A synchronized alpine rail master-circuit crossing the Swiss Rhone and Rhine valleys, climbing past glaciers, across 291 stone viaducts, and descending down to the Italian palm trees of Tirano.
Arrive in the car-free mountain haven of Zermatt via the shuttle train from Täsch. Settle in for two nights beneath the pyramid silhouette of the Matterhorn (4,478m). Take the Gornergrat cogwheel railway to 3,089 meters for views across the Gorner Glacier.
Board the Glacier Express panorama carriage. The train winds through the Mattertal canyon, descending to Brig before climbing up the Urseren Valley and cresting the Oberalp Pass at 2,033 meters, the headwaters of the Rhine River.
Disembark at Andermatt or continue through the Rhine Gorge (the "Swiss Grand Canyon") into the Engadin valley for a two-night stay in Pontresina or St. Moritz.
Embark on the UNESCO-protected Bernina Line, the highest open railway in the Alps. The train ascends without cogwheels to Ospizio Bernina (2,253m) before plunging through the Poschiavo Valley and executing the iconic 360-degree circular loop over the Brusio spiral viaduct.
Spend the afternoon enjoying Italian espresso in Tirano's Renaissance piazza before returning over the Albula Pass to Zurich.