Driving versus train

The only other thing to point out is not only does the vehicle have to hold 8 passengers - it has to hold all the luggage as well - it may be an awfully big van you end up with.

It would be a Ford Transit, which is like the Mercedes Sprinter (but Ford version). Room for nine and gear.

Or it may end holding 8 people and that's all - no luggage. Do you have driving experience in mountainous driving terrain with snow and ice? Can you put the chains on your tires that will be required when you drive through the mountain in the winter? I have my doubts that you will actually be able to find a vehicle to carry 8 people + 8 luggage. Looking at autoeurope.com The largest van I see carries 9 passengers with room for 2 medium luggage + 2 small luggage.

Swiss Travel Pass will also give you hefty discounts when using the trains and gondolas in the Berner Oberland region. It would cover your entire route Zurich Airport -> Varzo -> Grindelwald -> Zurich Airport.

Please check carefully. Usually most people carriers have room at the back either for the tip up seats of the third row or luggage but not both simultaneously. When the third row is tipped up the back of those seats very nearly touch the back window.

michelle,

Travel by train will probably be the easiest option, although it may cost slightly more than a rental vehicle. As you're planning to ski, I assume this trip is taking place in the near future?

A few thoughts....

• as the others have mentioned, you will have to rent a large vehicle to accommodate eight plus luggage. Depending on what the rental firm has available, you may end up with two vehicles.
• the vehicle may be standard transmission, so your drivers will have to be able to handle that.
• your profile doesn't indicate where you live, but I assume you're familiar with driving in winter conditions?
• It's important to note that for driving in Italy, each driver listed on the rental form must have the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used in conjunction with your home D.L. These are valid for one year, and easily obtained at any CAA/AAA office (two Passport-sized photos required, which may be provided by the issuing office).
• You may also want to have a look at some of the other posts here concerning the dreaded Zona Traffico Limitato areas that are becoming increasingly prevalent in many Italian towns & cities. EACH violation will result in a €100+ ticket, which you may not know about until several months after you return home!
• driving in a jet lagged state after a long international flight is a practice that has been compared to impaired driving, so that's another point to consider.

Travel from Zürich airport to Varzo will take 3.5 - 4 hours, using a combination of train and bus. You can check the transportation details on the Bahn.de website.

Thank you for all the helpful information and warnings. I am also interested in information regarding the actual driving scenic views. Not so much conditions of the road but is the drive as stunning as the train ride is reported to be. Also how about traffic congestion - is it a factor on Switzerland road ways, can a 3 hour drive turn into a 6 hour drive due to heavy traffic?

The drive may be as stunning as the train, but you as the driver better have your eyes glued to the road on those winding curving passages :-) Those stunning vistas, to me, are much more enjoyable relaxing with my bottle of wine and Swiss chocolates as somebody ELSE does the driving and lets me just take it all in. Read a book if I want, take a nap, get up and walk around, visit the dining car. Yes, training definitely has advantages.

Yes, of course, traffic is ALWAYS the great unknown factor. Rail traffic is a known constant and traffic is hardly ever a problem. Vehicles are at the mercy of other drivers.

OK, I get it. You want to drive.

I looked at the Ford Transit van and while it might hold 8 people I doubt it will do so comfortably, especially if they are shaped the way the people around where I live are shaped (ie not small folks). Luggage for eight people? No, no it will not accommodate that many people and that much luggage unless the size of the people or the luggage is a lot smaller than I am used to.

You will need two vehicles if you plan on driving.

Also the winter situation. If you and your other driver are not used to it then that is definitely an issue. Forget about it on alpine switchbacks--which do not come in singles...

No, I don't want to drive, but I am looking for multiple variables that help us make the decision to pay more than $150 more per person to take the train. Thanks everyone for your help.

You're not understanding the basic concept here: You WILL NOT fit into the minivan. Doesn't matter if it costs $1000 more per person to take the train - the basic fact here is that you will not all fit into a single vehicle.

If there is a special need to rent vehicles and to self-chauffeur, the obvious solution to carrying eight persons (adult sized?) plus gear is to rent two vans.

One issue we encounter during our ski trips is fitting our skis (205 cm cross country skis) into vehicles. On one trip, we booked an airport arrival car service through the Pragie hotel. I made specific arrangements alerting the hotel of our ski length and they were able to get us a van at an up-charge. Our driver had to remove some head rests to get the ski box in the vehicle.

On other occasions, sharing a taxi from the hotel to VCE, the taxis were hatchbacks that could fit skis in over back and front seat extending between the driver and front passenger and we could only carry one back seat passenger is a contorted position.

In Helsinki I would have expected taxis to be use to skiers but most of the taxis at the train station would not transport skis. On our first trip from train station to hotel, only one driver with a minivan was willing to transport us. On our last trip from the train station to hotel, we were able to get one taxi with a station wagon type taxi to transport our skis and one of our party while the rest of us walked to the hotel. (Hotel would book large capacity vans on request).

European taxis operators do not drive large SUVs. Hope you are renting skis.

michelle,

One other comment....

If you're renting the vehicle in Varzo, it may or may not have the Swiss highway tax vignette. You'll have to buy that as soon as you enter Switzerland, or be subject to hefty fines which may be collected on the spot! Also, one (or two) larger vehicles will probably not exactly be "fuel efficient" and according to prices today, diesel in Switzerland will be over US$6.00 per gallon.

You may be able to offset the rail costs in Switzerland by using one of the Swiss passes or the Half Fare card.