Continental Steam Safari 16

to the summit of Mount Rigi with one the world’s oldest operational steam locomotives and the only functional vertical boiler rack tank in the world. Engine No.7 was built by the famed engineer Niklaus Riggenbach in 1873 and is normally based at the Swiss Museum of Transport in Lucerne. It was brought back to service in 2021 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Rigi Railway, which opened in 1871 as the first rack railway in Europe. 2023 will be the locomotive’s last active season before it returns to the museum in Lucerne. Your private charter with No. 7 today will include a roundtrip from Arth-Goldau to Rigi-Kulm, with photo stops and free time at the summit. After returning to Arth-Goldau, you’ll visit the nearby Stoos Railway, the steepest funicular in the world with near vertical gradients of 110%! Afterwards you return to Brunnen for another dinner at your hotel. (B D)

Wednesday 31st May Gotthard Base Tunnel and Steam at Monte Generoso in Ticino This morning you experience an impressive train transfer through the Gotthard Base Tunnel, the world’s longest railway tunnel with a length of 57 km, before arriving in Ticino, the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. You’ll visit the region’s only mountain-climbing rack railway at Monte Generoso, situated along the banks of Lake Lugano. From the village of Capolago an historic steam locomotive, dating from 1890, pushes your classic wooden carriage up to the summit, right on the border between Switzerland and Italy. During the climb there’ll be photo stops and wonderful panoramic views of Lake Lugano and Lake Como in Northern Italy and the plains of Lombardy. After time for refreshments at the summit restaurant you return to Capolago on your private steam charter. On the way back to Brunnen you stop in the city of Lugano for a ride on the local funicular, a visit to the spacious piazza and a stroll along the shores of Lake Lugano. In late afternoon you arrive back in Brunnen for dinner at your hotel. (B D)

Thursday 1st June Transfer to Yverdon-les-Bains, Steam at the Coni-Fer Railway This morning you travel on an SBB service train from Brunnen to Yverdon-les-Bain, located on the banks of Lake Neuchatel. After checking into your hotel, you’ll have time to sightsee Yverdon with its Francophone castle and attractive old town. In the afternoon you transfer by coach across the border to Les Hôpitaux-Neufs in France, home of the standard gauge Coni-Fer heritage railway. This was once an important main line section along the Simplon route from Paris to Venice but was superseded in 1915 by the opening of the cut-off tunnel between Frasne, France and Vallorbe, Switzerland. Today the line’s resident giant 52 8163 will be in steam for your private charter run (with photo stops) over the length of the 8 km route to FontaineRonde. A former Orient Express Wagon-Lits carriage will be part of the train formation, where dinner will be served. Afterwards you return by coach to Yverdon. (B D)

Friday 2nd June A day at leisure with your Interrail Pass in the Swiss Alps This is a day to make the most of your Interrail Pass to discover the very best of the Swiss scenic railways. You might visit the Oberalp Pass or Rhaetian Railway network or explore the scenic standard gauge route of the Voralpen Express towards St. Gallen. Another option is the Brünig Pass from Lucerne to Interlaken. The choice is yours and your Tour Manager will be happy to advise you. (B)

Saturday 3rd June Steam in the Swiss Jura Mountains at Vallée de Joux On the last active day of your tour, you’ll visit the remote mountain valley Vallée de Joux. Here, one of the most attractive yet unknown Swiss steam railways operates in a fetching stretch of landscape. This ‘rare track’ is today combined with ‘rare traction’ as No. 8494 hauls your private main line charter train from Le Pont to Les Brassus, and back again. Lunch will be served on the train in a charming bistro car, while the railway company’s special, open balcony gondola coach allows you to stand right behind the footplate of the tank engine, a great spot for filming or photography. Your steam charter concludes by mid-afternoon leaving you free to use your Interrail Pass for individual travel around the region’s railways, including the scenic standard or narrow-gauge railways along nearby Lake Geneva. (B L)

Sunday 4th June Return to London From Yverdon you travel via Biel, and Basel to Strasbourg on SBB and SNCF service trains, before taking a TGV high-speed service from Strasbourg Ville to Paris Est. From there Eurostar takes you back to London St Pancras. (B)

Tour Summary

Tour price £2495 Single supplement £395 Ground only £2245 (Stuttgart – Yverdon)

Price includes:

• 9 nights accommodation • 8 breakfasts, 2 lunches and 6 dinners • 10-Day Global Interrail Pass • All rail transfers from/to London • All specially chartered steam trains as detailed in the itinerary • All rail, road and boat trips as detailed in the itinerary • All visits as detailed in the itinerary • All seat reservations and transfers • The services of a tour manager

All prices shown are per person based on two persons sharing. Meals included each day are shown as: B = Breakfast - L = Lunch - D = Dinner

May–June 2023

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 1 2 3 4

Georg Trueb

Georg Trueb Georg Trueb

Swiss Bernese Oberland

Wednesday 14th June to Wednesday 21st June 2023

Discover the outstanding natural beauty of Switzerland on this tour to the Bernese Oberland, famed for its shimmering lakes and soaring Alpine peaks, including the towering Jungfrau and the magnificent Eiger. • Based in the mountain village of Wengen, you’ll explore the Bernese Oberland on Switzerland´s outstanding railway system. • Enjoy extensive scheduled travel on famous mountain rack railways, including the Brienz Rothorn Railway and Jungfrau

Railway to the ‘Top of Europe’. • Discover the Swiss capital Bern on a two-hour steam tram tour, and enjoy peaceful boat cruises on Lake Brienz and Lake

Thun. • There’s also a thrilling excursion to the Schynige Platte mountain area to enjoy, famous for its outstanding views and wildflower gardens. • Experience unrestricted travel on Swiss trains, trams and buses in tour free time thanks to your complimentary Bernese

Oberland Regional Pass.

Wednesday 14th June London to Wengen via Basel You travel First Class by Eurostar from London St. Pancras to Paris Gare du Nord. Transferring to Paris Gare de l’Est you then journey to Basel in Switzerland via Strasbourg. You join a high-speed service at Basel to Interlaken Ost, before continuing on the narrow-gauge lines of the Bernese Oberland Railway (BOB) to Lauterbrunnen and the Wengernalp Railway (WAB) to the mountain village of Wengen. Here you check into the 4-star Sunstar Alpine Hotel, your base for the tour. A light dinner will be served at your hotel this evening. You’ll also receive your 6-day Bernese Oberland Regional Pass for easy exploration of the surrounding areas. (D) Thursday 15th June Free day for exploration in and around Wengen After breakfast, you can either relax at the hotel and make use of its wonderful facilities or take a stroll through the village where the British allegedly ‘invented’ downhill ski racing. A more energetic option is to hike to one or more of the incredible local viewpoints. Another alternative is to use your Regional Pass to visit the Trümmelbach Falls, a series of ten illuminated glacier-waterfalls inside a mountain, accessible only by a tunnel-lift. Yet another option is to visit the car-free village of Mürren by cable and mountain railway from Lauterbrunnen, with views of the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau. Dinner is served at your hotel this evening. (B D) Friday 16th June Lake Brienz Cruise; Steam on the Brienz Rothorn Railway This morning you travel by train to Interlaken to enjoy a leisurely steamship cruise on Lake Brienz to Brienz at its eastern end. You join a steam train on the 800mm gauge Brienz Rothorn Railway (BRB), Switzerland’s oldest rack railway and climb 1,678 metres (5,505 ft) from Brienz to Rothorn Kulm Station, just below the summit of Brienz Rothorn Mountain. After free time at the summit to enjoy lunch, you return to Brienz for an exclusive visit to the BRB depot to view the locomotives and workshop facilities there. In the afternoon you return to Wengen by train where you can relax before dinner is again served in your hotel restaurant. (B D)