REVIEW: Train travel through Europe can be magical, but it pays to pack light and plan ahead.
A weaker Australian dollar has made rates for car hire in Europe uncomfortably expensive for many travellers, so my partner and I decided to rethink our usual travel transport arrangements during a recent visit.
We figured rail was the smarter, more economical way to explore the best of Switzerland and northern Italy.
The game plan? Choose hotels within walking distance of train stations to make the end-of-day check-ins a breeze. Simple, right?
We thought we’d nailed it.
First stop after Paris was the elegant lakeside town of Montreux, Switzerland’s answer to the French Riviera.
The hotel was just a short walk from the station, made even easier by a handy lift that whisked us down to the Lake Geneva foreshore.
We barely noticed the convenience at the time, too distracted by the stunning alpine views and serene waterfront. In hindsight, we should’ve stayed longer. Montreux is far more than just an overnight stop.
Next up, Zermatt, home of the iconic Matterhorn. We took an early train to maximise our time, but this leg came with our first hiccup: activating our Swiss Rail Pass.
We had opted for a flexible version, which sounded great in theory but required manual activation each travel day. Worse, it wouldn’t save to our iPhone wallets, so we resorted to screenshots to show inspectors. A minor annoyance, but one that repeated too often.
There’s stunning scenery around every bend.
Swiss Rail itself, however, is a marvel. Their platform signage is a masterclass in efficiency, clearly showing where each train car (first or second class) will stop so you can board with ease.
The downside? Luggage space. Even in first class, storing large suitcases is a squeeze (an issue not unique to Switzerland, but frustrating all the same).
Then came the moment our grand ‘walkable-hotel’ plan started to unravel. Zermatt is stunning, but it’s also a maze of hills and cobblestone streets. Dragging rolling luggage through it felt more like a gym session than a scenic stroll.
Things only got tougher in St Moritz. Built into the side of a mountain, the town may be the playground of the rich and famous, but it’s a logistical nightmare for anyone with wheels and a suitcase.
We threw in the towel and hailed a taxi; a choice we’d repeat several times, slowly eroding the savings we thought we’d made by skipping car hire.
Our next leg was Lugano via Tirano. We opted for a train journey via Monza instead of the three-hour Bernina Express bus ride, having read too many horror stories about cramped seats.
Here, the romance of European rail began to fade. Italian regional trains were a stark contrast to the polished Swiss system: graffiti-covered carriages, neglected stations, and overgrown weeds as far as the eye could see.
At Monza, chaos struck again. The departure board pointed us to platform one. With no escalators in sight, we hauled our luggage up the stairs and waited. Minutes before departure, I noticed the platform was suspiciously empty.
A last-minute dash inside revealed a change in departure platform. Again. We scrambled, sweating and swearing, and barely made the connection.
Collapsing into our seats, we turned to each other and said, without hesitation: “We are not doing this again”.
Here’s the truth. Train travel through Europe can be absolutely magical. The scenery is unbeatable, the rides are (mostly) smooth, and the experience is, in many ways, unmatched.
But it demands meticulous planning, a light packing strategy, and an acceptance that not every leg will go as smoothly as the brochures suggest.
Would we recommend it? Yes. Just leave the big suitcase at home and bring your patience.
