Switzerland is a country designed to be seen from a train window. The mountains, the lakes, the vertiginous valleys and the impossibly green meadows — all of it presents itself best when you are moving through it slowly, sitting with your face turned to the glass, watching the landscape shift around every bend in the track.
There is a moment on the train into Interlaken when you realise that nothing you have ever seen has quite prepared you for Switzerland. The Alps rise either side of the track, the valley narrows, a river appears below and you find yourself thinking that this cannot be real — that it looks too much like a painting to be something you are actually passing through.
I have now done Switzerland by train and it remains one of the finest travel experiences of my life. This guide covers exactly what I did, what I loved, what surprised me and what I would tell you before you go.
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Join the newsletterGeneva —
and the important Sunday lesson
We arrived in Geneva on a Saturday evening, which worked out perfectly. What we had not accounted for was arriving into a European city and discovering that Sunday in Switzerland means almost everything is closed. Shops, many restaurants, most of the things you might wander to on a first morning — largely shut. Switzerland takes Sunday seriously in a way that most visitors simply do not expect.
The lesson for anyone planning this trip: arrive on a Friday or Saturday evening and plan Sunday around experiences rather than shopping. As it turned out, it became one of the nicest days of the trip precisely because we had to slow down.
We had afternoon tea at the grand hotel in the centre — a proper Swiss afternoon tea in a beautiful room — and then took a day cruise around Lake Geneva. The lake is extraordinary: enormous, a deep jewel-blue, ringed by the Alps in the distance and the vineyards of the Swiss and French shores. The cruise served lunch on board. The views are the kind that make you understand why people have come here for centuries to restore themselves.
Sunday closures are real and widespread. Plan your Geneva time around this. The lake cruise is ideal for Sunday — it runs regardless. The Old Town is walkable and the Jet d'Eau (the famous fountain in the lake) is always on. Save shopping for Monday or skip Geneva shopping entirely and plan for Zurich or St Moritz instead.
Geneva is Switzerland's most international city — French-speaking, cosmopolitan and used to visitors. English is spoken everywhere. The airport is efficient and the train connections to the rest of Switzerland are excellent.
Interlaken —
breakfast with a view that changes you
The train from Geneva to Interlaken passes through some of the most beautiful scenery in Switzerland. Interlaken sits between two lakes — Thun and Brienz — with the Bernese Alps rising directly behind the town. From the moment you arrive, you understand that you are somewhere completely exceptional.
Our hotel was a beautiful property next to Harder Kulm, walking distance from Interlaken Ost station and directly beside the funicular that takes you up to the viewpoint. The breakfast on the patio was one of the finest meals of the trip — not for what was served particularly, but for what was in front of us. Harder Kulm rising directly ahead, the river below, the mountains framing everything. We sat there for longer than we should have and felt no guilt about it.
The hotel was a splurge — Switzerland is not an inexpensive destination and Interlaken is not its cheapest corner. Worth every franc for the location and the views. The funicular to Harder Kulm starts just minutes from the front door. At 4,337 feet above sea level, Harder Kulm offers views of Lake Brienz, Lake Thun and the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau peaks — a ten-minute ride up through forest and past a small wildlife park, emerging into one of the great panoramas in the Alps.
Jungfraujoch —
the Top of Europe
The Jungfraujoch excursion is the centrepiece of any Interlaken visit and one of the most remarkable train journeys in the world. You take the cogwheel railway from Interlaken up through Grindelwald — a beautiful Alpine village with a direct view of the Eiger north face — and continue climbing through Kleine Scheidegg to the Jungfraujoch station at 3,454 metres. It is the highest railway station in Europe.
We came down via Lauterbrunnen, which I recommend: two valleys for the price of one excursion, and the contrast between them is extraordinary. Grindelwald is open, wide, dominated by rock faces. Lauterbrunnen is narrow, deep and full of waterfalls — more on that below.
Grindelwald is where you get your first direct view of the Eiger north face — the sheer limestone wall that has defined mountaineering history. The village is charming in its own right: traditional Swiss chalets, good coffee, beautiful mountain light. Even if you are passing through on the way to Jungfraujoch, step off and look up at the Eiger for a few minutes. It is the kind of view that lodges in the memory.
At the top there is an ice palace carved directly into the glacier, a viewing deck that opens onto a snowfield of extraordinary scope and a restaurant where you can eat schnitzel at 3,454 metres. The viewing deck is the experience: the snow stretches in every direction, the altitude makes the air feel thin and clear, and on a good day you can see four countries. Bring a warm jacket — even in summer, the temperature at the top can be -10°C or below. I was not warm enough on my visit and wished I had packed an extra layer. This is the single most important packing note for this excursion.
Book well in advance. This is one of the most popular excursions in Switzerland and tickets sell out during peak season. Book online at jungfrau.ch.
The Good Morning Ticket offers reduced fares on the first train of the day — a significant saving and fewer crowds at the top. Departures from Interlaken Ost from around 7am.
Weather matters enormously. Check the Jungfrau webcam before you go. A cloudy day at the top means no views and a very expensive underground walk. If the forecast is poor, reschedule if your dates allow.
Altitude sickness is real. Some visitors feel light-headed at 3,454m. Take it slowly at the top, drink water, avoid alcohol and descend if you feel unwell.
Lauterbrunnen —
the valley full of waterfalls
Lauterbrunnen stopped me in my tracks. I had not been prepared for it in the way I had been prepared for Jungfraujoch — it was on the return route, a detour I had read about but not fully imagined. The valley is narrow and steep-sided, the rock walls rising hundreds of metres on either side, and there are 72 waterfalls visible from within it. Seventy-two. They pour from the clifftops, thin ribbons of white against the grey rock, some dropping hundreds of metres before they reach the valley floor.
The most famous is Staubbach Falls, which drops 297 metres directly from the cliff edge above the village — the longest free-falling waterfall in Switzerland. You can walk behind part of it. The village beneath is small, quiet and beautiful. Give Lauterbrunnen more time than you think it deserves. It will reward you for it.
"Lauterbrunnen is one of those places that is genuinely impossible to photograph adequately. The scale of the valley and the waterfalls simply does not translate. You have to stand in it."
— Anjie, Style & Soul 35+
The Glacier Express —
eight hours and not one wasted
The Glacier Express is marketed as the world's slowest express train — eight hours across the Swiss Alps from Zermatt (or Davos) through to St Moritz, over 291 bridges and through 91 tunnels. It is not slow in the way that matters. Every one of those eight hours is worth your full attention.
I was genuinely concerned before boarding that eight hours on a train would feel long. It did not. I lost track of time entirely. The landscape changes so continuously and so dramatically — from valley to mountain to glacier to alpine meadow to vertiginous gorge and back again — that there is no moment where you are watching empty scenery and willing the journey to end. Food is served at your seat throughout the journey and the choices are genuinely good. The panoramic windows are enormous, designed to give you the full sky and mountain view from your seat.
Book well in advance — the Glacier Express is popular and the panoramic seats go early, especially in summer. Book at glacierexpress.ch or through the Swiss Travel Pass portal.
Sit on the right side travelling from Zermatt to St Moritz for the best views along most of the route. Your booking confirmation will show which side faces which direction.
A seat reservation is mandatory even with a Swiss Travel Pass. The reservation fee is separate from your rail pass.
The Swiss Travel Pass covers the Glacier Express fare but not the reservation supplement. For anyone doing multiple scenic trains in Switzerland, the pass is excellent value — it also covers the Harder Kulm funicular at 50% and most regional trains completely.
St Moritz —
where the journey ends beautifully
St Moritz is one of those towns that lives up entirely to its reputation and then exceeds it. It sits at 1,856 metres in the Engadine valley, surrounded by peaks and a lake of extraordinary clarity. The town is small, impeccably maintained, definitively high-end and completely confident in what it is. There are no apologies for the prices. There are no concessions to budget travel. St Moritz is St Moritz and it does not pretend otherwise.
We ate very well throughout our stay — the restaurants in St Moritz are genuinely excellent and the variety is wider than you might expect for a town of its size. We walked the lake path and the mountain trails around the town. We browsed the boutiques and the watch shops. We bought our Rolex and Omega watches in St Moritz. There are few better places in the world to do it — the selection is extraordinary, the service is exceptional and, given the price of Swiss watches globally, St Moritz is as good a place as any to make that particular investment.
From St Moritz we hired a driver to take us to Lake Como for the final chapter of the trip, before flying home from Milan. The drive through the Swiss Alps and into Italy is itself beautiful — crossing the border through mountain passes, the landscape shifting from Swiss precision to Italian warmth. It was the right note to end on.
Eating and drinking —
the Swiss essentials
Switzerland is not a cheap destination for food but it is generally very good. A few things you absolutely must eat while you are there.
Cheese fondue is the dish that Switzerland does better than anywhere else on earth. A pot of melted Gruyère, a glass of Fendant (the local white wine), good bread for dipping — this is Switzerland in its most essential form. Eat it in a mountain restaurant if you possibly can. The combination of altitude, cold air, good cheese and a warm pot of something communal is difficult to improve upon.
Swiss chocolate is exactly as good as the reputation promises — smooth, rich and available at a quality in supermarkets and small shops that would be considered luxury chocolate elsewhere. I bought quantities of it at every stop. Lindt, Läderach and local brands at village shops all deliver at a level that makes you understand why Swiss chocolate became the international benchmark.
Rösti — the Swiss potato dish, shredded and fried until golden — appears on menus everywhere in the German-speaking cantons and is one of the most satisfying things you can eat after a day in the mountains. Order it with a fried egg on top if it is on offer.
The food on the Glacier Express is worth mentioning separately. Meals are served at your seat throughout the journey and the quality is considerably higher than you might expect from train dining. A proper three-course lunch with Swiss wines while the Alps pass outside the window — one of the more civilised ways to spend an afternoon imaginable.
What to pack —
the Switzerland edit
Switzerland by train means moving between destinations regularly. Pack light, pack smart and prioritise layers above everything else. The temperature difference between Geneva on the lake and Jungfraujoch at 3,454 metres is approximately 30 degrees Celsius. Your wardrobe needs to handle both.
not just the town.
A genuinely warm mid-layer — fleece or down gilet. The Jungfraujoch deck is arctic even in August. This is non-negotiable.
A waterproof outer layer — mountain weather changes fast. A packable waterproof jacket takes up almost no space and earns its place every time.
Comfortable walking shoes — Interlaken and St Moritz are walkable towns. Lauterbrunnen rewards walking. Your shoes will work hard.
Sunglasses with UV protection — the glare off snow and high Alpine lakes at altitude is significant. Good sunglasses are not optional above 2,000 metres.
One elevated outfit for St Moritz — restaurants and bars here expect a certain standard. A good blazer and smart trousers will see you through every occasion.
A good camera or phone — Switzerland is a continuous photographic opportunity. From the train window alone you will take more photographs than anywhere else you have been.
Swiss francs in cash — cards are widely accepted but some mountain restaurants, village shops and funicular stations prefer cash. Withdraw francs in Geneva on arrival.
A cross-body bag or secure daypack — you will be carrying your essentials between train stops all day. Something comfortable, secure and hands-free makes the difference.
The honest tips —
what I know now
Switzerland is expensive. This is not a surprise to most people but the reality of it lands harder than the expectation. Budget generously — accommodation, transport within Switzerland, food and activities all cost significantly more than equivalent experiences elsewhere in Europe. Plan for it rather than being caught by it.
The Swiss Travel Pass is worth calculating carefully. For a trip that involves multiple scenic trains, funiculars and regional rail, the pass can represent excellent value. Run the numbers before you buy individual tickets.
Sundays shut Switzerland down. Plan accordingly. No shopping on Sundays. Some restaurants close. Use Sunday for lake cruises, mountain excursions and walking.
Book scenic trains well in advance. The Glacier Express and Jungfraujoch excursion both sell out in peak season. Book before you finalise your accommodation.
The train window is the experience. Resist the urge to look at your phone. The landscape outside the window of any Swiss train is worth your full and uninterrupted attention. Nothing on your screen is more interesting than what is happening outside it.
Lauterbrunnen deserves more time than most itineraries give it. Most people pass through on the way down from Jungfraujoch. Stay longer. Walk the valley. The waterfalls are among the most beautiful natural sights in Europe and they are completely free.
St Moritz to Lake Como by private driver is a wonderful ending. If your trip ends in Milan, this route — through the mountains, crossing into Italy — is a beautiful final chapter. Book a driver through your St Moritz hotel concierge.
Switzerland by train is the kind of trip that recalibrates you. The scale of the mountains, the clarity of the light, the extraordinary engineering that takes you through and over it all — it puts the ordinary concerns of ordinary life into a perspective that only very large, very beautiful things can. I would go back next week if I could.