Scenic Trains
Glacier
Express
Bernina
Express
Golden
Pass Line
Gotthard Panorama
Mont
Blanc - St Bernard
Palm
Express
Excursion Trains
Jungfraujoch
Chocolate
Train
Gornergrat
Matterhorn
Mt
Pilatus Railway
Mt
Rigi Railway
Roches
De Naye
Regional Scenic Lines
Matterhorn-Gotthard
Bahn
Jungfrau
Railways
Rhaetian
Railway
Zentralbahn
Thurbo
Lauvaux
Wine Train
Centovalli
Chablais
Aigle
Luzern-Interlaken
Express
DIE ZENTRALBAHN
Lucerne to Engelberg and Interlaken
Die Zentralbahn (Central Railway)
is one of Switzerland’s newest
regional rail companies, formed in 2005 in a merging of the LSE (Luzern
Stans Engelberg Bahn) and the Brünigbahn and the KLB (Kriens Luzern
Bahn) between Luzern and Horw. The lines run from Lucerne main station
west and southward to Engelberg and Stans in one direction, and over
the Brünig Pass to Interlaken Ost (east) station in the other route,
with the line splitting at Hergiswill along Lake Lucerne. The Zentralbahn
runs though some of Switzerland’s most scenic country,
below mountain peaks, through high pastures and past deep lakes.
The
Golden Pass Line panoramic trains run along the Zentralbahn tracks
past Lake Brienz and over the pass between Interlaken and Lucerne. The
Zentralbahn
is the rail line to the Mt Titlis rotating cable car to the Glacier
Park and Ice Flyer, the Mt Pilatus Rack Railway station at Alpnachstad,
and
the village of Meiringen, with winter sports, summer hiking, and made
famous from Sherlock Holmes as the location of the Reichenbach Falls.
From Interlaken Ost, connect to the trains of the Jungfrau region and
the Bernese Oberland, to the cog railways and Alps aerial cable of
the Jungfraujoch, Grindelwald and Schilthorn-Piz Gloria. From Meiringen,
PostBus routes travel the high central Alps passes to the southern
Valais
and Italian Switzerland of Ticino.
Engelberg
is about an hour from Lucerne and Interlaken about 2 hours. Zentralbahn
trains run on an hourly schedule
between 7 am and 9 pm. From
Lucerne to Stans and Giswil they operate every half hour. GoldenPass
Panoramic trains and the new Lucerne-Interlaken Express operate between
Lucerne and Interlaken Ost. You can make a reservation for the GoldenPass
Panoramic
Train for
the
partial
route on the Zentralbahn line or the full route from Lucerne to Montreux.
The line operates S-Bahn service in the Lucerne area. The Zentralbahn
operates sleek new trains in joint car units with the
large Zb logo, as well as older classic equipment of cog
drive engines for the trip to Engelberg. The line between Stans and Engelberg
is a rack railway requiring a change of engines and a steep climb through
the Grafenfort-Engelberg tunnel to Engelberg. Steeper grade sections
on the line over the Brünig Pass are also rack system. The trains
reverse direction at Meiringen.
The line makes a number of stops along the north
shore of Lake Brienz, connecting to cruise boats and lake activities
on the astern lake of
Interlaken, as well as connections at Alpnachstad and Stanstad to
Lake Lucerne cruise boats. No special ticketing is required for the standard
ZentralBahn trains and travel is good with a Swiss Pass or other Rail
Pass. You can also
board the Golden Pass in available seats with a pass or individual
ticket.