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TRAIN TRAVEL

Five European cities you can reach from Zurich in less than five hours by train

Switzerland is a beautiful country, but it also has a great location right in the centre of Europe, making it an ideal starting point for train travel. Here are five destinations you can reach in less than five hours from Zurich.

Published: 5 August 2022 15:14 CEST
Updated: 25 September 2022 08:56 CEST
Switzerland train
A train travels through Switzerland (© SBB CFF FFS)

If you are located in or near Zurich then you are very near Germany, France, Italy, Liechtenstein and Austria. In less than five hours, visiting beautiful cities in these five countries is possible by taking a comfortable train ride.

So, select your final destination, get your ticket, and enjoy the ride.

READ ALSO: Switzerland’s ten most beautiful villages you have to visit

From Zurich to Strasbourg

It will take you just about 2 hours and 30 minutes (including time to stop and change trains in Basel) to get from Zurich’s mains station to the beautiful and historical city of Strasbourg, in northeast France.

Prices vary depending on several factors, but we found one-way tickets for just around CHF 23 on a Friday.

From Zurich to Munich

The capital of Bavaria can be reached from Zurich’s central station on a direct train in just 3 hours 30 minutes, allowing for short stays.

Munich may seem quite far away on a map, but the fast trains without stopovers actually make the journey quick and pleasant. We found one-way tickets for around CHF 70 on a Friday trip.

From Zurich to Vaduz

The capital of Liechtenstein is easy to reach in less than 2 hours from the Zurich central station. In fact, some journeys will take just about 1 hour and 30 minutes.

The lovely town bordering Switzerland has many tourist attractions, from its pedestrian historical centre to castles and parks. Train ticket prices always vary, but we found tickets for a one-way journey on a Friday costing CHF 20.

READ ALSO: Travel: What are the best night train routes to and from Switzerland?

From Zurich to Milan

Depending on the train you take, you can get from Zurich to Italy’s fashion capital in three to four hours with a direct train.

Before 2016, when the Gotthard Base Tunnel was opened to rail traffic, a trip from Zurich to Milan took an hour longer. It’s possible to find tickets for about CHF 70 for a one-way trip on a Friday.

From Zurich to Innsbruck

From Zurich, it is possible to hop on a direct train and, in just over 3 hours and 30 minutes, arrive in the beautiful town of Innsbruck, in the mountains of Tyrol.

Ticket costs vary, but we found tickets for a relatively short-notice one-way trip on a Friday (without discounts) for CHF 84.

READ ALSO: Five beautiful Swiss villages located near Alpine lakes

Cost:

Fares depend on several factors, such as time of the day and day of the week when you travel.

While a rock-bottom cheap fare may be available one day in the morning, it won’t necessarily be offered the next day (or week) in the afternoon, or vice-versa.

Prices also depend on whether you are entitled to any discounts and which wagon you choose.

If you are interested in travelling farther afield, including with night trains, or if you are in other Swiss cities, these articles provide more information:

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DISCOVER SWITZERLAND

Goodbye Edelweiss: Swiss tourism body unveils its new logo

After three decades with the same 'old' logo — the Edelweiss flower — Switzerland’s tourism board has now re-branded itself. What is its new symbol now?

Published: 30 April 2024 13:13 CEST
Goodbye Edelweiss: Swiss tourism body unveils its new logo

For nearly three decades, Switzerland Tourism, which promotes the country’s charms abroad,  depended on the Alpine flower to sell ‘Swissness’ to foreign tourists.

Coloured in gold, with a Swiss flag in the middle (perhaps so as to distinguish it from the edelweiss that also grows on Alpine meadows in Austria, France, and Germany), the flower had been part of the organisation’s official logo since 1995.

Image by Switzerland Tourism

 

Crossing its t’s

Now, however, the tourism board is taking its logo to a whole new level — or at least that is how the organisation is referring to the new design it unveiled at a press conference in Geneva on Monday.

And what could be more Swiss, or more emblematic of Switzerland, than… the country’s flag (you may argue that the iconic Matterhorn would be a good choice as well, now that it is no longer featured on the Toblerone chocolate).

The new logo features the word ‘Switzerland’ (in English), with the letter ‘t’ replaced by the flag.

With this new image, the tourism board “is now spreading its new identity throughout the world,” Switzerland Tourism said.

Another Swiss icon: Roger

Whatever you may think of the new logo, and even if you don’t think about it at all, the fact remains that Switzerland Tourism has had some clever ideas up its sleeve to ‘sell’ the country to foreign visitors.

Over the past few years, it has teamed up with retired tennis champ Roger Federer (who, in turn, had teamed up with other high-profile individuals) to promote Switzerland worldwide.

This is one example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXcBGfXXL4w&t=13s
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