Sion to Innsbruck Manageable in One Day??

There is actually a good route for you using the Glacier Express. 8 hours and 45 minutes leaving at 9:26
Sion to Brig
Brig to Chur on the Glacier Express
Chur to Sargans
Sargans to Innsbruck on the Railjet.

The fastest way is 6 hours and 45 minutes. Lots of departure times.
Sion to Visp
Visp to Zurich
Zurich to Innsbruck on the Railjet.

For the a/c issue, I'd go to wunderground.com and look at the historical monthly temperature graphs for Innsbruck and Salzburg going back a good number of years to see what actual temperatures have been experienced. Being the pessimistic sort, I'd check out late August as well as early September. Altitude definitely makes a difference, but unfortunately neither Salzburg nor Innsbruck is as high as 2000 feet, so you're not getting a lot of altitude benefit there. I suggest that you start by taking a look at 2015, which was a miserably hot summer in most of Europe. It would give me pause not to have a/c, based on what I see on wunderground. (And based on what I experienced in Bolzano and Bressanone, two valley cities in nothern Italy where even the hotels are in denial about needing a/c.)

It is usually easier to find a/c in hotels than in individual apartments. If you must have apartments, you may need to look into staying at higher elevation. In 2015, when it was hot-hot-hot at lower elevations, daytime temps were fine up in the Dolomites above 4000 feet or so. If you don't want to stay in a skiing/hiking town, you could consider different cities, where you may find a/c more widely available in apartments (or not). Ljubljana is very nice, and there are many day-trip possibilities from there as well, though outdoor temps would likely be warm to hot.

Sam, thanks so much for your information on the trains. Sounds like it will work well! When I buy tickets, can I do it all in one place or do I go to different sites to buy separate tickets for each leg of the journey (i.e. buy a ticket for Sion to Brig, one for Brig to Chur on the Glacier Express, one for Chur to Sargans, and finally one from Sargans to Innsbruck on the Railjet)? Also, would you say it is worth the extra time to take the Glacier Express? Or should we just take the quickest train and hope the views are still nice?

Acraven, thanks for the great weather site! I have already checked it for Innsbruck and Salzburg, and I think it will be much better to get air conditioning. So we have booked the smaller, but air conditioned, place in Salzburg, and are still searching for Innsbruck. It is strange to me that none of the rentals seem to have air, but I guess it's because I live in the US where every place is air conditioned. I am a bit of a wimp with hot temperatures. :) Maybe we will end up at a higher altitude, but I think getting there adds complications for us because of our luggage and instruments.

Thanks again!
Melanie

All tickets can be bought through the Swiss National Railway, SBB. You actually buy them as one transaction, Sion to Innsbruck specifying a stopover at Chur. You'll pick the 9:26 departure from Sion that includes a leg on the Glacier Express, GEX on the schedule. Then you will need to pay for a reservation on the GEX, really just a supplement, but does include an assigned seat.

You might want to contact them at [email protected]. The complication is that you are using it as a leg of an extended journey. You want to know you can get seat reservations for your travel date, which is 33 CHF per person. You want the 10:18 departure from Brig.

Inside 30 days, you can buy a ticket. Right now, for July 6, I am seeing a flexible ticket for 143 CHF, but you can get a nonrefundable ticket for 63 CHF. At https://www.sbb.ch/en. People have been having trouble with American credit cards these days, but reports are that American Express works. Notify your card company that you are making a foreign purchase.

Innsbruck can get hot in August, less so in September. However, it gets hot under the sunlight and nights are colder, so you can survive even without a/c. If you are afraid, just book your accommodation in one of the villages overlooking Innsbruck like Igls (the best connected) or Lans. They are 300 meters higher than the town center, that translates in a sort of natural air conditioning even in the hotter days of August.

Salzburg can also get hot in August and nights are less agreeable than in Innsbruck. In both places it may be difficult to find a/c as it would be needed only for a short summer period.

Instead of looking for airconditioning, you might look for the following:

• Find a room with windows not facing south.
• Avoid the top floor(s) of a building. The ground floor is usually much cooler.
• Old buildings often have thick walls which help isolate against the heat, plus high ceilings which help keep rooms cool too. In our previous house (built around 1900) we had to wear sweaters even when it was 30°C outside. Why would we have wanted airconditioning?
• Try and get a corner room with windows facing two different directions. That way you can create a draft.
• Smaller rooms will get stuffy more easily than large ones.

Thanks, Sam, that information on ticketing is very helpful. I do not have an American Express, unfortunately, but maybe I will be able to buy the tickets from a third party like Eurail?

Thanks to both Anna and Lachera for your comments on weather. I am very thankful we booked the place in Salzburg with air conditioning! For Innsbruck, I am looking into possible higher elevations, and spaces like you described, Anna, but I also discovered one other option. I found a place in Sargans, Switzerland, near Bad Ragaz, that looks nice and has air conditioning. Would it be advisable to stay there two nights instead of Innsbruck? Is there enough to do there? And is it difficult without a car? If it is a nice scenic area with something interesting near, we would consider skipping Innsbruck altogether and staying there instead. Then continuing our trip as planned with Salzburg and Vienna. I haven't found much online about the area, which makes me wonder if it is just isolated with not much to do. Anybody had experience there?

One final option is to go a completely different route. Head into Zurich or Luzerne, and then continue onto Salzburg and Vienna as planned. Any suggestions as to which might be most enjoyable (or another suggestion altogether)? Basically we have to get from Sion to Salzburg, then Vienna, and finally Budapest, but the few days between Sion and Salzburg could be anywhere, as long as it is en route to Salzburg.

Thanks,
Melanie

Go to www.glacierexpress.ch and do a dummy booking for Brig to Chur, for your intended travel date for the 10:18 train. You will get a diagram of the rail car with available seats. Then you will know if you have seats available together. Mid summer is a very popular time and the trains book up quickly. So if not, you can then proceed for the fast routes via Zurich.

If you are looking for a high elevation spot on the route to Salzburg, then St Anton am Arlberg fits the bill at about 5000 feet. It is right on the main line railroad between Zurich and Salzburg with frequent direct trains to those cities. It is a winter ski resort, but they operate the lifts in the summer for hiking and mountain biking.

After your time in Switzerland, anywhere in Austria will seem like a super bargain, and when you get to Budapest, you'll think they are having fire sale.

Sam, I love your comment about the fire sale - very funny! We actually went to Moscow recently, so I think I am prepared for Switzerland. The food in Moscow was so expensive, it was crazy. You couldn't even get a bottle of water for less than $10. Upside to that is that everywhere else in the world feels like a bargain now.

St Anton am Arlberg sounds like a definite possibility if the Glacier Express doesn't end up working out. I am going to look into both things tomorrow.

Thanks for all your help! You have been great!

Melanie

You can still do the Glacier Express and stop in St Anton am Arlberg as it is on the same train as the Sargans-Innsbruck train (Railjet), you just get off 1 hour before reaching Innsbruck.

So thanks to everyone's suggestions, I have booked a hotel in St. Anton am Albergs. It sounds like a great peaceful way to spend two days unwinding before heading to Salzburg and Vienna. We are all really excited about it.

My trouble now comes from trying to get train tickets. I am nervous if I wait too long, I could end up with terrible seats on the Glacier Express portion of the journey. It already looks fairly full, and the trip is not until August 30. So I have been attempting to deal with tickets for about three hours, and am frankly ready to pull out my hair. Here are the troubles I am having:

First, when I go to the Swiss Rail site, the tickets are much cheaper than Rail Europe, so I definitely prefer to buy the tickets there. When I select the correct route, I get all the way to check out, and then none of my visas are accepted. I looked at prior posts about this issue, but none of the suggestions work. I don't have American Express, only visas. I tried downloading the app, but it won't allow me to buy the tickets because it says "no international connection available," whatever that means. Sam, I know you mentioned that tickets can't be purchased more than 30 days out, so maybe that's the issue on the app, but on their computer, I was definitely able to access the cheap, nonrefundable tickets EXCEPT that they won't take my credit card. Very frustrating! So should I just wait until 30 days out, or could we then be in a situation where there are no tickets?

Second, I went to Glacier Express to see if I could at least get seat reservations without tickets. We prefer to go First Class, and when I look at seating, it seems pretty limited. I also want to get on the correct side of the train for Brig to Chur, but it is difficult to tell from their seating chart which side is north. The configuration is single seats along one side and double seating with tables on the other side. Does anyone know which side is the best? There are no numbers either (I read that certain seat numbers are better, but no luck on that front). Finally, can I actually reserve seats now and buy our tickets later?

Lastly, I assume from what people have said before, that it will be cheaper for us to just buy the tickets we need rather than getting a Select Pass. Is that right? How about a Swiss card or a Half Price card? Would any other option be more advantageous?

Thanks in advance!
Melanie

Sorry for the overload, but I thought of two more things. My kids are 14 and 17, in case that makes a difference in terms of which ticket approach is best. And second, should I preorder lunch when I make my seat reservations on the Glacier Express, or can we just wait and order once we're on the train? Is there a benefit of doing one or the other?

Thanks!!

At this point, I think you should try calling them.

Rail Center
Bahnhofplatz 7
CH - 3900 Brig

T: +41 (0)848 642 442
F: +41 (0)27 927 77 79

Our opening hours:
Monday - Friday:
07.00 - 19.00

Saturday - Sunday
08.00 - 14.00
Closed on public holidays

The problem with credit cards is the bank they are using to clear the transactions. Recent European credit card regulations limiting transaction fees have thrown a wrench into American credit card on-line payments. American Express was exempted temporarily, so that is why they still work. However there are no problems when using credit cards in person. So see if you can do the transaction over the phone by giving them your credit information. and please report back if this works. We're dying to know. This problem has been causing headaches for the last year.

Now whether to get a Half Fare Card. Probably not, but the question is whether you will spend over 240 CHF worth of tickets while you are there. When you get a Swiss Pass or Half Fare Card, you can also get a free Family Card and then your 14 yo can travel free with you at no cost. 17 yo is an adult as for as railway ticket prices go.

Can I assume you are flying into Geneva? There are direct trains from Geneva airport to Sion every 30 minutes, at 20 and 50 past the hour.

Hi Sam,
We are flying into Geneva and taking the train to Sion. I am guessing those tickets will be pretty cheap, and we will probably buy them when we arrive because I hate to get something specific and then have a flight delay.

In terms of the Visa issue, I will try to call tomorrow and let you all know what happens. Thanks for the contact information! Fingers crossed it works!!

Melanie

Yes, remember their time zone, sometimes we forget.

The full fare price GVA to Sion is 54 CHF 2nd class. Sion to Chur with the Glacier Express is 95 CHF 2nd class, 167 CHF 1st class. The beauty of the Half Fare Card is that is half off whether 1st or 2nd class. So if you did want to do the Glacier Express 1st class, combined with the Swiss portion of the continuation to St Anton, you will have "cracked the nut" to get a Half Fare Card for you and your son, and the free Family Card for the young'en. This will also help while you are in Sion, as you get half fare off of everything. Post bus, train, mountain lift (for the most part), local buses.

I was going to suggest day trips. Haute Nendaz and Crans-Montana in the mountains above Sion with the Postbus, and even Zermatt with the train.

Glad to hear that a half day card might be worth it! I will look into that before I call for tickets then. So it might take me an extra day before I call, especially given the time difference. It should help a lot on the day trips from Sion too because it will mostly be me and my youngest daughter (since my son will be pretty tied up practicing), and if she gets a free pass and I pay half, that should really help. :)

I have spent some time researching tickets today, and I think that perhaps the problem with the app is that it is too far out. So I think I am going to take your suggestion, Sam, and wait until 30 days out to try purchasing. I was able to go to Glacier Express and get seat reservations on the Glacier Express, so at least we are safe there - I am guessing that would be the trickiest part to make sure you have seats. Everything else should hopefully be fine.

I will update you all once I am closer to departure and try again to purchase tickets. Thanks!!

Melanie