Bernina Express

What it is

The Bernina Express crosses the Alps between Chur and Tirano over the Bernina Pass, most of it in open panoramic cars run by Rhätische Bahn (RhB). It is the highest transalpine railway crossing in Europe reached without a rack and pinion system, climbing on adhesion track alone. Since 2008 it shares UNESCO World Heritage status with the neighbouring Albula line, listed together as the Rhaetian Railway in the Albula and Bernina Landscapes. Between St Moritz and Tirano the train drops from high alpine terrain into the near Mediterranean climate of Valposchiavo in a couple of hours, passing the Lago Bianco and the Brusio spiral viaduct on the way down.

Why this line

1. A commonly published figure puts its summit at 2253 m, at Ospizio Bernina, the highest point on the whole RhB network. RhB’s own route page does not print an altitude figure.
2. The Chur to Tirano route is commonly given as 122 km, though RhB’s page does not print a total distance either.
3. No rack and pinion system is used on the ascent, unusual for a crossing that climbs this high this quickly.
4. The line’s UNESCO listing covers the Bernina line together with the Albula line as one heritage landscape, recognised in 2008 for the stone viaducts, spiral tunnels and the engineering of both routes.
5. Service runs all year. The 2026 summer timetable runs from 2 May to 25 October, with a separate winter timetable outside that window; check the exact dates around the Europe wide winter change on 13 December 2026 before travelling.

Practical

Seat reservation is compulsory for the panoramic cars between Chur and Tirano. Regional trains on the same stretch that do not carry the panoramic stock run without a reservation, so travellers who only want the route rather than the glazed cars have a cheaper option. RhB’s own booking channel is rhb.ch. The route curves past the Lago Bianco and the Brusio spiral viaduct at different points, so either side of the panoramic car catches the highlights at some stage of the journey.

Gateways on the line

Chur is the northern end and the RhB hub, with onward connections to the rest of the Swiss network. Samedan and St Moritz sit at the top of the climb, St Moritz doubling as the southern end of the Glacier Express. Poschiavo is the main town on the Italian speaking descent, and Tirano is the terminus, where the metre gauge RhB platform sits next to the standard gauge Trenitalia station for onward travel into Italy. A connecting bus continues from Tirano to Lugano for travellers heading back into Switzerland by a different route.