Zermatt Switzerland with Noah: Venice to Zermatt

Eurail from Venice, Italy to Zermatt, Switzerland

Looking back at my Eurail Travel Diary pages in my Eurail Pass Guide, I see where we left Venice around 2:20pm on 12/30/2017 from its Santa Lucia Train Station. I remember it was a beautiful day in Venice with clear skies. That was distinct because it had been drizzling rain when we had arrived in Venice on the 27th. Our water taxi to the train station got us there in plenty of time so we spent an hour or so in a track-side restaurant, Pizza Pazza, waiting for our train. You'll find Pizza Pazza between tracks 14 and 15. It has doors that open to the tracks and to the station entrance landing on the Grand Canal. If you are on the docks facing the train station, Pizza Pazza's entrance is to the left of the train station entrance and you won't even have to go through the station crowds of travelers.

We had a full afternoon and evening of rail travel ahead of us. You can see on my travel diary below where our train went from Venice to Milano, Milano to Brig and Brig to Zermatt. I actually think we did not go all the way to Brig. I think we got off at Visp and then took the last train into Zermatt.

Eurail Pass Guide Travel Diary
12/30/2017 Venice-Milano-Brig-Zermatt

The Eurail trains from Venice to Milano and on to Brig offered a very relaxing ride with plenty of scenery to enjoy along the way. It was great seeing the many small villages, open pastures and bustling towns through which we passed. You'll see some of these in the photos below. I thought it was especially impressive seeing the landscape go from a low, flat, coastal setting to the mountainous, snow-capped peaks of northern Italy's Alps and then on into the Swiss Alps with snow everywhere.

Momma and Troy leaving Venice by train.

Noah sitting across from Momma and Troy.

Momma snapping travel pictures. Alps in the distance.

Snow-capped Alps in the distance, getting closer and closer.

No snow on the Italian foothills. Lots of snow on the Swiss Alps in the distance.

This next photo is of us about to board our last train that took us from Visp to Zermatt. It was late at night, plenty of snow on the ground (so wear your snow boots) and plenty cold (plan ahead when travelling into Zermatt from warmer climates).

Noah, Annette and Troy boarding Zermatt Glacier Express to Zermatt.

Our train ride from Visp to Zermatt was after dark so we could see very little once we were in between the lights of the connecting train stations. We could tell, however, that we were high up the mountain in many places with steep drop-offs along most of the route. We could see house lights in the distance across deep valleys on facing mountain slopes that gave us an idea about the gaping distance between us and the valleys below. With the dark hiding most of the cliff-hanging ride outside, we enjoyed our often-steep climb to the top.

Once we got off of the train at Zermatt, our hotel sent a cab to pick us up. The cabs in Zermatt are pretty unique square, boxy type cars on snow tires and some on snow tracks. They reminded me of tiny At-Ats from Star Wars, missing the walking legs.

We stayed at the Hotel National which was very close to the train station. The accommodations were very nice and much needed after a long day on trains across northern Italy and the Swiss Alps. It has a great restaurant and bar in the lobby with warm fireplaces and chalet-style furniture. We had a large room with balconies facing the front and the back sides of the hotels. The hotel, like much of Zermatt, is located in the valley so mountain slopes faced us on both sides. We slept really well that night.