The Golden Pass Line, Switzerland
The Golden Line is one of the most picturesque railways in the world and runs from Montreux to Zweisimmen with connecting trains which links Geneva to Zurich via Lucerne. There are several types of trains available to take on the line such as the "Panoramic" which has air conditioning and glass windows in the roof and to offer enhanced viewing and the "Classic" which offers an Orient Express type experience.
When we travelled on the Golden Pass Line, we just took an ordinary train to Chateau D'Oex, which is famous for its Hot Air Balloon festival, although this train had the advantage of wind down windows so it was very easy to take clear photographs along the journey. The Montreux to Chateau D'Oex journey takes about an hour and starts by climbing high up above Montreux before winding round the mountains on its way to Zweisimmen and passing through some of the most breathtaking scenery you will ever see on a rail journey.
The Swiss countryside is covered with chalets and farms many of which provide the milk from which the local Gruyere cheese is made. Even though the Golden Pass train we took was not as new as some, it was very comfortable and perfect for our needs and the ability to take photographs out of the windows, a major plus.
The journey back on the Golden Pass from Chateau D'Oex to Montreux was just as enjoyable and as we were sitting on the other side of train, there were quite a few things on the way we noticed, that we missed on the way up.
The cost of a return ticket from Montreux to Chateau D'Oex was 36 CHF which is very good value, but if you plan to visit Switzerland, then I would recommend the monthly half-price pass which offers 50% on the trains and boats/ferries meaning our fare was only 18 CHF.
This entry was posted on Thursday July 16th, 2009 at 4:00 AM and is filed under Things to do. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response.
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