Crossing 196 bridges to reach Italy, this red train turns the Alps into a movie
From glaciers and lakes to palm trees, it drives Switzerland’s dreamiest scenery all the way into Italy.
Summary
- The Bernina Express runs from Chur in Switzerland all the way to Tirano in Italy, crossing 196 bridges and 55 tunnels along the way, and is one of the most iconic scenic trains in Europe.
- The route passes the Landwasser Viaduct, Bernina Pass, Palü Glacier, Lago Bianco and the Brusio spiral viaduct, offering completely different Alpine views in every season.
- The Albula and Bernina railway lines have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2008, and the railway itself is one of the most beautiful sights of the entire journey.
Some trains are simply a means of transportation, but the Bernina Express feels more like a moving movie ticket.
The bright red cars slowly leave Switzerland, while the scenery outside never stops. Glaciers, alpine lakes, gorges, forests, and villages appear one after another. In just over four hours, travelers can journey from the snow-covered Alps to Italian streets lined with palm trees, as if crossing through two seasons in a single trip.
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See Switzerland’s most classic scenery on a single train journey
images from/images from/berninaexpress
The Bernina Express departs from Chur, Switzerland’s oldest city, and heads south along the world-famous Albula and Bernina railway lines. The train passes through deep valleys, fjord-like landscapes, alpine lakes, and glaciers. Its most famous landmark, the Landwasser Viaduct, is one of the images most closely associated with Swiss rail travel. The train follows a graceful curve across the stone arch bridge before entering a tunnel carved into the mountainside. It lasts only a few seconds, yet it has become one of the most iconic shots in countless travelers’ cameras.
As the train climbs higher, it reaches the Bernina Pass, where the Palü Glacier, Lago Bianco, and sweeping snow-covered peaks unfold before your eyes. On the descent, the scenery gradually changes: the forests grow denser, and travelers are eventually greeted by the warm sun and palm trees of Tirano, Italy.
196 bridges and 55 tunnels: feats of engineering
images from/berninaexpress
Over the course of the route, the train crosses 196 bridges and viaducts and passes through 55 tunnels, all without using a rack railway system. Instead, it relies on ingenious gradients and looping tracks to overcome the Alps’ dramatic changes in elevation. The Brusio Circular Viaduct, in particular, uses a full circular viaduct to take the train around one loop before gradually lowering its elevation, making it one of the Bernina Express’s most recognizable sights.
These bridges and tunnels exist for more than getting passengers to their destination. They are important milestones in early 20th-century mountain railway engineering, adding the pleasure of appreciating architectural and engineering beauty to the journey.
You’re not passing through a World Heritage Site; you’re riding on one
images from/images from/berninaexpress
In 2008, the Albula and Bernina railway lines were officially inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. They were recognized not only for their engineering but also for how seamlessly the railways blend into the Alpine landscape, representing the harmonious coexistence of nature and human-made structures.
On the Bernina Express, you’ll see more than just Switzerland’s most beautiful scenery. The 196 bridges, 55 tunnels, and the glaciers and valleys that accompany travelers along the way all show that sometimes, what is truly worth looking forward to is never the destination, but the view outside the window as it changes with every passing second.
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