Zürich / Zurich to Bern by train

How to take the rail journey from Zurich to the Swiss capital

When making the simple journey by train from Zurich to Bern you can choose between taking the express (IC) trains, or the regional (IR) trains.
The IC trains will get you there faster, but the IR trains can be money savers, particularly if you will be booking last minute at the station.

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Routes

Option 1: taking the express trains

Travel Information

These are the express IC trains which are non-stop from Zurich to Bern.

So target these trains and avoid the slower alternative service of IR trains, particularly if you will be travelling with a rail pass.

Final Destination: Geneve-Aeroport (on route IC 1) or Brig (on route IC 8)

The double deck SBB IC trains are used on this route; the brand new LD/Twindexx trains should now be operating on some departures that are heading towards Geneve.
These IC trains use the 'higher' speed line between Olten and Bern.

From Zurich HB station:

These IC trains usually depart from gleis (platforms/tracks) 31 and 32 in the lower level part of the station,
(In contrast those IR trains have the advantage of departing from gleis (platforms/tracks) 3 -18 in the street-level part of the station).

Note that these trains should arrive in Zurich HB station around 7 mins before they are due to depart.
So keep an eye on the departure time and don't rush to board by the nearest door (if you don't have to)

From Zurich Flughafen/Airport:

These trains depart from Zurich Flughafen/Airport station 11 mins before they depart from the city centre station - Zurich HB.

2 x trains per hour

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes - If you book Supersaver tickets (more info is available on the the SBB ticket guide below)

You may need to search through the departures to find them using the ‘earlier’ and ‘later’ buttons; so try and be flexible with your departure and arrival times.

Though the Supersaver tickets tend to sell out particularly quickly on these IC trains on this route; they are usually much more likely to be available on the alternative slower IR trains.

Online bookings open: up to two months ahead of the travel date

Seat reservations:

Seat reservations are optional on Swiss IC trains, so seats won't be assigned when booking online.

You can book reservations online for journeys by these IC trains, AFTER you have booked a ticket, by using the SBB (Swiss national railways) seat reservation service OR request a reservation when booking at a station ticket office.

Seat reservations aren’t available on the alternative service of IR trains.

Travelling with a rail pass:

Rail pass users can jump on any train, without having to make reservations.

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

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.

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.

Option 2: taking the regional (IR) trains

Travel Information

Final Destination: Bern

As these trains complete their journeys in Bern, they tend to stand out on the departure screens at Zurich HB station.

But the alternative IC trains that call at Bern on route to Geneve or Brig are faster.

These slower IR trains tend to depart 3 mins after the departure of an IC train, that calls at Bern.

Though a plus of taking these IR trains is that the depart from gleis (platforms/tracks) beside the street level concourse at Zurich HB station.
You have to descend to the lower level in Zurich HB station, in order to catch those IC trains.

1 x train per hour

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Cheaper ‘Supersaver’ tickets (those with a % on a red circle) are available on virtually on all of these IR trains, if you are booking at least a couple of days ahead.

So these IR trains can be a cheaper option if the 'Supersaver' tickets have sold out for the faster IC trains.
Look for IR in the ‘travel with’ column.

Rail Pass users - should target those faster IC trains.

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.

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - No
Between Zurich and Olten Between Zurich and Olten
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