Travelling by Train - Itinerary Help?

meg,

The easiest way to get from Bellagio to the Berner Oberland will probably be....

• Ferry across to Varenna (about 20 minutes). Walk up the hill to the train station.
• Train to Milano Centrale (1H:03M)
• Train to Lauterbrunnen (one you might consider is a departure at 11:23, arriving Lauterbrunnen at 14:55 - time 3H:32M, 2 changes at Spiez and Interlaken Ost).
• When you arrive at Lauterbrunnen, there are two ways to get to Mürren - you'll have to decide which route you want when you buy tickets - I'd suggest the "BLM" route which involves a Cable Car (directly across from the station in Lauterbrunnen) and a small mountain railway).

That's 4 nights you have for Switzerland by my calculations. I would as you suggest stay in the Berner Oberland (Mürren, Lauterbrunnen, Wengen or Grindelwald).

Bellagio is in between the two arms of lake Como (which is shaped like an inverted *Y)*. There is no rail line there, just boats and buses. You first need to get to somewhere with a rail line, probably Como town (at the bottom of the left leg of Lake Como).
But, how are you getting to Bellagio in the first place? You must already have researched that bit.

I would not use Google Maps for Public Transport. It has limited information. If you go to the SBB (Swiss Federal Railways) website: https://www.sbb.ch/en
Enter from: Como S. Giovanni, to: Mürren, date: 7th July and a time, you will see a connection roughly every hour, for example:

Como S. Giovanni dep 10:03, Mürren BLM arr 15:58, duration 5 h 55 min
Como S. Giovanni dep 11:03, Mürren BLM arr 16:58, duration 5 h 55 min
Como S. Giovanni dep 12:03, Mürren BLM arr 17:58, duration 5 h 55 min
and so on through the day.

It is a bit of a circuitous route because mountains are in the way. There is no alternative. It involves about 5 changes, but don't worry about that, all the trains will be waiting for the incoming train. If you click on one of the options, it will show you the individual trains.

You can also use the same SBB website to look up trains from Mürren to Bern or Zürich airport.

I imagine that Ken is right about the most efficient routing.

A second option would be to get to Como (much longer trip than to Varenna; can be done by bus or ferry) and take the train from there. Some of the Como departures go through Lucerne, which might be your second stop in Switzerland (though I have a feeling most here would recommend that you spend your first three nights in Murren). Lucerne is only about 3 train hours from Como, so you wouldn't have such an awfully long travel day.

Because Swiss trains are so expensive per mile, a different route might mean a significantly different cost. You can check fares (in some cases maybe only for the Swiss part of the journey) on the SBB website, but keep in mind that the fares displayed there assume you have purchased a half-fare card (CHF 120, I believe), which might not pay for itself in your case. Double the fares shown on SBB.com to see what you'd pay without a discount card. I'm not sure about your son; he might even travel free.

Thank you for your detailed responses. I do think that the fastest way may be through Milano Centrale. Looks like we can get into Murren by 3:30pm, which is great. So, what I am gathering from your responses, is that it makes the most sense to go straight from Bellagio to Murren and stay 3 nights and then do 1 night in Bern on our way to Zurch to fly out? Any recommendations on things to do or places to stay in Murren or Bern? Or daytrips we should do along the way? Thank you for the train information. Next I need to figure out which Swiss Train Pass to get...

Bern is nice enough, and maybe you and he will enjoy the arcades and colourful old (mostly) fountains and maybe the clock, but for my money I'd take that day in Lucerne (never spelled that way in Switzerland, it is in the German speaking region not French or English so will be spelled the German way - Luzern) which has a fabulous lake with big boats right next to the train station and a nice old town and cool pedestrian bridges. The train line from Interlaken Ost to Luzern via Brünig Pass is a narrow gauge rack railway (you might call it cogwheel) worked by frequent modern air conditioned trains with panoramic windows so you can see the mountains, forests, lakes and waterfalls as well as the local wildlife. A beautiful ride.

... to Murren and stay 3 nights and then do 1 night in Bern on our way to Zurch to fly out? Any recommendations on things to do or places to stay in Murren or Bern? Or daytrips we should do along the way? Thank you for the train information. Next I need to figure out which Swiss Train Pass to get...

I agree that you should stay 3 nights in Mürren, and Luzern would be a more charming place to stay for your last night, rather than Bern, in my opinion, too. Besides, in case of foggy or rainy weather, Bern is an easy day-trip from Mürren, and its shops are built with arcades for rainy weather. Bern has a nice little bear park, which your 3-year-old might enjoy. I do.

The scenery from the trains from Mürren to Luzern (via Meiringen) is gorgeous, with mountain lakes, waterfalls, and charming villages.

The city of Luzern has a very charming, medieval Old Town (pedestrians only), with a river with outdoor cafes, and a lake with ships/ferries to nearby mountains. Next to the Old Town, Luzern has trains that leave hourly, all day, that go directly to the Zurich airport in about an hour, so you don't have to change trains with your luggage. It also has trains between those departure hours, but you have to connect in the Zurich Hauptbahnhof (city train station).

Given that you have a 3 yr old with you, I'll suggest some shorter hikes:

1. Take the train from Murren to Grutschalp and hike back. Half way (about an hour in) you get to Winteregg, where you can opt out and take the train back to Murren if the kid is tired. Also at Winteregg is a playground and restaurant.

2. Hike from Murren down to Gimmelwald. May see sheep on the way. 15 min there and take the cable car back.

3. Take the cable car down to Stechelberg and walk or take Postal bus a short distance to Trummelbach Falls.

4. Take the trains and cablecars over to Wengen. Take the cable car there up to Mannlichen where you are almost guaranteed to be amongst cows. Take the 1.5 hr almost flat trail to Kleine Scheidegg. This is our favorite trail in the entire area.

5. Take trains (switch at Zweilutschinen) over to Grindelwald. Or, if you have a pass, you can take cable cars/trains over the Kleine Scheidegg ridge to Grindelwald. In Grindelwald, find the cable car to Pfingstegg and up there is a great luge ride for kids of any age.
   http://www.pfingstegg.ch/index.php/en/timetable-prices-4/toboggan