Coming from Canada, where passenger rail travel departs… There were many things that were disappointing… Tasting the Swiss system was like breathing fresh mountain air.
It wasn't until I got home from Switzerland that I realized I hadn't set foot in a car for eight days, traveling between cities and villages, up mountains and along valley floors. Every leg of our trip was by train, with barely a road in sight between the airport train to Zurich and the century-old railway line that takes us to Europe's highest train station in the Alps.
The reputation of the Swiss rail system may precede it, but it also enjoys a reputation to match. I live in Canada, and our national passenger rail system is nothing compared to the scalability and efficiency of the Schweizerische Bumsbahnen (aka SBB, aka Swiss Federal Railways). From Intrepid's Best of Switzerland travel, here are five reasons why I love Swiss trains.
1. Trains really run on time
You may have heard rumors that Swiss trains are so punctual that you can set your watch to the time. I haven't set my watch in years, but I pay close attention to departure and arrival times and haven't caught a whiff of a delay on every trip. In fact, SBB reports that 92.5% of trains will run on time in 2023 (however, for full disclosure, delays of less than three minutes are considered on time). Compare this with Korea’s latest passenger rail punctuality data for 2022. That figure is very low at 57%.
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In fact, the Swiss were so confident in their punctuality that one of their railway engineers designed their own clock in the '40s. All stations use official Swiss Railway clocks with minimalist faces. Station clocks are synchronized with a master clock that advances the minute hand at the top of each minute by one minute on all clocks on the station simultaneously. Yes, they sell replicas of this watch. Yes, I bought one and hung it in my kitchen. No, there is nothing in my house that runs on time.
2. There's a train for everything
In the late 19th century, when anyone with a pencil and a napkin seemed to have ambitions to build a railway, Switzerland was caught up in the so-called 'mountain railway craze'.
The impact continues and eventually it amazes me the sheer number of things on the railway that can take me to many places, much more than between towns and villages. They also go up and down the mountains simply because there is something to see there.
We took the world's steepest cogwheel train up Mount Pilatus, overlooking the lakes and valleys around Lucerne. Cogwheel track adds toothed rails between the running rails to help pull train cars up steep tracks. The Pilatus track has a maximum gradient of 48% and train cars are built at an angle to accommodate this (so passengers don't have to). Why did they make it? Well, the view from up there is really is Other.
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Deep into the Alps we all decided to head to Jungfraujoch, the so-called summit of Europe. From the village of Lauterbrunnen we took the train across the valley as the sun rose over the peaks, up to Kleine Scheidegg on the other side, then transferred to the Jungfrau Railway to reach Europe's highest train station. 3454 meters above sea level.
Most of the railway, including the terminus, runs inside the mountain. Construction, described by some as tedious, began in the late 19th century. Partly because of economic opportunity and partly… I mean, View there. Go ahead and try it.
Today, a popular visitor center sits atop the mountain, along with one of the highest observatories in the world. From the observation deck, you can take an elevator and enjoy views of the massive glacier. If the prospect of tunneling through the mountain in the early 20th century doesn't sway you, consider what went into building a multi-story visitor center (complete with a restaurant, multimedia exhibits, Lindt store, and more) inside the mountain. lecture). I still have so many questions.
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3. Population density brings good results
I've included the phrase 'population density' in my rave reviews about Switzerland more times than I care to admit. Switzerland has over 50 times more people per square kilometer than Canada (to be fair, even though they technically have space to spread out, they tend not to; Montreal and Zurich have roughly the same density).
However, because Switzerland is (relatively speaking) very small and densely populated, it can support much better infrastructure, such as all these railways. Moreover, the population scattered throughout the mountains has nowhere else to go, creating a truly picturesque landscape where farmland has to creep up the hillsides on the outskirts of villages and cities. It gives a great insight into daily life and garden fairy trends in Switzerland, not to mention all the back gardens you can peer into from the train back and forth between villages.
4. Train station perfectly located in the city center
With the exception of a few establishments from the heyday of rail travel in Canada, many train stations are located outside urban centers, especially in smaller cities and towns. Not so in Switzerland. Hauptbanhofs had the best properties in every city, town and village we visited, each within walking distance of our accommodation. Even though I couldn't check in right away, I was able to leave my luggage and leave right away and take an orientation walk in between activities. But speaking of luggage, I learned the hard way that a backpack is the perfect luggage choice for European city walks. Just ask the wheels that broke out their old wheelie duffel and now make Lucerne their home.
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5. A good mountain for walking
I love climbing to the top of mountains, but I've never felt a great desire to do so. In addition to the train that will take you up the mountain, cable cars and gondolas will take you further. My favorite day in Switzerland was taking the cable car from Lauterbrunnen train station to Grootsalp, just across the road, and taking an easy, flat alpine walk through car-free villages and bell-adorned cow fields. If that was too much, you could of course take the train across. I took another cable car and an easy walk across the valley floor back to town.
Many of Canada's top prospects require a self-propelled approach. Some might say that makes the outlook much better, but I would like to ask: copy What are the prospects for Switzerland?
Heather went on Intrepid's Best of Switzerland tour, part of Intrepid's new railway theme. This is a collection of our favorite journeys featuring amazing railways. travel.