Bernina Express Review
Bernina Express Review
The Bernina Express is a train that connects Chur in Switzerland with Tirano in northern Italy. The Bernina Railway company built the last bit of the line between 1908 and 1910. The journey on the Bernina Express takes four hours. The distance is just 140 kilometers but it crosses the Alps. The Bernina track includes 196 bridges and 55 tunnels. The highest point of the track is Ospozio Bernina, at 2,253 metres above sea level.
You can also choose the shorter track, the 61 kilometers between St Moritz and Tirano, which takes roughly two and half hours. This is the original Bernina Line. Although the railway between Chur and Tirano has been used a long time, today's Bernina Express was started in 1973. The section between Thusis and Tirano has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The Bernina Express runs all
year. It is run by Rhatische
Bahn, here
is a link to their website. The Bernina Express is quite
popular, especially in summer so if you are on a tight schedule try to book in
advance. Especially if you want to sit in one of the panorama coaches.
The starting point of the Bernina Express is Chur. Chur is
generally considered to be the oldest town in Switzerland. The population
of Chur is around 35,000, elevation 593 metres. Chur is the capital of the canton of Graubunden,
the largest canton in Switzerland by area covering about a sixth of the
country. The Chur railway
station is used both by SBB (serving most of Switzerland) and Rhatische Bahn (serving
most of Graubunden) SBB uses the standard gauge, 1435 mm, while Rhatische Bahn
uses the narrow gauge, 1000 mm.
Chur is a splendid place
for the train enthusiast with many interesting railway lines. You can take the Arosa Express from Chur, the train
journey to Arosa takes an hour. It
is a steep climb up to Arosa, with plenty of nice views. Note that the
train to Arosa departs from the tracks just outside the railway station. The Glacier Express is another famous train journey that starts in Chur or St. Moritz.
The first part
of the Bernina Express runs along the Rhine. Due to the strategic location
of the Rhine valley, you will see many old castles and ruins. The
tallest bridge is the Solis Bridge but the Landwasser Viaduct is better
known. The latter has a length of 136 metres and a height of 65 metres. It has six
huge stone arches and is
slightly curved.
In Filisur you can change
trains and go to Davos. On the way to Davos, the
train crosses the Wiesen bridge, the longest stone bridge in Graubunden.
The length of the bridge is 204 metres and the height is 89 metres (87
metres
according to some sources) The Wiesen Bridge was opened in 1909. It's possible
to walk across the bridge as well. Take the train to Wiesen and just follow
the path along the railway track back to bridge. Note that Wiesen is
a request stop, you need to press the stop button in the train if you
want to disembark.
The longest tunnel is the Albula tunnel between Preda and Spinas.
It is 5865 metres long and was opened in 1903. At an altitude of 1883
metres it is the highest railway tunnel in the
Alps. Lately the condition of the tunnel has deteriorated and different solutions
are being investigated to keep the Bernina railway line open all
year.
In 1904, thanks to the
Albula tunnel, the railway connected St. Moritz with Chur.
Before that the journey from Chur to St. Moritz took 15 hours by stagecoach.
Thanks to the railway line, St. Moritz became an exclusive winter resort. The
Bernina Express from Chur does not go to St. Moritz, you need to change
trains in Samedan if you want
to visit St Moritz. In summer, you can walk from Pontresina to
St Moritz. It is possible to take a train from St Moritz to Tirano, this
was the original Bernina Line.
At Punt Muragl
you can take a funicular railway (the Muottas Muragl Bahn, MMB) up to Mouttas
Muragl (2453 metres above sea level) Around here you can find some people who
speak Romansh, the least used of the four official languages in
Switzerland.
Generally, during the stop in Pontresina, the current is changed from AC
to DC, and the locomotives are changed. Although not as famous as
St Moritz, Pontresina has a wide range of accommodation and is a popular tourist
destination, both winter and summer.
Ospozio
Bernina, altitude of 2253 metres, is the highest point of the railway. The lake
along the track is Lago Bianco. On one side of the lake, the water flows via the river Inn and
the Danube into the Black Sea and
on the other side, the water flows via the river Adda and the Po into the Adriatic
Sea.
Alp Grum has
wonderful views and a picturesque railway station. This is the last station
in the German speaking part of the line, now the Italian speaking part begins.
The Panoroma Kurve has some of the best views, overlooking the Palu glacier and
Lago Palu.
Between Alp
Grum, at 2091 metres above sea level, and Poschiavo, at 1014 metres
above sea level, the
distance is just 5 kilometers as the crow flies. But the Bernina Express needs
more than 40 minutes to get down to Poschiavo, making a lot of twists and
turns in order to lengthen the track so it becomes less steep.
In the Italian
speaking part of the Bernina Express, the train sometimes uses the streets of
the villages and looks more like a tram than a train. The famous 360 degree
spiral viaduct, the Kreisviadukt (9 arches and a length of 116 metres), in Brusio
is used to overcome the height difference within a small distance.
Tirano is small town and
most tourists either take the Bernina Express back to Chur/St. Moritz or continue by
Italian train to Milan (takes roughly two and a half hours) In summer, you can take the bus to Lugano,
a 3 hour bus ride.
Although not as spectacular as the Bernina Express, it is a nice bus
ride. In Lugano, you can take another scenic train journey to Lucerne.
Remember to book your bus ticket in advance if you are planning on
taking the bus.
For more information about trains in Switzerland, visit the SBB web site by clicking on this link
Here is a map of the railway network in Graubünden. Note that the Bernina Express from Chur is not going via St. Moritz. From Samedan it goes directly to Punt Muragl.