Mob
(Credit: MOB)
Following a medieval trade route through the Swiss Alps and valleys, the Golden Pass Express is not just one of the world's most beautiful train journeys, but also a marvel of engineering.
Sink into a plush cream leather recliner, grab a glass of champagne, pull on your hiking boots and prepare for a three-hour spectacle in which nature takes center stage. But the action isn't just happening in front of you: it's everywhere.
I'm not in a theater, I'm on the Swiss Golden Pass Express, a state-of-the-art panoramic train with floor-to-ceiling windows offering breathtaking views of the Swiss countryside, from the turquoise lake reflecting the towering mountains to the rolling meadows dotted with fairy-tale chalets, in a way that rivals any epic cinematic experience. Sitting in specially designed, heated swivel chairs in a nine-seater Prestige Class carriage feels private and personal, like I have the snow-capped Alps, wildflower-filled pastures and bell-wearing cows all to myself.
Rail Journeys is a BBC Travel series showcasing the world's most fascinating train journeys and inspiring readers to take on overland travel.
Opening in December 2022 and fully re-launching in June 2023 after addressing track wear issues, the Golden Pass Express (GPX) is one of Europe's newest (and most luxurious), high-tech trains. The 115km journey follows a medieval trade route that connects the glaciers of Interlaken to the terraced vineyards of Montreux, and thanks to technological innovations, the GPX will allow travellers to ride one of the world's most scenic train routes without having to change trains, as was previously the case.
The GPX is one of five premium panoramic trains in the Swiss Travel system. Individual tickets cost between 56 and 145 CHF (approx. GBP 50-130) and are also included in the Swiss Travel Pass (from 244 CHF (approx. GBP 219), free for children under 16), which gives you unlimited use on all public transport (trains, trams, buses and passenger ferries), a 50% discount on mountain railways and gondolas, and free entry to over 500 museums.
Mob
The midnight blue train interior features floor-to-ceiling windows (Photo: MOB)
The train's midnight blue exterior and classic design evoke the bygone days of the Orient Express, which still travels between Paris and Istanbul. Inside, the interior is sleek and cutting-edge, with chairs designed exclusively for Prestige Class by Ferrari design firm Pininfarina and the only train seats of their kind in Europe. Need lumbar support? There's a button for that. Tired legs? Elevate them. Feeling cold? Just press the seat warmer. Want a different view? Just swivel your seat and face whichever way you like. But don't fall asleep!
But what really sets the GPX apart from other luxury trains is something you can't see: its ability to move seamlessly between tracks of different gauges and voltages.
Built by the Montreux-Oberlant-Bernois Railway (MOB) in collaboration with BLS AG (BLS) of Bern, the train will wind its way down from the heights of the Bernese Alps, passing through the luxurious town of Gstaad, beloved by A-list celebrities for its exclusivity and isolation, and Château-d'Oex, famous for its hot air balloon festival (25 January to 2 February 2025), before meandering through the vineyards and making a dramatic descent towards the Vaud-riviera, before finally arriving in sun-drenched Montreux, where palm trees sway on the sparkling shores of Lake Geneva.
When the MOB began construction of the Golden Pass Line in 1905, the aim was to connect two major tourist and economic centres – French-speaking Montreux and German-speaking Interlaken – with a single railway line. But along the way, the MOB discovered that the rails weren't the same width, and had different gauges. It took them 120 years to find a system to bridge this gap.
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The Golden Pass line was built to link Interlaken and Montreux (Credit: Alamy)
Railways around the world use a patchwork of different gauges, primarily broad, standard and narrow. The lack of industry standards during the development of railways in the 19th century led to a variety of gauges being developed to suit different terrains, transport purposes and political influences. This is one of the main reasons why people need to change trains frequently during their travels.
“Countries that have been late to adopt single gauge have paid the price in operational challenges,” David Lassen, senior editor of Trains magazine, told the BBC. Switzerland is a good example.
The idea of directly connecting Lake Geneva to Lake Thun and Lake Brienz in Interlaken dates back to the late 1800s. Since 1916, the Lucerne-Interlaken-Zweisimmen-Montreux route (known as the GoldenPass line) has allowed travel between these destinations, but different track gauges required two train changes. In 1928, the idea of adding a third rail was mooted.
“To do that we needed to build a tunnel,” says Fanny Moix, product manager at MOB, explaining that the combination of red tape and the complexity of building a double track through congested and complicated junctions made this a “technical impossibility.”
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Switzerland has long used a patchwork of different gauges on many of its railway lines (Credit: Alamy)
Still, “train changes are a big hassle for tourists,” says Selina Finger, Interlaken's tourism market manager, which is also why the GoldenPass line is not as popular as panoramic routes like the Glacier Express.
Now, without the need to change trains mid-way through the journey, GPX can make the three-hour 15-minute journey direct, thanks to a revolutionary “variable gauge bogie”. The technology was developed in 2022 after 15 years of research and a cost of CHF89 million (£80 million), funded by public funds from the cantons of Vaud, Bern and Freiburg and the Swiss Confederation. The innovation allows for seamless transitions between narrow and standard gauge and voltage changes within seconds, allowing trains to jump tracks while moving. It marks a groundbreaking new standard for rail travel, not just in Switzerland but globally.
“It's a bridge between our past and our future,” said MOB marketing director Frédéric Delacaux, explaining that it realises a centuries-old dream of connecting Switzerland with Europe by rail through the Alps.
Taking the historic journey for the first time, approaching Zweisimmen station, I was reluctant to leave the comfort of my warm seat as I snacked on some local cheese (there is no full-service dining on board, but there is a selection of local snacks). As the train stopped briefly for a locomotive change, I stretched my legs and peered out the window. A few minutes later, we were traveling toward Schonried, a ski resort town adjacent to Gstaad, and as the train moved along, I barely felt a thing.
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The GPX runs from the Bernese Alps towards the Vaux Riviera (Photo credit: Getty Images)
Meanwhile, as the train's elevation changed slightly (by about 200mm) to accommodate wear on the track and platform height, an engineering marvel was happening beneath my feet, even if only the most discerning railfans would notice.
“It's a huge frustration for us in marketing because you can't feel anything!” lamented Delashaw. Perhaps the engineers have done a good job, so gauge changes are displayed on passengers' screens as they happen.
While there are trains in France and Japan that can move a few centimetres, “this is the only train in the world that can move 43 centimetres,” Delacaux said.
It’s perhaps not surprising that the Swiss accomplished this engineering feat: Living in a landlocked country where 70 percent of the land is mountainous and there are about 1,500 lakes, the people have a long history of overcoming the obstacles posed by a difficult terrain and, in the process, demonstrating typical Swiss determination and ingenuity.
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In many ways, Swiss railways represent a triumph of engineering (Credit: Getty Images)
Clarence Luke wrote in his 1907 book Switzerland and Its People: “There are mountains in the world larger than those in Switzerland, but nowhere else do so many feats of engineering appear in so small a space. Swiss roads and railways stand as monuments to the triumph of human skill over physical obstacles.”
So I was wondering, are there plans to connect the entire Golden Pass line from its starting point in Lucerne to Montreux?
“That's the new dream,” Moix said with a laugh. “There are also technical problems, because there is a cogwheel railway between Lucerne and Interlaken, which means we have to add a cogwheel system to the GoldenPass Express, and that will take a long time. It will take a lifetime.”
