Lucerne to Interlaken: Getting Into the Swiss Alps by Train.

[google1]

Editors Note: We’d like to say thanks to Eurail.com who provided us with two complimentary global passes for The Hazy Shade of Autumn Tour. We’ve got some great European train stories coming out in the future, so stay tuned!

InstaTog Photos and Story by Randy Kalp

We set out at dawn from our lake front hostel—Backpackers Lucerne—for the city train station. Fifteen minutes and three blocks were all that separated us from our first train ride into the Swiss Alps.

Power walking through the morning dew—past shuttered rowing clubs, dock hands wearing beanies and city workers shoveling large piles of yellow leaves like it’s snow— it reminded me of the autumns of my youth in western Pennsylvania.

Arriving at Luzern Bahnoff (the central station), we caught the train with five minutes to spare– one bonus to traveling through Switzerland with a Eurail pass is that you can hop on and off any intercity/regional train at will. (Reservations are only required for overnight trains and country to country journeys, like Switzerland to Italy for example.)

Like every train we’ve taken in Switzerland, the cars were clean, modern and stylish—our train out to Interlaken was no different. The journey from Lucerne to Interlaken takes about two hours by train and can be done without having to make any connections. However, even though our train was direct, we still had to transfer to a bus at Giswil because the line was under construction until early December.

If you do encounter the temporary detour, don’t worry about making your connections. The staff on the train will make sure you get on to the correct bus, which will be waiting for you when your train pulls into the station. At first, we were a bit disappointed to have to take a bus, but after ascending up over the Alps we were actually quite pleased with our misty mountain hop.

After approximately 15 minutes on the bus, we finished the detour and transferred to the waiting train. This section of the journey passes one of the most extraordinary mountain lakes I’ve ever seen. Towering peaks, some snowy others bare, guard the towns and its exquisite turquoise waters, which conjures up images of Maya Riviera in Mexico.

There are two train stations in Interlaken, though, the OST (east) is the main one. Around the train station is a grocery store and some restaurants. Taxi cab drivers wait outside, and a ride for two people runs about 14 francs ($15.12). The metro area is comprised of three municipalities, Interlaken (the most famous), Matten and Unterseen. In theory, all three towns should be one, but politics keeps them separated. For travelers staying in any of the three towns, your hotel cost should include a complimentary bus passes for each day of your stay.

While we were using the Eurail Global Pass for our journey, it should be noted that if you are only traveling to a specific country, a single country pass like the Eurail – Italy Rail Pass or the Eurail – Spain Rail Pass, may be a great option for your trip.

Here a few more photos I took during our journey from Interlaken to Lucerne:

*Get the first glimpse of our new travel photos & posts! Subscribe by email and get new travel articles delivered straight to your inbox:

Or add us to your favorite feed reader by clicking the orange icon! 

*Please remember all photos on this website, unless otherwise noted, are copyrighted and property of Beers and Beans Travel Website, Nariko’ s Nest Weddings & Bethany Salvon. Please do not use them without my permission. If you do want to use one of them please contact me first because I do love to share and I would be flattered. Thanks!