Doing the Bernina Express as a Day Trip from Milan, Italy

· The Bernina Express is one of the most beautiful train rides in Europe, and it makes for a fantastic day trip from Milan. Here is how to do the Bernina Express as a day trip from Milan, including where to catch the train, how to get there, and more. [Updated November 2022] ·

Date
Jul, 26, 2022
red and white Bernina Express train near green field viewing mountain and green trees in The Swiss Alps

The Bernina Express is absolutely stunning. This entire European train ride is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its stunning beauty, ingenuity, and history. On our most recent trip to Milan, we decided to spend our wedding anniversary up in the Swiss Alps on this beautiful train, and we had an absolutely fantastic time. I mean, we love Milan (as you can see in our Milan Travel Guide), and we chose to leave for a day to take this train. Needless to say, we didn’t regret it! If you’re on the fence, thinking “is Bernina Express worth it?” you can hop right off of it, because the answer is a resounding yes.

Is the Bernina Express worthy it? The answer is a resounding yes.

This post is not about the Bernina Express itself, but rather how to ride the Bernina Express as a day trip from Milan. So, if you are wondering “Can you do Bernina Express in one day?” the answer is definitely yes! For more information on the Bernina Express itself, including how to book tickets, check out my informational blog post on the Bernina Express. If you’re asking yourself “How do I take Bernina Express from Milan?” this post was written just for you.

Follow us along in our vlog from our amazing time on The Bernina Express and in St. Moritz!

Can You Do Bernina Express in One Day?

The Bernina Express is about a three hour train ride. This is pretty short, all things considered, and it can definitely be done in one day. However, the thing that you need to consider is where you are starting from. The train ride itself may only be three hours, but the transportation from your accommodation to the stop where you get on and then the transportation back to your accommodation from where you get off can add significant time to your day.

If you follow the steps that I outline in this post, you will absolutely be able to do the Bernina Express in one day from Milan. It just takes some coordination on your part, but that is what this post is for! I think it is well worth the time, and I even included the Bernina Express on my list of the best day trips from Milan.


How Do I Take Bernina Express from Milan?

To take the Bernina Express from Milan, you will first need to get to St. Moritz, Switzerland. While the train does run in both directions, it is best to take the train from St. Moritz, Switzerland to Tirano, Italy if you want to do it as a day trip from Milan. This is because the trains do not run very late in the evening or early in the morning, and taking the train from Tirano to St. Moritz doesn’t leave you much time at all in St. Moritz. St. Moritz is a beautiful town, and you should try to maximize your time there. The most up to date train times can be seen directly on the Bernina Express’ website.


How to Get to St. Moritz from Milan

Since you will be taking the train from St. Moritz to Tirano, driving to St. Moritz makes no sense. Your car would be left sitting in Switzerland! Taxis are also not a viable option, as the drive is several hours. The best way to get from Milan to St. Moritz is via a combination of train and bus, which takes about 4.5 hours when it is all said and done. You can take a train from Milano Centrale station to Chiavenna, and then switch onto the route 4 bus to St. Moritz Bahnhof.

I recommend taking the earliest possible train from Milano Centrale to Chiavenna, as the buses only leave once per hour and you will want to get to St. Moritz as early as possible to explore. While an early morning might not sound worth it, the latest Bernina Express train from St. Moritz to Tirano leaves at 4:14pm. If you take the earliest possible train and bus combination, you will get to St. Moritz around 10:45am, which leaves you approximately 5.5 hours to explore.

We took a 6:20am train from Milano Centrale to Colico, then after a 24-minute layover switched onto an 8:10am train to Chiavenna that arrived at 8:35am. We then had 30 minutes until the bus departed at 9:06am, and it arrived in St. Moritz at 10:41am. This information is all also available on Google Maps, and they do a great job of showing you timetables and routes.

Tickets for the train should be bought in advance at the station or online at Trenitalia’s website, and tickets for the bus can either be bough in cash on the bus, or online in advance on PostBus’ website. For more information on using the train system in Italy, check out my post on using Trenitalia.


How to Get to Milan from Tirano

The Bernina Express train will take you through the Swiss Alps and leave you in the northern Italian town of Tirano. Tirano (not the big city of Torino, by the way) is a cute little town with some nice shops and restaurants, but not much more going on. This is a good thing, because you won’t really have any time here! The Bernina Express train arrives at 6:39pm, and the last train (as of current timetables) departs Tirano at 7:08pm.

This leaves you about 30 minutes to switch onto your train. If all things are running on time, this is plenty of time to switch, as the Bernina Express station is no more than a two minute walk to the regular train station. The train from Tirano to Milan doesn’t require any switches, and you should arrive in Milan by 9:40pm.


Hopefully this post answered any questions you have about doing the Bernina Express as a day trip from Milan. While it is undoubtedly a long day, it is worth every second of traveling and is a really stunning journey. If you have any questions about doing the Bernina Express as a day trip from Milan, reach out by dropping a comment below! Otherwise, thanks for reading and have a wonderful day.

cute sleeping baby on train
Perk of such an adventure-packed day: an exhausted asleep baby for the train ride home!
If you’re planning a take the Bernina Express, let us know! Especially if you are traveling with kids! We’d love to chat ahead of time and answer any questions you have. Otherwise, have a wonderful day and stay present!

Greg

Greg is a seasoned traveler who has lived in Mexico, Italy, China, and the United States. From New Year’s in Dubai to epic sunset hikes in Panama, his journeys have taken him to almost 50 countries all around the world.

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Greg | The Author

Greg is a seasoned traveler who has lived in Mexico, Italy, China and the U.S. From New Year’s in Dubai to epic sunset hikes in Panama, his journeys have taken him to almost 50 countries.

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