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Meeting Your Trip in BRIG or in ZERMATT
Updated for 2010
On this page, you will find information about meeting your trip in BRIG or ZERMATT. Topics include...
We suggest that you print these pages out, and bring a copy with you to your trip.
When and Where:
Zermatt is at the top of an Alpine valley, and Brig at the bottom of the same valley, to reaching these two involves the same trains, except for the mountain cog railway that climbs the hill (Zermatt only).
If you are joining your trip in BRIG...
...3 meeting times are on offer: 2:30p, 3:30p, and 4:30p, on platform 1 of the Brig station, at the far west end of the platform (right, as you face the station, your back to the tracks). We are often there in between these times, but we also use the gaps to run errands related to trip set-up.
If for any reason you are unable to reach Brig by the time of the final meeting, it is important to call our Paris office (or your coordinator’s cell phone, if you have it) by 4:30p on the meeting day, and then to travel directly to the night’s stop in Domodossola. This phone call is VERY IMPORTANT, since we otherwise assume you are a “no-show,” and ship your bike back to Paris!
If you are joining your trip in ZERMATT...
...we will probably have lodged you at the Hotel Garni Testa Grigia, CH 3920 Zermatt
Tel: (41) (027) 966.79.00 Fax: (41) (27) 966.79.01
If other Blue Marbles are in town, you will meet them at the hotel. Even if tonight is part of your trip, and a Blue Marble coordinator is in town, it is an “independent” night, so you do not technically need to meet other members of your group, nor indeed to see anyone. However, our coordinator will stop by the hotel before the dinner hour, circa 8p (if he hasn't, he’ll arrive in the lobby at 8:30p, off the train), and you are welcome to join him (and any others hanging around) for the evening.
Included in Your Access Package, if you subscribed to it:
Train tickets to Brig or Zermatt from Milan, Gallarate (Malpensa Airport), Geneva, Paris, Zurich or elsewhere.
If you are arriving via an overnight train, a couchette berth is included on board the train (or a sleeper berth if you chose to upgrade).
Travel Documents will have been sent to you in advance, unless you are arriving via Paris, in which case they will be supplied by our Paris office. You will receive either a train ticket, or a railpass with accompanying explanation regarding its use, and a schedule for the train that you have reserved.
Getting to the Trip
Brig is a major railway junction in the Rhône Valley, and on the border with Italy.
Zermatt is the alpine resort at the top of a side valley, accessible by an alpine cog railway from Brig.
The closest airports are Geneva and Milan. Milan’s Malpensa airport is geographically closer, but trains to Brig run directly from a rail station in Geneva’s airport’s main terminal, which makes this trip quicker and easier. Direct trains also run from the Zurich Airport rail station.
Brig Only
Your coordinator’s arrival in Brig is irregular, since/he generally arrives by bike. He should be in place for the first meeting time (and you can check earlier - he is often in place by 1:30p or so), but if you do not see him, simply come back an hour later, and he will be there.
If you get to Brig in time, and are “proactive” about getting your bike sized and set up, and dealing with your luggage, there is a pleasant warm-up ride that you can take. If you are too jet-lagged to cycle, a short train ride can carry you literally to the front door of your hotel in Domodossola, where you can take a nap.
Zermatt Only
Our usual hotel, the Testa Grigia, is two blocks from the station. Walk (slightly uphill) along Zermatt’s main street, in the direction in which your train was travelling as it pulled into the station. The hotel is on the left, but its entrance is discrete and easy to miss. You have gone too far if you come to the church.
If a Blue Marble coordinator is in Zermatt tonight, he will arrive sometime in the evening, in time for a late dinner. He will try to ascertain whether or not you have checked in, and will come to look for you if you have. On your end, ask the desk which room s/he has been assigned, and try to leave him a message. If you then want to wander about, feel free to do so. The tourist office is by the railway station, and can help with suggestions for walks and sights.
Even if the stay in Zermatt is included in the price of your trip, tonight is an “independent night” - that is, you are on your own for dinner. This was set up this way lest you be too tired after a flight to enjoy a nice dinner. If you are hoping to eat without bankrupting yourself (not an easy thing to do in Zermatt), try to find a set price menu, called tagesteller in German, generally advertised on chalkboards in front of restaurants. This is the day’s dish, and is the most economical solution to dining in Switzerland.
Travel Documents:
You will receive either a ticket or a railpass for the trip. If you are arriving via Paris, it will be waiting for you in our Paris office, instead.
From Geneva Airport (also works from Geneva downtown)
Follow signs to the train station (within the air terminal). Take the first train announced whose final destination is any of Brig (“Brigue” in French). Milano, Venice (“Venezia”), or Florence (“Firenze”).
If you are going to Brig, most trains terminate there (and the few that continue to Milan or beyond stop in Brig for a few minutes), so getting off is easy. Two trains operate every hour, and journey time is a bit over 2 and a half hours.
If you are going to Zermatt, you will get off instead in a town called Visp, 10 minutes before your train would reach Brig. To help you prepare to detrain: the previous station is usually Leuk, about 10 minutes prior, and the one before that is Sierre / Siders.
Note that trains travelling through to Italy do not stop in Leuk, and usually do not stop in Sierre, either. For these, the previous stop is Sion, 25 minutes prior.
See below for ongoing instructions to Zermatt.
From Milan
Linate Airport, Brescia Airport, or Downtown
A bus service runs from either airport (Brescia or Linate) to Milano Centrale station (the last stop for the bus). The bus is frequent from Linate, but not so from Brescia... if there is no departing bus from Brescia, take a local bus into the center of town, and catch the every-half-hour train into Milan from there. Be sure to take a train to Milano Centrale, and not to another Milan station.
We recommend taking public transit, especially from Brescia, since the ride is quite a long one, and thus expensive by taxi (even the bus costs about 15€).
At the Milano Centrale station, take the next train departing for Brig. These are hard to figure out, since no trains terminate their runs in Brig (they wind up in Geneva, Basel, and elsewhere), so the giant departure board will not mention the place. But “Partenza” (departure) posters posted around the station, and which list all departures chronologically, show all major stations, including Brig (if spelled in Italian, it will be shown as “Brigga”). The Information Office (“i”) can also provide the necessary information. These trains technically require reservations, but if you have a ticket for a train other than the one pulling out, and no time to modify it, go show it to the conductor, and see if he will let your ride.
You will reach Brig about 2 hours after leaving Milan. The last stop before Brig is Domodossola. A short while after Domodossola, the train enters a 15-minute-long tunnel under the Simplon pass. When it resurfaces, Brig is 2 minutes away.
Malpensa Airport
This could be the topic of a book. Overview: the rail line to Brig passes by not far from the airport, so going into Milan to get your train adds 2 hours to your trip. Unfortunately different trains stop at different stations on the line, and none generally serve all. Local buses go from Malpensa airport to each of the stations: Gallarate, Arona, Stresa, or Domodossola. So... if you are feeling adventureous, you can hunt around on the internet, find the train schedule from each, then find the corresponding bus, compare the information to your flight arrival time, and figure out which route is for you. Good luck.
Otherwise, you can pay us a 20€ “Malpensa Consulting Fee,” and give us your flight arrival time. We will reply with the bus + train schedules in the 3 hours following your flight arrival. We apologize for not offering this service for free, but it’s a bear to get right, and is going to take one of us a couple of hours at a minimum.
One hint, should your route take you via Gallarate: the regular “ground transportation” terminal is where you go for buses to Arona, Stresa, or Domodossola. But not for Gallarate. The local bus to the Gallarate train station (“stazione ferroviale di Gallarate”) runs irregularly (once per hour on average), and costs a couple of euros (ticket bought from the driver, small bills or coins only, but exact change not required). To find it, follow signs for the train to Milan. When you are at the Malpensa Airport railway station, turn your back to the ticket office, and go outside. One of the two bus stops you find there is the stop for the Gallarate bus, and the schedule is posted at the stop. You can also consult it on this page (in Italian): http://www.sea-aeroportimilano.it/it/malpensa/index.phtml?mod=per_mi_scroll&to=come_arrivare
A taxi also works: the ride to Gallarate should take about 20 minutes, and cost circa 30€, but be sure that you are clear on the approximate price before you get in the car.
In whichever station you wind up at, take the next departing train which makes a stop in Brig (“Brigga,” in Italian), even if its final destination is something else. You can figure out which trains stop in Brig by consulting the posters labeled “Partenza,” posted around the station, and which list all trains in order of departure. Be sure that the poster you consult refers to partenzas (departures) from your station, and not from Milano Centrale (the station that the poster refers to is at the top of the poster, a sub-title). Railway schedules can be consulted at http://fahrplan.sbb.ch/bin/query.exe/en?.
These trains technically require reservations, but if you have a ticket for a train other than the one pulling out, and no time to modify it, get on, anyway, and just occupy any open seat. The fine will not be more than 10€, and may well be waived altogether.
Brig is an hour or a bit more away on an express, depending on which station you board at. To help you get off in the right place: the last stop before Brig is Domodossola, which is actually where you are spending the night if your trip meets in Brig. A short while after Domodossola, the train enters a 15-minute-long tunnel under the Simplon pass. When it resurfaces, Brig is 2 minutes away.
If you are continuing to Zermatt, see below.
From Zurich Airport
Follow signs to the train station (within the air terminal). Look on the departure board to see the next scheduled train for Brig. Direct trains to Brig (or to Visp, if you are connecting to Zermatt) run every hour, at 40” past the hour.
Trip time is 2.5 hours. Start paying attention when you go through a massive tunnel, lasting 20 minutes or so. When you come out, Visp (change for Zermatt) is the next stop, and Brig is 10 minutes after that. Since Brig is the final stop, you will have no trouble detraining if this is your destination.
If you are continuing to Zermatt, see below.
From Paris
If you are arriving via Paris, you have received separate instructions regarding the trip from the airport or rail station to the city center (either to our office, or to one of our hotels if you are spending a night there before setting out). On the cycle trip’s start date, you will travel to Brig by train.
Trains from Paris to Switzerland require reservations, and if you are arriving via this route you should give us advance warning of your preferences, so that we may book an appropriate seat for you. The most appropriate trains depart Paris at 8a (approximately), with a connection in Lausanne, Basel, or Geneva (it is thus impossible to make this trip on the day on which your flight lands).
Stop by our Paris office sometime before your trip (opening hours) to pick up your tickets for the ride down, and to collect any equipment that you need for your trip.
We will provide you with a ticket, and a seat reservation on the first of the two trains you must ride. The reservation will specify a car and seat number.
- If you are travelling via Lausanne or Geneva, your connection point will be the last stop for your train. Everyone will get off there, including you. Take the next train announced whose final destination is any of Brig (“Brigue” in French), Milano, Venice (“Venezia”), or Florence (“Firenze”). Two trains operate every hour from Lausanne or Geneva. Journey time is 2.5 hours from Geneva, 2 hours from Lausanne.
- If via Basel, the train makes a long stop, so you have plenty of time to figure things out (the previous stop, in this case, will be Mulhouse, about 20 minutes prior). Most trains on to Visp or Brig require an additional connection in Bern, though there are occasional direct trains. Overall service is at least once per hour. If you are going to Brig, most trains terminate there (and the few that continue to Italy stop in Brig for several minutes), so getting off is easy.
If you are going to Zermatt, you will get off instead in a town called Visp, 10 minutes before your train would reach Brig. To help you prepare to detrain: the previous station is Leuk, about 10 minutes prior, and the one before that is Sierre / Siders. See below for ongoing instructions to Zermatt.
Travel time to Brig on the second train is 2 hours (10 minutes less to Visp).
From Disentis, via the “Glacier Express”
The “Glacier Express” has the peculiarity of arriving on special tracks in front of (not inside) the Brig station. It stops in Brig for a while, since the locomotive must change ends of the train, so you have plenty of time to figure out that you are there, and get off. If you are continuing to Zermatt (see below) you may do so on the same train.
Travelling on from Brig (or Visp) to Zermatt, if Applicable:
The alpine train from Brig to Zermatt leaves from special tracks embedded in the street in front of the station. That is, you must exit the station, and look for more trains out in the street. In Visp, the train is more conventionally located within the station complex.
The train runs every hour, generally departing Brig at 5” past the hour, though occasional trains go at 23” or 51” past the hour in addition. Visp departure is 10 minutes later.
The trip takes 80 minutes from Brig (70 from Visp). and Zermatt is the last stop. Stay awake for this ride, which is spectacular. The best scenery is mostly on the left side, but if you are feeling energetic, cross the car every time the train crosses the river (to keep the river always in sight), and you will be richly rewarded. |
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