How to catch Bernina Express from Venice (after Oct 21)?

Trenitalia is correct. For some reason, Bahn.de does not show the regional train from Milan to Tirano. That has been the case for some time. But you can see it on Trenitalia, and on the Swiss rail site.

Rob, As Lola mentioned, the Trenitalia version is the correct one, and the route that I would follow. The trip from Venezia S.L. to Milano Centrale will likely be via Freccia (fast) train, so reservations compulsory. As you noted, the trip from Milano Centrale to Tirano is via Regionale (DON'T forget to validate!). That particular route is the same one that travellers use to get to Varenna on Lago di Como. When you arrive in Tirano, you'll see the distinctive red cars so should be able to find the Bernina Express easily. It's a great trip through some very beautiful scenery. As the train doesn't arrive in Chur until the late afternoon, will you be spending one night in Chur? Happy travels!

Ken, thanks for the tips. Yes I'm aware of the reservations for the BE, thanks. Would we be missing a lot of scenery after dark? My understanding is the best part of the route would be behind us. Edit: I just realized we beat the 1 hour time change by a day. It won't be dark after all. The following day the clocks go ahead an hour. Whew nice timing :-) Another option might be to spend a night FIRST in Tirano (which would give us a bit more time to explore Venice possibly Milan too). Then do the early BE the next day. The early BE ends at St. Moritz though so this would entail a lot of train switching on the regionals from St. M to Lucerne ================================ As for Nice >> Barcelona.... We were planning to visit Avignon anyway so that breaks up the trip comfortably. However I was mulling the idea of skipping Nice and choosing Marseille instead which is closer. But I've read Nice is so much "nicer", pardon the pun. Marseille seems grittier and a lot less charming.

Thanks Lola and Ken for your helpful answers! Awesome forum, I'm new here and it's our first Europe trip. Yes, we plan to stay overnight in Chur, maybe the Franzikaner or Ibis. Something as inexpensive as possible and near the train station. Our big splurge will be in Lucerne for 3 nights at the Montana Art Deco. I was impressed by the reviews and the awesome lake view. So the highlight of our trip will no doubt be the BE train followed by Lucerne. In case you're interested, we're doing a whirlwind tour from Munich to Barcelona for 2 weeks then catch the Carnival Breeze transatlantic back home. Itinerary (nights): Munich (2) Venice (2) Chur (1) as mentioned above Lucerne (3) Nice (2) Avignon (1) - necessary to connect to Barcelona train
Barcelona (3) I know that's pretty aggressive but we have a 6-day flexi-pass and want to get our money's worth :-) plus we have 2 weeks to rest on the ship so we don't mind burning ourselves out a bit LOL. We could cut out Nice but I'd hate to come all this way and not visit the French Riviera.

Rob, if you are traveling in November or December, most of your "scenic" ride on the Bernina will be under twilight or outright darkness, if you make such tight connections all the way from Venezia.

Andre, we'll be on the BE Oct 27. The train begins at 14:04 and arrives at Chur at 18:27. Sunset in Chur will be around 17:10 so yes the last part will be dark. So good point, maybe we should stop overnight in St. Moritz instead of Chur. The next day is an easy leg to Lucerne and no hurry to arrive as it will be too early anyway to check in to the hotel.

Rob, A few points to add..... Although it's not close to the station, I stayed at Hotel Freieck in Chur, and was very pleased with it. I took a Taxi to the station, which only took about five minutes. Regarding your Flex Pass, note that it does NOT include reservation fees which are compulsory on some trains. If you're caught without valid reservations in Italy, you may be fined on the spot, and it's not cheap (the fines start at €50 PP). As this is your first trip to Europe, you may find it helpful to read the "Rail Skills" section in Europe Through The Back Door. The trip from Nice to Barcelona will be a minimum of 10 hours, with at least two (and sometimes more) changes. On that route, I would definitely consider travel by budget air. For example, EasyJet has flights on that route (about 1.5H), but unfortunately I don't think these are offered every day. Iberia or one of the other airlines may offer flights, but I'd have to check. Using that method would provide you with more time for touring, rather than using up an entire day for travel. There's also the option of a night train from Nice to Barcelona. However, that would cost extra for Couchette fees and also there could be changes in the "wee hours" of the morning, which is not the most pleasant aspect. Cheers!

Rob, I agree with your choice between Nice and Marseille. Nice is a beautiful city with lots of sightseeing possibilities. The old town area is wonderful with lots of small stores and restaurants, and a really nice ambience. There are also the Chagall and Matisse Museums, or you could take a day trip to Monaco and Monte Carlo (as I recall, the Bus fare is only €1 each way). Cheers!

We are planning the same trip from Venice to the BE on the 3rd of Jan. and then return on the glacier express to zermatt, after reading about the "dark" portion on the train, my question is, should we wait until April to do these train trips, as we are planning on returning to Venice again?
Thanks Denise

No need for that, but to enjoy the scenery you must overnight in Tirano.

Hi, I'm very confused and hope someone can help me sort this out. I have printed out the Bernina Express info from this site and we were thinking of doing the bus portion along with the train, now I read that the bus portion is not running? Is that still true? Or is that seasonal? We'll be going in early June.

We will have a car and will stay in Verona the night before. We could, I presume, drive directly to Tirano and get the Bernina Express there?

We very much want to see the Alps, but are unfortunately limited for time.

Is it possible to leave on the BE from Turano, ride up to say, Pontresina on the BE, then come back to Turano in a day? Fortunately the days will be long then.

What trains would we be taking?

Please know that I'm generally ignorant about European trains, but I want to learn.

Thanks!

Beth

Hi, I'm very confused and hope someone can help me sort this out. I have printed out the Bernina Express info from this site and we were thinking of doing the bus portion along with the train, now I read that the bus portion is not running? Is that still true? Or is that seasonal? We'll be going in early June.

The bus is seasonal

We will have a car and will stay in Verona the night before. We could, I presume, drive directly to Tirano and get the Bernina Express there?

Yes, you can do that, and there is a rather scenic route to drive up there via Brescia, Iseo, Breno and Edolo. It takes 3 and a half hours, roughly, to travel by car between Verona and Tirano.

Is it possible to leave on the BE from Turano, ride up to say, Pontresina on the BE, then come back to Turano in a day? Fortunately the days will be long then.

Yes, you can do that, but is doesn't seem to be a good plan. What you don't state clear is: where are you going after you would-be Bernina Express ride? If you are travelling further into Switzerland or Germany, that makes sense, you cross north, reach Zürich or Brengez and then move on. If you are returning to Italy, then I think it is too much time wasted just to ride this short train line. As you will have a car, there are very interesting trips you can make to visit the Alps with your car, not involving a ride on the Bernina Express.

Beth,

You might want to start your own Thread on this topic, rather than resurrecting an old post.

Your plan to drive from Verona, take the Bernina Express to Pontresina and then return to Tirano is a somewhat "ambitious" for a one day trip. I suspect it will take 3-4 hours to drive from Verona to Tirano, so you may have trouble connecting with a Bernina Express departure. You could take regular trains instead of the B.E. on that route, and still see the same scenery.

I'd have to spend some time working on the details.....