We are hoping to take this scenic train ride in August. We will be using the Swiss Travel Pass or a 1-month GA Travel card. Older forum posts indicate that these passes also cover the French portion of the journey from the Swiss border to Chamonix. I'm not sure this is still the case when I look at a current version of the Swiss Pass Map. I see a solid line from Le Chatelard-Frontier to Chamonix, but being a little red-green colorblind, it looks like there is no coverage ("No reduction" in the key) for this section. Any current informatin would be appreciated.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17418 posts
Here is the current map:
The legend is a bit confusing, as it is difficult to distinguish between the dark blue solid line used for boats (covered with a STP or GA Travelcard) and the dark grey solid line used for foreign train lines that are not covered. But you can see the difference by comparing with the train line down to Domodossola in Italy. That is red, like all the train lines within Switzerland, and it is covered. The French train beyond the border at Châtelard-Frontière is not covered any more.
Posted by
OP
Salem, Oregon USA
27 posts
Thanks Lola. I thought that might be the case. I have trouble distinguishing the colors of the line to Domodosolla and the line to Chamonix. At this stage, I'm not sure if we will go all the way to Chamonix as we are taking a day trip from Sierre/Siders and would not have too much time in Chamonix.
Another option is to take the Mont-Blanc Express from Martigny to Le Chatelard and then to take the PostBus back to Martigny (skipping Chamonix) and then spending a few hours in Martigny. I've read that the road is a very different experience from the rail line. Any thoughts?
Posted by
OP
Salem, Oregon USA
27 posts
I see that the bus connections from Le Chatelard to Martigny are infrequent so we will probably not go this route.