Zürich / Zurich to Neuchâtel / Neuchatel by train

How to take the rail journey from Zurich to Neuchatel

Neuchâtel and the lake named after the city are easily reached from Zurich on smart and fairly frequent trains.
Connect in Neuchâtel for La Chaux-de-Fonds.

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Routes

From Zürich HB / Zurich main station to Neuchâtel

Journey Summary

Travel Time
1hr 29min - 1hr 31min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Information

Final Destination: Geneve-Aeroport or Lausanne

This is route IC 5.

All trains also call at: Biel/Bienne

From Zurich HB station:

At Zurich HB these trains will depart either from the platforms/tracks (gleis 3 - 18) which can be accessed from the street level concourse, OR from gleis 31-32 in the lower level of the station.

From Zurich Flughafen/Airport:

There is 1 x direct train per hour**Zurich Flughafen/Airport** to Neuchatel, the trains typically depart from the airport station 21 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 these 'Supersaver' tickets using the ‘earlier’ and ‘later’ buttons. So try and be flexible with your departure and arrival times.

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.

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

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
Between Zurich and Olten Between Zurich and Olten
Travelling along the shore of Lake Biel Travelling along the shore of Lake Biel
Looking down over the vineyards as the train nears journey's end Looking down over the vineyards as the train nears journey's end

Sit on the left of the train when facing the direction of travel, to see the views over the lakes between Biel/Bienne and Neuchatel.

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