This guide to travelling on the new Twindexx trains now operating on Intercity routes in Switzerland will tell you all you need to know.
Food services available
Accessing the train
Attributes of the train
The power sockets on this train are compatible with standard E.U. two point plugs.
A catering trolley with hot and cold drinks and snacks should be taken through the train at some point during its journey.
All power sockets on these trains are only compatible with Swiss 3 pin plugs.
A catering trolley MAY be pushed through the train to provide an at seat service of hot and cold drinks, sandwiches and snacks.
The power sockets on this train are compatible with standard E.U. two point plugs.
A catering trolley with hot and cold drinks and snacks should be taken through the train at some point during its journey.
All power sockets on these trains are only compatible with Swiss 3 pin plugs.
A catering trolley MAY be pushed through the train to provide an at seat service of hot and cold drinks, sandwiches and snacks.
These are the brand new double-deck trains which the Swiss national rail operator, SBB has begun to introduce on its IC (InterCity) routes/services.
SBB refers to these trains as 'LD trains' and more info about these trains is available on the SBB website.
Though these trains seem to more commonly referred to as 'Twindexx' trains.
ShowMeTheJourney has produced a specific guide to travelling by these LD (Twindexx) trains because they represent a step forward from the other SBB IC trains.
Something which sets them apart is that they don't tilt like the ICN trains, which SBB also uses on some IC routes, but they have been engineered, so that they can travel around bends in the track faster and more smoothly.
According to the SBB website these Twindexx trains are now operating on these routes
IC 1: St Gallen - Winterthur - Zurich Flughafen - Zurich HB - Bern - Fribourg - Lausanne - Geneve - Aeroport (around 50% of departures, but with more trains being introduced on this route by the end of 2021)
IC 3: Basel - Zurich HB - Landquart - Chur (a few departures)
These trains without the restaurant cars being available for use, are also be used on this route on which the trains are designated [IR}(/travel-on/train/31-ir-switzerland/)
Luzern - Zug - Zurich - Zurich Flughfaen - St Gallen - St Margrethen - Buchs - Landquart - Chur
The same on board experience, except for no catering services being available.
In comparison to the older decked Swiss IC trains, these new LD (Twindexx) trains have:
(1) Electronic info screens on board, which give details of the route and list the details of the connecting departures available at the next station, which the train will be calling at.
(2) Power sockets available in 2nd class, as well as 1st class
(3) More wheelchair accessible compartments and toilets
(4) Toilets which have baby changing facilities
(5) A dedicated family car
(6) More space for prams/pushchairs/strollers
(7) More bike racks
All the routes taken by these trains have scenic highlights, so an obvious advantage of being on the upper deck are the better opportunities to make the most of the views.
However, there are less obvious advantages of heading to the upper deck:
The lower deck can feel more spacious as there’s more headroom - and if you have heavy luggage it obviously saves you the effort of heaving it upstairs.
There are luggage racks in the lower and upper deck seating saloons.
The toilets are also located on both decks.
Swiss national rail operator SBB does not provide wi-fi on its trains in the conventional sense - meaning that passengers can't log on to a SBB portal for wi-fi.
Instead SBB has equipped its IC trains with signal amplifiers to enable enhanced connectivity with local mobile networks.
The coaches/cars equipped with this equipment have symbols by the doors - and SBB suggests that passengers who wish to access wi-fi during a journey, should travel in these coaches in order to access these 'hotspots'.
The restaurant car can be popular at meal times, as prices aren't exponentially more expensive compared to standard restaurants.
If you want to have a meal head direct to the restaurant car when boarding and spend your journey in the car.
A catering trolley may be pushed through the train to provide an at seat service in both 1st and 2nd class.
The departure information on the platform (gleis/voie/binaro) at a Swiss station will indicate in which 'Sektor' (zone) the 1st class, 2nd class and restaurant coaches/cars will occupy when the train arrives.
Swiss stations don't have a system which will tell you, in which specific 'Sektor' (zone) you should wait, if you have a reservation in a specific coach/car.
Don’t be surprised if the 'Sektor' (zone) you need is some distance from your entrance point to the gleis/platform/track.
If you haven't reserved, a tip is to head for the respective zones/sektors furthest away from the entrance to the gleis/platform/track.
Fewer people will have headed to the far ends of the train, so you should increase your chances of finding a seat - particularly if there is an option to board towards the front of the train.
Walk through the train if need be.
Few seats are generally reserved on IC trains so finding seats shouldn’t be a problem outside business hours.
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This is one of more than 150 train guides available on ShowMeTheJourney, which will make it easier to take the train journeys you want or need to make. As always, all images were captured on trips taken by ShowMeTheJourney.