Zürich / Zurich to Koblenz by train

How to take the rail journey Zurich to the Rhine Gorge

If Switzerland and beautiful Rhine Valley are on your travel itinerary, you can travel between them on direct trains.
If you book 1st class there is also using the option of travelling in an observation can, in order to make the most of the journey.

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Routes

From Zürich HB / Zurich main station to Koblenz Hbf

Travel Information

Final Destination: Hamburg

This train also calls at: Mainz (and Bonn after it departs from Koblenz)

1 x direct train per day

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date

On the DB booking site look for the journey that;

  • departs Zurich at 11:00
  • has 0 in the Chg. column
  • has EC (and only EC) in the Products column.

Reservations are recommended for this journey; but will automatically be included if you book 1st class tickets on DB.

How To Buy Tickets and Reservations on with DB; follow this step-by-step  GUIDE

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
DB from €29.90

DB Guide

DB is the national railway operator in Germany, so its website can be used for booking journeys by German express trains; the ICE and IC trains and it doesn't charge booking fees.
It also sells tickets for journeys by direct trains on all international routes from Germany regardless of whether DB is operating the train service.

It also sells an extensive range of end-to-end journeys which involve making connections both within Germany and in neighboring countries, but journeys between Germany and Britain cannot be booked on DB.

A key feature of DB website worth keeping mind is that it offers 1st class ticket purchasers complimentary seat reservations on journeys both within and to/from Germany.

Seat reservations for daytime in both 1st and 2nd class can also be booked separately from tickets.

Trainline from €29.90

Trainline Guide

SaveATrain from €29.90

SaveATrain Guide

Happyrail from €29.90

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 - YesNot High Speed

Good to Know

The train will reverse direction on departure from Basel SBB.

Between Olten and Zurich Between Olten and Zurich
The train will travel along the banks of The River Rhine after Bingen The train will travel along the banks of The River Rhine after Bingen
The best of the views will be on the right The best of the views will be on the right
Follow the path taken by the river boat cruises Follow the path taken by the river boat cruises
Chase the cars and boats as they travel through the valley beside the train Chase the cars and boats as they travel through the valley beside the train

Despite being a journey that commences in Switzerland, the best views on this route comes towards journey's end; the video clips were filmed from trains travelling in the opposite direction

This is a fascinating journey of five distinct phases:

  1. The second half of the part of the journey from Zurich to Basel is one of the most scenic parts of the trip.
  2. After reversing direction at Basel the train will head to Offenburg, though south of Freiburg it travels through one of Germany's longest rail tunnels.
  3. The railway between Offenburg and Karlsruhe has been re-engineered so it is classified as a high speed line, though this non-high speed train will be travelling at around 200 k/mh.
  4. From Karlsruhe until Mainz the train will pass through a series of towns.
  5. Then around 10 mins after departure from Mainz comes the stunning highlight of the journey, on the railway through the Rhine Valley.

After Bingen there are some fabulous views of The Rhine Gorge from the right of the train, when facing the direction of travel.
 

After Boppard the train will travel right by the river for the final part of the journey all the way to Koblenz; the views of the valley aren't quite as spectacular north of Boppard, but they're still fabulous!

This part of the journey is a delight, you can't miss the endless parade of boats travelling up and down the river and look out for the multitude of castles perched on top of the hills.

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