SBB CFF FFS IC3 Zurich Airport to Basel Haputbahnhof
Older. Yes, Wiser? No.
- Age is a social construct. Frequent flyer programmes, doubly so.
- Morning coaches. Coach Fun and comedies
- British Airways Galleries North Lounge, Heathrow Terminal 5
- BA772 London Heathrow to Zurich (Eurotraveller)
- Into Zurich
- Experiments in photography: The Canon EOS R50
- Back to Zurich Airport and a dreaded Text message
- IC3 Zurich Airport to Basel Hbf
- To EuroAirport Basel and The Queue from Hades
- The Skyview Lounge, EuroAirport Basel
- BA749 Euroairport Basel to London Heathrow (EuroTraveller)
- Little Britain at its worst
- Older yes. Wiser? Dear deity… of course not!
Swiss Federal Railways IC3 Zurich Airport – Basel Hauptbahnhof
Bombardier TwinDexx “Swiss Express”
Price paid: CHF45 (including onward transit) 2nd Class
Editors note – I was focused on A to B travel at this point, rather than travel reporting when I was doing this. I might be blending images from earlier in the day to fill out the storytelling.
A Bombardier TwinDexx SwissExpress Train of the type I was on
I boarded the train and headed up to the upper deck, pretty much with my head in a tailspin. I knew this train would be going to Zurich Hbf and Basel Hbf, but I was blind to everything else – be it the routing or anything.
Call it the planner in me – I like to have a lot of information to make decisions, as I had a ticket that said I needed to make a stop en route.
Nonetheless, the train took me back to Zurich Hbf (I could have saved a bunch of time by not going to the airport and back again – but such is life.
Once the train arrived at Zurich Hauptbahnhof, the train emptied its passenger load and quickly filled back up – with a couple joining me for the trip to Basel.
Another recycled image? Go for it. The front of the TwinDexx Swiss Express (on the right-hand side of the photo).
And it seemed that would be the train’s next stop, with no changes or paperwork or swaps to do.
Although this felt a lot more passenger than the guide said.
That makes life a lot easier than I thought it would be. All I had to do was worry about how I was going to get to the airport. I’d have to look that up before I arrived in Basel.
Thankfully, the ticket was an end-to-end ticket, so at least I didn’t have to spend any more Swiss Francs on anything.
Vollpreis indeed (Full fare – CHF45).
The journey through Switzerland was a fast one, with this double-decker train. Whilst they were built with tilting ability, it seems this has been disabled some years ago – and instead operates as a conventional train.
That’s fine – as tilting trains can cause uneasiness for those who aren’t used to them.
And the Swiss country looked beautiful, even in the grey. Just missing a lot of snow…
The train had a catering car – sadly, I skipped that, as watching the countryside with coffee and food might have been a fun thing to do in 2nd class.
Something to consider next time.
There was a ticket inspection onboard, and my ticket was stamped without further question – it appeared to be that my ticket was valid for the journey.
Another nerve off my mind. Buying the wrong ticket is embarrassing sometimes – and conductors aren’t sometimes the nicest people when you’ve brought the wrong ticket (be it by mistake or on purpose).
Meanwhile, I decided to take a look at the new departure. And, oh dear. It seems things were going further south on this return leg.
Well. I can stop worrying about rushing to Basel Airport. I might even get time to get a drink in the lounge.
It was a comfortable experience – although I’m sure train users would call the seats “padded ironing boards”. For me, they supported my back.
If there’s a community that likes to moan about seats more than the aviation community, the railfan community can give lessons on how to moan.
The countryside turned into city as the clock ran down, and the train approached Basel. Even if the traffic outside looked horrendous – as well as the weather.
I’m glad I’m not in that traffic ja
With the train slowing down, it arrived a minute early at Basel Hauptbahnhof, arriving at 15:27.
With a little less time pressure on my hands, I waited for people to get up, then headed downstairs and out into a new station.
Overall
Quick and effective point-to-point travel is always welcome – as well as a reliable timetable. For me, when I needed it, Swiss Federal Railways came through. Whilst it was comfortable enough (even though the train was very busy) it felt like there was plenty of space, as well as power at the seat if needed.
But sometimes being on time is more important. And I’ll take that win any day of the week when I’m in a rush – even if it is not of my own making.
Next:
How does one get to EuroAirport Basel?
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