bus vs train for day trip from Basel to Bern?

I've never heard of anybody taking a bus between the two. There is frequent and fast train service between Basel SBB and Bern.

Bern is eminently walkable but there are buses and trams which can take you anywhere you don't want to walk, just like Basel. You will get free transport on all the buses and trams in Basel while you stay in a hotel there; if you had stayed at a hotel in Bern the same would have been the case. The two are not interchangeable, the systems are different and the free travel is only for the local area.

You might for example want to take a tram for just a very few stops to go and see the bears. Or walking is very easy, and when walking you can explore the arcades and all the medieval fountains. The TI in the station has a booklet for a walk to the fountains and the bears. Above the bears is a nice panorama and rose garden. The bus can take you up there (stop Rosengarten) and you can walk down or you can walk up and walk down.

You might walk down to the riverside to see the bears or you can look down on them from the top, or you can take a (free) inclined all glass elevator on the edge of the bear property down to the riverside.

Any kids with you? If so I have a hint about a miniature railway and lots more, but it involves a bus and a funicular.

What had you hoped to see and do?

The Swiss rail system is so great, it never would have occurred to me to take a bus.

No way bus.
Train is faster (just under 1 hour), more frequent (2 departures per hour vs a few per day) and a lot more comfortable. It also goes city centre to city centre. Train tickets cost CHF 41 each way (CHF 82 return). That price is valid on any train, so no need to commit to a specific return train, just get back to Bern station when you run out of energy.

Train times on SBB website: https://www.sbb.ch/en

Thanks for the helpful tips! Train travel between cities it will be! Thanks for the link for schedules too.

kathy,

It's good to hear that you've chosen the train. I agree with the others that train is the best choice.