I was considering my options for my European trip and really wanted to add Switzerland in between the Netherlands and Italy. Instead of flying from Amsterdam to Venice, what would be the best route if I wanted to get to Wengen, Switzerland from Amsterdam?
Posted by
Green Bay
21145 posts
Fastest train itinerary is 10 hours with 3 train changes, although the last 2 are unavoidable to get up into the mountains. It will also be a lot of changes to get from there to Venice. A less remote destination might be Luzern, 8 1/2 hours with a single change. Luzern to Venice is 6 1/2 hours with 2 changes.
Posted by
Paris
7300 posts
Much as I hate to recommend short-haul flights, in your case it really makes the most sense to fly to Venice and keep Switzerland for a future trip rather than lose 2 days to travel, unless you have plenty of time...
Posted by
Uppsala, Sweden
6970 posts
When is your trip? Starting in December this year, there will soon be overnight trains from the Netherlands to Switzerland that will make the trip to Wengen a lot easier. But yes, Wengen to Venice will take some time and looking at a less remote place in Switzerland might be a good idea.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17427 posts
Or add a night in Switzerland on your way.
There is a direct train to Basel that departs Amsterdam Centraal at 8:08 am and arrives at Basel SBB 6 1/2 hours later. We took this train on our way to the Berner Oberland in 2018, after flying into Amsterdam from the US to spend a few days visiting friends there. I booked a nice hotel an easy walk from the Basel SBB station, and we enjoyed seeing the city (and my husband took a swim in the river) in the afternoon before we looked for a place for dinner. In the morning we walked through the Old Town before boarding a train around 11 am to continue our journey to Mürren. We were glad of the opportunity to visit a Swiss city we had not seen before.
However, this was our 5th or 6th trip to Switzerland, and that country was our final destination. Since the OP is on the way to Italy, heading to Wengen is well out of the way and not worth the extra effort unless they can devote at least 3 nights to that location. Otherwise, as Sam suggests, there are better locations in Switzerland for a quick stop, that would be simpler and faster to reach, and provide better train access to Venice.
Posted by
OP
149 posts
Thank you for the responses! The direct train is such a fantastic idea and I will totally look into it. Also, my goal was to spend 4 nights in Wengen so I definitely have 3 full days to appreciate it and make it worth the hassle.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17427 posts
Book that train 2+ months in advance on Bahn.de and you should get a great Sparangebot (special offer). Like 49,90 euro instead of the regular fare of 170,40 in 2d class. Note that the Sparangebot tickets are not flexible—-they are good only for the particular train you book.