle of Wight steam railway and the lad in the middle used to be a fireman on amongst other things "King Arthurs"!

A lineside scenic view



And then on the next day it was off to Arosa past romantic castles



A rather unusual building in the town



Found a nice balcony to have a drink with my little treasure



A passing spot it's mainly single track



And the impressive Langwiesser viaduct



Then a day at leisure so we decided to go to Davos and take the funicular



Looking back near the top



Stop for a drink



View from our picnic spot



On the way back we took a short detour to Bergun/Bravuogn to visit the railway museum where they have a fantastic model of parts of the line, unfortunately no trains running as the owner was working on it.
Overall view



And some detail shots







And a short video of the model of the Brusio viaduct mentioned earlier



Outside they have a metre guage Krocodile dating from 1922



In the cab they have a simulator





And I was lucky enough to find an enthusiastic volunteer to show me the ropes



Werner with my good lady



The following day it was time to  start the journey home on the Glacier Express a lovely journey



Apologies for the reflections on this one


 
On to Andermatt via a cog rail section I was amazed at the grades the trains tackled normally, we should have transferred to a cog railway to take us down to Goschenen but unfortunately someone had failed to brake on a previous trip and they were still clearing up the mess so by coach we went to



You can just make out the station sign to the left of the guys head
Then on to the main line



For the journey to Basel where the price of wine at dinner precluded a proper finish to a very enjoyable trip. Then in the morning TGV to Paris and Eurostar home. So that's it thanks for sharing my journey with me, now to get back to the modelling!
Cheers  David