Genève / Geneva to Luzern / Lucerne by train

Accessing the multitude of scenic railways in the Luzern area is easily done on a day trip from Geneve thanks to these hourly direct trains between the two cities

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Routes

From Genève/Geneva-Cornavin to Luzern

Travel Information

These trains on IR route 15 commence their journeys at Geneve-Aeroport station, it takes the trains around 5 mins to travel from there to the main station in Geneve before they then head off to Luzern/Lucerne.

Final Destination: Luzern

All trains also call at: Bern

1 x train per hour

Tickets

Online bookings usually open: up to 60 days ahead of the travel date.

Book early and save: Yes, If you book Supersaver tickets

You may need to search through the departures to find these 'Supersaver' tickets using the ‘earlier’ and ‘later’ buttons.

Seat reservations are not available on these IR services between Geneve and Luzern.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
SBB *

SBB Guide

SBB is the main national rail operator in Switzerland, but tickets for journeys by the other significant operators including BLS and SOB can be be booked on the SBB website.

SBB also sells tickets for journeys to many destinations which involve a combination of SBB trains and services provided by the many independent operators who serve the Alpine resort towns.
However, if you will be making a long-distance return day trip, look out for he possibility of SaverDay passes being cheaper than tickets.

Though if you download the SBB app, booking tickets on SBB's mobile services can be simper than using the website.
Also watch out for the fact that booking international tickets can be comparatively quirky.

Trainline *

Trainline Guide

Omio *

Omio Guide

Omio is an online ticket agency which offers tickets for rail journeys in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.

The three key advantages of using Omio are

  • it offers prices in multiple currencies
  • it usually offers price comparison with other modes of travel including flights and buses
  • when visiting Europe, you can book journeys in multiple countries in one transaction.

The disadvantage of booking with Omio is that it often adds a booking fee to the final price; therefore when it does so without offering a price advantage, SMTJ doesn't tend to offer Omio as a booking option.

Happyrail *

Happyrail Guide

Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.

HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - YesLake views

Good to Know

Note that the trains used on the Geneve to Luzern/Lucerne route are designated as IR services, so seat reservations aren't available and these trains do not convey restaurant cars.

After departure from Lausanne the train will ascend above Lake Geneva After departure from Lausanne the train will ascend above Lake Geneva
On a clear day you can see across the lake On a clear day you can see across the lake
Near the top of the ascent on a greyer day Near the top of the ascent on a greyer day
Heading toward Fribourg as the sun rises Heading toward Fribourg as the sun rises
Passing by the Sempachersee, looking through a dirty train window Passing by the Sempachersee, looking through a dirty train window

This journey showcases the fact that you don't have to travel on one of the scenic Swiss mountain railways, in order to see a spectacular vista from a Swiss train.

From the right of the train (when facing the direction) of travel there are some incredible views over Lake Geneva when the train departs from Lausanne.

It's worth travelling on the upper deck, if available, in order to see these views at their best.

This part of the train ride is so fabulous that it merited a place on the list of the 15 Most Beautiful Swiss Train Journeys.

The train then travels across a pleasing landscape with mountains on the horizon, on it's way to Fribourg.

Then for some of the final part of the journey, the railway line is beside a lake named the Sempachersee; and this lake is over to the left.

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