Looking for THE MOST breathtaking views? Do me a favor and go to Chur Switzerland. It boasts world-class hiking and the famous Bernina Express. IT IS WORTH IT!
We did spend more money this weekend than normal. Was it worth it? 100% yes. The mountains in Switzerland are some of the most beautiful in the world. But the best way to experience it? Hike or take the train!
Cost Per Day
$193.03
Number of Days On Trip
2
Total Trip Cost
$386.07
This is not really a fair assessment, to be honest. Switzerland is expensive for food, so we brought food with us. Picked up some last-minute things at the local Coop for too much money.
The views are out of this world. Without a doubt, world class. We could have spent weeks here hiking, but alas we had to move on.
The shared accommodation we were at was a 2-minute walk from the central train station. It had a kitchen and a couple of beds. Barely saw our housemates and were able to use our computer in the evening outside with stunning mountain views.
Train is the only way to go when visiting Switzerland. Walk to the train, go on a hike, walk to the train, walk to your accommodation. It is safe and there is Wifi everywhere.
Itinerary
Chur was kind of a last-minute plan for us this time! Basically, we had a weekend between housesitting for the same pet owner in Baden, Switzerland, and needed to stay somewhere for a couple of days. These are the inbetweenst days that can be pretty awkward to plan for as a long-term traveler. For us, it was the perfect opportunity to do something AMAZING. We decided to use our Eurail Pass and go to Chur, Switzerland. It was a beautiful 2-hour ride and we were there!
The best part? No responsibility of house sitting! Which means, no taking care of cats, dogs, or watering plants. Just experiencing the nature. But we only had 2 full days – so that means 2 activities!
- Ride the Bernina Express
- Hike the Seealpsee Lake Trail
Our accomodation
Since we must get the best value… we leveraged the same technique as when we went to Paris! It is a shared accommodation with a kitchen. Hauling leftovers for 2 hours by train wasn’t ideal… but I think worth it for the cost savings. We had our own room with a table, excellent WIFI, and an outdoor patio space with mountain views. How can you go wrong when you never even see your housemates?
Chur Unique Opportunities and Experiences
Ride the Bernina Express
If you haven’t heard about the Bernina Express, it is considered one of the most beautiful train rides on the planet – and for good reason. It routes from Chur to Tirano, Italy to experience the Bernina Glacier in all of its glory. We also considered the Glacier Express, but the Bernina Express won out because it stops for a few minutes for a break with an incredible lookout!
The train ride has extra large windows for pictures and comes with an audio tour of key points along the route, including visual points of interest and the history of the building of the railway! We were surprised with a snack along the way – though the boxed mint tea was a bit odd, to say the least. Try not to take a nap like I did…
There is A LOT to unpack about the Bernina Express… Ultimately, is it a waste of money? This blog post covers all of the details.
Seealpsee Lake Trail
Hiking is a different ball game in Switzerland. Beginner doesn’t really mean easy. We wanted to find a hike that was accessible by a train included in our Eurail pass without taking an expensive funiculair or gondola to get to. After scouring the internet for far too long, we found THE PERFECT (and only) trail that met this criteria. We used AllTrials and found the Wasserauen trail. It says “Moderate” but it is paved the whole way.
It is absolutely stunning with a local dairy farm (free-roaming cows) and a coffee shop. You can pick up some local fresh cheese and relax by the lake with a picnic at the halfway point. 10/10 would recommend.
Trip Cost Breakdown – Chur Switzerland
Chur Cost analysis and cost Saving Opportunities
This is covered in far more detail on the Eurail post, but we received a discount on the Bernina Express Scenic train because we had the pass!
This doesn’t have to be noted, but I will anyway. Hiking is FREE and walking around town is Free. Since we had the Eurail Pass, we just made some breakfast and packed lunch at the shared accommodation, picked up a convenient train when we were ready, and rode 45 minutes to some unforgettable views.
Honestly, even with the shared accommodation… the “hotel” cost was pretty high. This likely had to do with the last-minute booking we were making and because it was summer (high season) in Switzerland. Alternate options were even more expensive, so we bit the bullet and went for it. Sure glad we did!
