01
What the journey is like
Food service: Meals can be pre-ordered in 1st and 2nd class; Excellence Class includes its menu. Panoramic windows: Panoramic windows are a defining feature of the Glacier Express.
Switzerland · Scenic
Glacier Express
A full-day panoramic journey between Zermatt and St.
Zermatt → St. Moritz
Scenic
- Experience
- Photographers · Rail enthusiasts
- Route
- Zermatt → St. Moritz
- Time aboard
- 8h
Why this route
The landscape is the journey
Take the Glacier Express when the journey itself is the destination: a slow, all-day crossing of the Swiss Alps with a succession of famous railway engineering works and broad mountain views.
From the train
A view made for the railway
Café / food service
Meals can be pre-ordered in 1st and 2nd class; Excellence Class includes its menu.
Verified
Panoramic windows
Panoramic windows are a defining feature of the Glacier Express.
Verified
Across the map
The route, stop by stop
The published route runs from Zermatt to St. Moritz via Brig Bahnhofplatz railway station, Andermatt railway station, Disentis/Mustér railway station, Chur, Filisur, Samedan railway station.
291 km · Zermatt to St. Moritz
Key stops
Zermatt railway stationBrig Bahnhofplatz railway stationDisentis/Mustér railway stationChurSamedan railway stationSt. Moritz railway station
Zermatt railway station
Switzerland
Brig Bahnhofplatz railway station
Switzerland
Andermatt railway station
Switzerland
Disentis/Mustér railway station
Switzerland
Chur
Switzerland
Filisur
Switzerland
Samedan railway station
Switzerland
St. Moritz railway station
Switzerland
Along the line
Andermatt railway station → Disentis/Mustér railway station · Landscape
Over the Oberalp Pass
Between Andermatt and the Surselva the line climbs to the Oberalp Pass at 2,033 m, the highest point of the Glacier Express journey.
Oberalp Pass
Disentis/Mustér railway station → Chur · Landscape
The Rhine Gorge
Between Ilanz and Reichenau the railway threads the Rhine Gorge, the pale limestone canyon Glacier Express names as one of the route's signature scenic sections.
Rhine Gorge
Show 2 more moments
Chur → Samedan railway station · Engineering
The Albula line and Landwasser Viaduct
Glacier Express calls the Albula section the most spectacular part of the route: the Landwasser Viaduct near Filisur, then the climb through viaducts and spiral tunnels around Bergün and Preda.
Landwasser Viaduct
Scenic / panoramic
What to know before you choose
02
What defines the route
Oberalp Pass Over the Oberalp Pass: Between Andermatt and the Surselva the line climbs to the Oberalp Pass at 2,033 m, the highest point of the Glacier Express journey. Rhine Gorge The Rhine Gorge: Between Ilanz and Reichenau the railway threads the Rhine Gorge, the pale limestone canyon Glacier Express names as one of the route's signature scenic sections.
03
Before you book
Reservation: required. Direct online booking is recorded. Booking window: 93 days. A rail pass is accepted under the recorded booking profile. A recorded from-price is 213.00 CHF; confirm the current departure before purchase. Strongest recorded months: March, April, May. A valid ticket and a mandatory seat reservation are required. 1st/2nd-class seat reservations open up to 93 days before travel; accepted rail passes cover the ticket component but not the reservation.
Verified 2026-09-28
Plan the ride
Plan the ride
Use the verified journey, booking, season and onboard facts below to decide how to take this experience. Unknowns stay explicit.
- Time aboard
- 8h 00m
- Reservation
- Required
- Booking
- Direct online booking; recorded window 93 days
- Rail pass
- Accepted under the recorded profile
- Price context
- Recorded from 213.00 CHF; not a live offer
- Timing
- Strongest recorded months: March, April, May
- On board
- Food service: Meals can be pre-ordered in 1st and 2nd class; Excellence Class includes its menu. Panoramic windows: Panoramic windows are a defining feature of the Glacier Express.
This guide does not imply a product variant unless a separate comparison decision is published.
Evidence on demand
Practical reality
Route, onboard, season, fit and booking detail remain available without interrupting the journey above. Unknowns stay visible.
Time & itinerary
8h
View route map and verified stops
Zermatt → St. Moritz
The published route runs from Zermatt to St. Moritz via Brig Bahnhofplatz railway station, Andermatt railway station, Disentis/Mustér railway station, Chur, Filisur, Samedan railway station.
291 km · Zermatt to St. Moritz
Key stops
Zermatt railway stationBrig Bahnhofplatz railway stationDisentis/Mustér railway stationChurSamedan railway stationSt. Moritz railway station
Zermatt railway station
Switzerland
Brig Bahnhofplatz railway station
Switzerland
Andermatt railway station
Switzerland
Disentis/Mustér railway station
Switzerland
Chur
Switzerland
Filisur
Switzerland
Samedan railway station
Switzerland
St. Moritz railway station
Switzerland
On board
The route does most of the work here, it is a journey taken for what passes the window rather than for the destination. The long run between Zermatt and St. Moritz (about 291 km) gives the scenery time to shift gradually, and the day settles into its own rhythm of stops and open stretches. Height is the story in the middle of this one, the line keeps gaining and losing it, and the ground below rearranges itself each time. The middle of the route, through Brig Bahnhofplatz railway station and Chur, is where the journey stops feeling like a departure and starts feeling like a place of its own.
Views & seating
Panoramic windows
Panoramic windows are a defining feature of the Glacier Express.
Food & drink
Café / food service
Meals can be pre-ordered in 1st and 2nd class; Excellence Class includes its menu.
2 onboard details are confirmed against a source. Anything not listed here has not been researched yet; treat it as unknown, not absent.
When to go
- JanGood
- FebGood
- MarBest
- AprBest
- MayBest
- JunBest
- JulBest
- AugBest
- SepBest
- OctSelected dates
- NovNot running
- DecSelected dates
- Best
- Good
- Selected dates
- Not running
- Best
- Mar–Sep
- Good
- Jan–Feb
- Selected dates
- Oct · Dec
- Not running
- Nov
Mar: Winter scenery with improving daylight.
Month labels here describe whether the service runs. Where a month is rated, that rating describes conditions on board and outside, not ticket demand.
Month-by-month notes
- Jan: Winter timetable; snow scenery and shorter daylight.
- Feb: Winter timetable; snow scenery.
- Mar: Winter scenery with improving daylight.
- Apr: Late winter / spring transition.
- May: Summer timetable begins; long daylight.
- Jun: Long daylight and full summer timetable.
- Jul: Peak summer demand; advance reservation strongly advisable.
- Aug: Peak summer demand; advance reservation strongly advisable.
- Sep: Strong autumn-light shoulder season.
- Oct: 2026 service operates only through 10 October, then annual break begins.
- Nov: Annual operating break; no Glacier Express service in November 2026.
- Dec: 2026 service resumes from 5 December after the annual break.
Where to sit
No single best side; it changes along the route
No single side stays best for the whole Zermatt → St. Moritz run. Independent research puts the Mattertal views between Zermatt and Brig generally on the right, the Rhine Gorge generally on the left, and (after the train changes direction at Chur) the Albula section including the Landwasser Viaduct generally on the right again.
Travelling St. Moritz → Zermatt
Changes along the route
Travelling St. Moritz → Zermatt the same sections swap sides: generally left for the Albula line and Landwasser Viaduct, generally right through the Rhine Gorge, and generally left down the Mattertal into Zermatt. The train still changes direction at Chur, so no single side stays best.
Verification: high · Checked 10 Sept 2026
Good for
Good fit for
Photographers
Especially good
Panoramic Alpine scenery is a primary reason to take the journey.
Rail enthusiasts
Especially good
Engineering, metre-gauge railway character and classic Alpine routing are central to the experience.
Slow travellers
Especially good
The full-day pace is the product rather than a time-saving connection.
First-time rail travellers
Especially good
Iconic, easy-to-understand Swiss scenic journey with a clear end-to-end product.
Also works for 3 more
Families
Straightforward one-train experience; compulsory reservation reduces uncertainty.
Couples
A long scenic day works well as a shared special-occasion journey.
Older travellers
Reserved seating and a single through journey reduce logistical complexity.
Think twice if
It does not run all year
Runs Dec–Oct.
It takes most of a day
8h on board, end to end.
You cannot just turn up
A reservation is required for this journey.
How it scores
Our current editorial assessment, for comparing journeys, a considered judgement, not a measurement.
SceneryExceptional
ComfortStrong
Value for moneyModerate
Food & drinkStrong
Character of the trainExceptional
Show the full editorial profile
More subjective
UniquenessExceptional
Iconic statusExceptional
PhotographyExceptional
RomanceStrong
Travelling with childrenStrong
Not rated yet: seat quality, onboard service, slow travel quality, remoteness.
Step-free access and assistance are set out with the practical detail further down rather than reduced to a score.
Reservation & booking
- Reservation
- Required
- Typical price
- CHF 213
- Booking difficulty
- Easy
- Rail pass
- Accepted
Prices quoted 2026 full-route Zermatt–St. Moritz second-class published total: ticket up to CHF159 + mandatory CHF54 seat reservation. Reservation fee CHF 54. Rail-pass supplement CHF 54.
- A valid ticket and a mandatory seat reservation are required.
- 1st/2nd-class seat reservations open up to 93 days before travel; accepted rail passes cover the ticket component but not the reservation.
- A seat reservation is still required with a rail pass.
Only the operator's website is verified for this service. Timetables, fares and reservations must be found from there. Journey length: 8h. Checked 1 Nov 2026 · Glacier Express.
Sources & freshness
The detailed source record remains at the end of this guide. Review the evidence.
Your next step
Plan the route, then confirm it with the operator.
A valid ticket and a mandatory seat reservation are required. 1st/2nd-class seat reservations open up to 93 days before travel; accepted rail passes cover the ticket component but not the reservation. A seat reservation is still required with a rail pass.
Visit Glacier Express AG's website (opens in a new tab)Only the operator's website is verified for this service. Timetables, fares and reservations must be found from there.
Far by Rail is a discovery guide, not a live timetable or booking service. Confirm times, fares and availability with the operator.
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Sources & freshness
Journey information is reviewed against published material and maintained as sources change.
Last reviewed 1 Nov 2026.
Official sources
- Glacier Expressglacierexpress.ch
Checked 1 Nov 2026
- Glacier Expressglacierexpress.ch
Checked 27 Oct 2026
- Glacier Express AGglacierexpress.ch
Checked 27 Oct 2026