Better airport gateway to get to Bern, Switzerland

Starting to plan a trip to Bern & it looks like that from an airport
standpoint, my choices are relatively equal between Geneva or Zurich
(either one has an international non-stop).

Basic question is - - which of these two airports would you prefer to
then connect to Bern on via Rail?

Found a thread from 2003 which seemed to suggest that they're about the
same, but in looking at the timetables today
(http://mct.sbb.ch/mct/en/reisen.htm ), it looks like (BERN - ZÜRICH
FLUGHAFEN) would be preferred, with typically around 1.5 hours travel
time, whereas Geneva is 2-2.3 hours.

A) Does this appear correct?

B) Is there any other factors besides the train duration to consider?

Ticket prices are the same (98 CHF for a 2nd Class round trip - around
US$ 80).

Any other comments are welcome

-hh

Hi,

Found a thread from 2003 which seemed to suggest that they're about the
same, but in looking at the timetables today
(http://mct.sbb.ch/mct/en/reisen.htm ), it looks like (BERN - ZÜRICH
FLUGHAFEN) would be preferred, with typically around 1.5 hours travel
time, whereas Geneva is 2-2.3 hours.
A) Does this appear correct?

Things have changed since 2003. Completely new timetables - with a new
philosophy: a train every 1/2 hour between the main towns - and an
improved track between Bern and Zurich allowing trains to run faster.

On the sbb.ch website, I have Geneva-Bern at 1 hour 50 minutes, if you
take the fastest connection (every hour). And Zurich-Bern is at 1 hour
17 (or 19) minutes every half an hour.

B) Is there any other factors besides the train duration to consider?

I would say that the train ride Geneva-Bern is much more scenic. You'll
see mountains, the lake and wineyards until after Lausanne. While there
is not much to see between Bern and Zurich, except maybe a glimpse of
distant mountains when approaching Bern. If that is not a factor for
you, the Zurich airport is slightly closer and has more direct
connections to Bern.

--
Philippe Noth, Clarens/Montreux, Switzerland

-hh a écrit :

Starting to plan a trip to Bern & it looks like that from an airport
standpoint, my choices are relatively equal between Geneva or Zurich
(either one has an international non-stop).

Basic question is - - which of these two airports would you prefer to
then connect to Bern on via Rail?

(lines deleted)

B) Is there any other factors besides the train duration to
consider?

Ticket prices are the same (98 CHF for a 2nd Class round trip -
around
US$ 80).

According to www.sbb.ch direct trains:
Geneva-Airport to Berne
- 1:50 leaving at :36
- 1:55 leaving at :01
for most of regular business hours plus
several other connections
Zurich-Airport to Berne
- 1:15 leaving at :43
- 1:17 leaving at :13
from 6 to 21 h and many other connections
per hour

For a list of direct trains check www.sbb.ch
"Advanced search" and select accordingly

Geneva Airport is smaller, imho more convenient,
Zurich Airport not to big, convenient as long as you
are not dropped at the "finger-dock" terminal
(I dislike the "underground metro")

As an other poster already mentionned: in
terms of scenery, Geneva - Berne is definitely
the better option than Zurich - Berne (but if time
is not a concern, real scenic tour would be
Geneva - Montreux - via Golden Pass - Spiez -
Berne in some 4:24 to 4:54 h)

Check also for other convenient services, such as
http://mct.sbb.ch/mct/en/reisemarkt/...ck-schweiz.htm
and
http://mct.sbb.ch/mct/en/reisemarkt/...isegepaeck.htm
but also "Fly Rail Baggage"
http://mct.sbb.ch/mct/en/reisemarkt/...il-baggage.htm

wrote:

As an other poster already mentionned: in
terms of scenery, Geneva - Berne is definitely
the better option than Zurich - Berne (but if time
is not a concern, real scenic tour would be
Geneva - Montreux - via Golden Pass - Spiez -
Berne in some 4:24 to 4:54 h)

Unfortunately, time is a factor for this trip. Plus, I generally
prefer to avoid longer sightseeing rides (such as this one would be)
when jet-lagged.

Nevertheless, I agree that that would be a nice ride. IIRC, I've
probably done nearly all of that by train (although I did walk the
Château-d'Oex - Rougemont portion). That's a nice region that needs
to be put on the "get back there for another Holiday" list.


-hh