Getting from BO to Italian Lakes via train

My review of the "Loetschberger" RE train going the other direction. Sit on the right hand side of the train going your direction.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/switzerland/ride-the-bls
This train goes direct from Spiez to Domodossola, Where you can get an Italian regional train or bus onward to Maggiore.
Stresa might be the best stopping place on Lago Maggiore. You can book a bus ride direct from Stresa to Malpensa Airport.

I've done the whole route once by car and several times by train, and parts of it many many times, both by train and by car. What specifically would you like to know?

The regional train on the Kandersteg route between Spiez and Brig still goes through a tunnel after Kandersteg, but it is much shorter than the deep Lötschberg Basistunnel. We rode this train a number of times before the Basistunnel was buil,t, and we continue to choose it now (I avoid long tunnels whenever possible). The Simplon tunnel comes afterward, between Brig and Domodossola, but is unavoidable when taking the train.

From the Berner Oberland, you can also reach Lago Maggiore by heading to Luzern and riding the scenic Treno Gottardo on the Gotthard Pass route to Locarno, a Swiss city on Lago Maggiore. You can spend a night or two there and then take a ferry down to lake to Stresa.

This may take a bit longer than the Lötschberg route, but I haven’t actually compared the times. Here is a little incentive to visit Locarno—-the Valle Verzasca is close by, and easily accessible by Postbus.

https://www.ascona-locarno.com/en/explore/valle-verzasca

Thanks, all! Love your timely and efficient responses. So Swiss! ;-)

Sam, your BLS report is so helpful, and so recent! I appreciate having details when visiting a new place or trying a new mode of transportation. Surprising about the lack of coordination between the timing of the two trains but there's nothing bad about an enforced coffee break!

Lola, I'm in Seattle, too, so hello, neighbor! Wow, the Valle Verzasca is really beautiful, thanks for sharing! We'd considered the Treno Gottardo but we'll be staying in Lucerne before the BO and we prefer not backtracking if we can help it. That said, I understand the Gotthard is a gorgeous trip so maybe? If you've done both, how do you think the two trips compare?

I'm timing the Lötschberger trip (Wengen to Stresa) at about three hours, maybe four given Sam's info about the wait between trains. Is that overly optimistic?

I've been reading about Domodossola and am considering a stop there along the way. Any thoughts on that?

We'll be traveling in mid-September and will probably have the Swiss Travel Pass (I need to research that more.) Do y'all recommend buying tickets and making seat reservations for this trip ahead of time?

Cheers!

SBB.ch shows the fastest journey to Stresa from Wengen on the Kandersteg route at 3 hours 53 minutes, or just about an hour longer, as you thought.

The shortest journey time from Wengen to Locarno using the Treno Gottardo is 6+hours, so probably not a good idea for you.

The coordination is not bad going your direction, 20 minutes in Spiez and 23 minutes in Brig. Those transfer times are forever by Swiss standards.

Thanks, Lola and Sam, I appreciate your tips! I think we'll do the Lötschberg pass route! :-)

Any thoughts on where to stay in Lago Maggiore? I keep seeing Stresa recommended on the forum, not sure if that would fit our preference for quieter places. Then again, we won't have a car, so maybe Stresa is best? We love any and all types of public transportation so that's not a deal-breaker by any means!

Grazie!
Jean

The easiest way to get out to the Borromean Isles is to stay in Stresa and going to those islands is one of the major reasons people visit the Italian part of Lake Maggiore.

If you want some peace and quiet, book a room at a hotel Belvedere on Isola Pescatori, the smallest of the Borromean Islands.

https://en.lagomaggiore.net/37/isola-dei-pescatori.htm

https://www.svadore.com/borromean-islands-visit-isola-dei-pescatori-lake-maggiore/

There are day-trippers around during the daytime, but after the last ferry departs you will have the island pretty much to yourselves, along with the local residents and a few other hotel guests.

https://belvedere-isolapescatori.it/en/hotel/

Thanks, all! :-)

There are two towns near each other across from the Borromean Islands, Stresa which has been mentioned and Baveno. Baveno is where I have stayed, and it is considerably less busy than Stresa.

Both towns have train service, both towns have boats over to the Islands. The hotels in Stresa are a little larger.

Thank you for sharing your secret "B" town favorite, Nigel! Yes, I saw Baveno in earlier posts and I am intrigued so I'll definitely look it up! We will be a group of six travelers so we usually opt for a holiday house rental instead of a hotel. I also like the sound of Cannobio. So many lovely options! :-)

Cheers!

Hey all, I know my travel companions will ask me this: How much of the Lötschberg (via Kandersteg) to Domodossola route is above ground (i.e. scenic) vs. in a tunnel (i.e. not scenic)?

Cheers!

Jean, there is a tunnel on the Kandersteg route, but it is much shorter than the deep Lötschberg Basistunnel. The old tunnel on the Kandersteg route is 14 km, the new Basistunnel is 34 km.

You can see them both on this rail map:

https://www.mystsnet.com/en/download/swiss-travel-system-map-en-2023/?wpdmdl=14294&masterkey=63a023c8da36c

Tunnels are marked in dashed lines. The deep Basistunnel is in dark dashed lines; the shorter tunnel on the more scenic route is barely visible in lighter dashed lines. Either way, you will go through the Simplon tunnel between Brig and Domodossola.

Even cars have to go through the train tunnel to travel this route. They are loaded onto flatbed train cars at Goppenstein and travel to Kandersteg, where they are unloaded and can proceed on the road. You can see all this on the map.

These tunnels are unavoidable when traveling by train between Switzerland and Italy on this route.

Thanks, Lola. I understand we'll be in tunnels which is fine, just hoping it's not "10% beautiful, 90% in the dark." :-)
The map is helpful, as is the explanation of where the tunnels are. Awesome!

Hi again, all...

Hope you don't mind a railpass question! I've been reading and reading the forum and MySwissAlps.com and my eyes are just spinning so I'm hoping you helpful folks can help again! :-)

OK: Six over-60 fairly seasoned travelers & intermediate hikers, traveling late August to mid-September. Arr. Zurich, straight to Lucerne for five nights; then Wengen for five or six nights; then Lago Maggiore (via Kandersteg & Domodossola) for five nights; Dep. Milan Malpensa. Looking forward to hikes, boats, funiculars, cable cars, trains, Rodelbahns, probably a daytrip to Bern, good food and beer, maybe some music and museums.

What pass (or combo of passes) makes the most sense for our ten or eleven days in Switzerland as noted? (I've read about the Tell Pass for Lucerne but I'm not seeing a lot about it on the RS forum.)

Thanks much!

Bumping my post. Cheers! :-)

and a good bump indeed.

I have never explored passes around Luzern, and 5 days sounds a bit long although I know there are lots of things to do in the vicinity; in fact with a pass I would probably spend a fair amount of the time exploring the various nooks and crannies of Lake Lucerne as I find it a most beautiful lake.

good luck - I know more about the Kanton of Bern.

I wonder if a new thread around Luzern and its passes might catch more eyeballs

Tell pass seems less mentioned on the Forum because few people take advantage of it. It is rather expensive for 3 days, but extra days are cheap. People usually stop in Luzern for 2 or 3 days to/from the Berner Oberland. Here is the map of validity for summer 2024.
https://www.tellpass.ch/tellpass/information/geltunsbereich/dokumente/geltungsbereich/TellPass_Streckennetz_EN_Sommer_2024.pdf

Prices are here. Click on "summer". I don't see that there is any discount for the Half Fare Card.
https://www.tellpass.ch/en/shop/ticketshop

Thanks, all!

Nigel, I stayed in Lucerne way back in 1989 and loved it. I only had one day there on my way to the BO but I wished I had stayed longer. I spent my one day cruising around the lake on a paddlewheeler, stopping at every port, resting and napping in the sun, just what I needed after having spent the previous three weeks crisscrossing the Continent. This time I'll spend five full days in Lucerne. Our group of six is renting a house in the Sonnenberg above Lucerne town. Mt. Pilatus is practically in our backyard! We're also hoping to see the world record attempt with 550 Alphorn players up on Klewenalp. I'm also intrigued by the Voralpen Express and the Einsiedeln Abbey. Plus more hikes, cable cars, funiculars, boats and mountain cafes than we can count. We'll easily fill up our five days!

Sam, thanks for the Tell Pass info. I think it'll be worthwhile for our five days in the Lucerne area what with all we plan to do. I think it gets us to Interlaken, too. But I'm not sure about passes once we're in the BO, where we'll stay for six days. I don't really understand the Halfprice Pass or why one would want both that and the BO Pass...

When you did the BLS train trip over the Lotschberg Pass, how much of the ride was in open air and how much in the tunnel? We'll be headed for Italy so we know we have to do the Simplon Tunnel which is OK, I just hope a goodly portion of the Lotschberg part is outside and scenic! :-)

When you did the BLS train trip over the Lotschberg Pass, how much of the ride was in open air and how much in the tunnel?

You are in the old Loetschberg tunnel about 11 minutes, with 69 minutes total travel time between Spiez and Brig. Note that if get the 10:12 departure from Spiez, the train is direct to Domodossola, getting you there by 11:54.

I don't really understand the Halfprice Pass or why one would want both that and the BO Pass.

The strategy of getting both the Half Fare Card and the 6-day BORP is the the discount you get. However, this year, they have reduced the amount of that discount. Now it is only 96 CHF where as last year it almost covered the entire 120 CHF cost of the HFC. So then you would have the HFC for the rest of your travel in Switzerland. Assuming you are arriving at ZRH, you would have to pay full fare for the ride from ZRH to Luzern. But that is only 31 CHF, so in your case with a 5-day Tell Pass and a 6-day BORP, getting the HFC would cost you a little more.

PS If the Tell Pass is valid on your arrival date, then it covers you from Zug. Then the full fare ticket cost is only 20.60 CHF from ZRH. If you take the train that makes more stops, then it covers your from Baar and the ticket is only 18 CHF.

Thanks, Sam, that's exactly what I needed to know! :-)
We will be staying only in Lucerne and the BO (and then Lake Maggiore) so sounds like the Tell Pass and the BO pass should be fine for us. Now to discover whether there's a pass for the Italian Lakes!
Cheers!
Jean