Is This Europe’s Most Breathtaking Train Journey?

From thermal springs in the Swiss Alps to starry nights on Lake Como, Juliet Herd boards the Bernina Express for one of Europe’s most breathtaking train journeys – with grand dame hotels bookending the adventure in suitable style.

Review: The Bernina Express

Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni

Boarding the Bernina Express is like being teleported to the mythical world of Narnia. It is a ticket – literally – to a parallel, almost fantastical realm, offering a slide show of snow-capped mountains, turquoise lakes, gleaming glaciers and swooping valleys as you cross the Swiss Alps from Chur in Switzerland to Tirano in Italy.

Travelling on the highest adhesion railway in Europe and one of the steepest in the world, the little ‘Red Train’ climbs to a dizzying altitude of 2,253 metres, navigates 196 bridges and passes through 55 tunnels before sauntering into tiny Tirano, with its swaying palms and temperate climate. It is a rollercoaster ride unlike anything I’ve ever experienced – exhilarating, breathtaking and life-affirming. And it is impossible not to feel a child-like wonder as you dash from one side of the panoramic carriage to the other during the four-hour journey. The sights are simply breathtaking. Not least the six-arch Landwasser Viaduct, the Montebello curve and the Brusio Spiral Viaduct with its 360-degree views.

Running along the UNESCO World Heritage route of the Rhaetian Railway, the Bernina Express seamlessly connects the north of Europe to its south. It provides the perfect opportunity to sample two quite different historic properties – Grand Resort Bad Ragaz in Switzerland’s St Gallen Rhine Valley (near Chur, the country’s oldest city) and Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni in fashionable Bellagio on Italy’s Lake Como.

For both, water has played a profound part in shaping their identity for more than 150 years. And access to it has enabled them to keep their grand dame status while evolving to meet the demands of the modern traveller.

Swiss Springs & Haute Health

Situated in the heart of romantic Heidiland (named after the country’s most famous fictional daughter), Grand Resort Bad Ragaz is a vision of elegant modernism behind its mainly 19th-century façade. There are three interconnected hotels, including the rebuilt original Grand Hotel Quellenhof; a sprawling spa – one of the largest in Europe; seven restaurants (boasting a galaxy of Michelin stars between them); and a world-renowned medical centre that counts tennis legend Roger Federer and Swiss Olympic athletes among its regulars.

The centrepiece of the resort is its magnificent 7,300 sqm thermal baths, harnessing the naturally hot spring waters of the mighty Tamina Gorge nearby, the healing benefits of which were first recognised by some canny Benedictine monks, who ran a ‘divine’ health spa in the area for centuries.

Grand Resort Bad Ragaz in Switzerland

You can take your pick from a smorgasbord of pools of varying temperatures, both indoors and outdoors, designed to kick-start your circulation, metabolism and heart. There is also ‘sauna world’, which includes the largest infusion sauna in Switzerland made of Kelo-wood, and treatments galore.

Healthy living is hard to avoid at the resort, where cuisine équilibrée is encouraged and menus come with a produce provenance list. You can work your way around the Michelin starred dining options from Verve by Sven (one star), serving sustainable and seasonal fare, to Igniv by Andreas Caminada (two stars), featuring sharing plates of regionally inspired creations, and Sven Wassmer Memories (three stars), redefining Swiss Alpine dishes.

Italian Glamour & Hollywood Glitz

Perched on the tip of a promontory dividing the two forks of Lake Como, the neoclassical Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni is a commanding presence. Opened in 1873, it is the co-oldest luxury hotel on the lake and has been owned by the same family for four generations – the half-Swiss Buchers, who took the helm in 1918 and transformed it into the place to be seen at the height of the Dolce Vita era.

Once through the gates, you enter a tranquil haven that exudes old-school glamour reminiscent of the days when the likes of Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, Franz Liszt, Sophia Loren and Clark Gable were in summer residence.

From the opulent lobby lounge with its frescoed ceilings, Murano glass chandeliers and Belle Époque furnishings, you can see through to the shimmering lake and Italian Alps beyond. It is a showstopper of a view. On warm evenings, the terrace roof is retracted and its glass panels lowered to allow guests, including the likes of Como habitué George Clooney, to dine under the stars.

Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni

Leading the way in the wellness stakes, the Serbelloni now boasts the largest spa complex on Lake Como following a major upgrade last year. The Luce del Lago spa offers water-centric experiences, including hydro-pools, cold plunges and mineral-rich mud treatments; there’s also a new Hammam.

One of the few hotels with direct lake access, you can opt to relax poolside or by the water’s edge at the revamped Baci da Bellagio beach club. From there, you can swim out to a private pontoon or take a spin around the lake in the hotel’s wooden speed boat.

Nothing epitomises the Serbelloni’s mix of old-world charm and modern vigour more than its fine dining terrace restaurant Mistral. Pioneering molecular chef Ettore Bocchia’s seven-course tasting menu, featuring foraged ingredients and dry ice drama, makes for an unforgettable experience. He also oversees La Goletta restaurant, showcasing regional flavours.

The best time to explore the cobbled streets of the ‘real’ Bellagio, according to locals, is before the holiday hoards descend around 10am. I’d also recommend an early ferry ride to the lake’s west side – the botanical gardens of the 17th-century Villa Carlotta in tiny Tremezzo are simply out of this world. A bit like Narnia, in fact…

How To Book

• Grand Resort Bad Ragaz: Doubles from £296 – resortragaz.ch
• Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni: Doubles from €850 B&B – villaserbelloni.com
• Swiss Travel Pass for the Bernina Express from Chur to Tirano: from £229 for three days (second class). Point-to-point tickets from £40 one-way – travelswitzerland.com
• Swiss International Air Lines flies direct to Zurich from London, Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh. One-way fares from £76 – swiss.com
• Juliet flew from Heathrow to Zurich and from Milan to Heathrow, which has a carbon footprint of 260kg CO₂ – ecollectivecarbon.com
• Find out more at switzerland.com