Bernina Express UNESCO World Heritage railway line

Adventure on the Red Train

Admire the woods, the glaciers and the mountain tops from the all glass panoramic carriages. At less than half an hour from Livigno, the Bernina Express is a fascinating train travelling through one of the most spectacular parts of the Alps: sixty kilometers declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, and in 2010 celebrated 100 years of service. It takes two and a half hours to travel from Tirano, at 429 metres above sea level, to  St. Moritz, at 1774 m, going through 13 tunnels and over 46 bridges. A slow journey which handles enormous differences in height admirably. Just outside Tirana station the train proceeds on the street, passing pedestrians, bikes, students with backpacks and women laden with shopping bags. Almost like a tramway connecting the various villages in the Poschiavo valley.  Then the landscape changes and the railway begins to climb up towards the Bernina pass, with inclines of up to 7% gradient, lapping at the edges of the glacier.