The Glacier Express curving through the Andermatt valley beneath snow-capped peaks
Private Group Journeys

Switzerland, reserved for your group

15Days
5Summits
15Guests (max)
A different kind of group?
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15Days
5Summits
15Guests (max)
5–15 days|max 15 guests|Proposal in 48h48h proposal
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Private GroupsThe Swiss Alps Grand Tour

OverviewMost groups see Switzerland from a coach of fifty strangers. Mine travel alone: never more than fifteen guests, the great panoramic trains in reserved first class, the summits in the price rather than sold on the ground, and one curator accountable to you from first enquiry to arrival home.

Every train first class, seats reserved for your group before you fly
The summit excursions guided and included: Rigi, Jungfraujoch, Gornergrat, the Matterhorn
Hotels named in your proposal, never "or similar"
Welcome and farewell dinners with the whole group at one table
Met at every station: luggage, welcomes and questions all handled
One firm per-person price, complete within 48 hours
Request the full proposal
The Glacier Express through the Engadin meadows in evening light

Why choose an Alpina group journey?

First-class rail throughout
Max 15 guests, yours alone
Summit excursions included
Hotels named before you book
Private transfers at every base
One curator, funds protected
Route map: the grand loop, Zürich to Lugano
Route map: Switzerland into Italy, Zürich to Milan
Route map: Switzerland into Austria, Zürich to Salzburg

Itinerary

Choose your ending
Itinerary
Itinerary:
Zürich

Day 1 | Arrive Zürich

Your group is met at Zürich Hauptbahnhof, or the airport fifteen minutes away, and walked to a hotel in the old town. The evening is deliberately soft: time to land, then a welcome dinner with the whole group at one table, where I run through the days ahead over the first glass.

Four-star superior, old town
Welcome dinner
Lucerne

Days 2–3 | Lake Lucerne & Mount Rigi

Two nights on the lake. A day across the water by boat to the foot of Mount Rigi, the queen of the mountains. The cogwheel railway, Europe's oldest, climbs to a long summit lunch with the whole of central Switzerland below. Down by cable car, and an evening free under the frescoed facades of the old town.

Four-star superior, lakefront
Summit lunch on Mount Rigi
Interlaken

Days 4–5 | Interlaken & the Top of Europe

The Luzern–Interlaken Express carries you over the Brünig Pass in reserved panorama carriages. Two nights between the lakes: cog railways climb through Alpine meadows, then inside the Eiger itself, to Jungfraujoch at 3,454 metres, the highest railway station in Europe. Harder Kulm at dusk, prosecco on the platform above two lakes.

Four-star superior, facing the Jungfrau
Jungfraujoch & Harder Kulm, tickets in hand
The GoldenPass, Interlaken to MontreuxA panorama train over the pass and down through the Lavaux vineyards to Lake Geneva.
Montreux

Days 6–7 | Montreux & Lake Geneva

Two nights on the Swiss Riviera: the lakeside promenade, palm trees against the Savoy Alps, the Lavaux wine terraces, and Château de Chillon, the water-fortress that inspired Byron, rising straight from the lake.

Belle Époque four-star on the lake
Château de Chillon, on the water
Zermatt

Days 8–9 | Zermatt & the Matterhorn

The car-free village beneath the most photographed mountain on earth. The Gornergrat railway at first light, the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, the highest cable-car station in Europe, and time to simply be in the mountains.

Four-star superior, mountain-facing
Gornergrat & Matterhorn Glacier Paradise included
The Glacier Express, the full traverseZermatt to St. Moritz in a single day. First class, with lunch served at your seat as the Alps pass by the panoramic glass.
St. Moritz

Days 10–12 | St. Moritz & the Engadin

Three unhurried nights in the high valley: the chain of Engadin lakes, larch forests and mountain air, with whole days free: the group together when it wants to be, apart when it doesn't.

Four-star superior, heart of the village
The Engadin at your own pace
The Bernina Express, a day to ItalyThe UNESCO-listed line over the high pass to Tirano and back, in glazed panoramic cars.
Lugano

Days 13–14 | Lugano & the Italian South

Down into the Italian-speaking south for the finish: palm-lined lakes, gelato and a warmer air. A last free day on the water, then a farewell dinner worth the name.

Four-star superior, by the lake
Farewell dinner
Homeward

Day 15 | Depart

Two hours back to Zürich by rail, in comfortable time for afternoon flights, or the start of a private extension for those staying on. Every guest travels home with the same story, and you travel home having done none of the carrying.

Rail to Zürich Airport
Zürich

Day 1 | Arrive Zürich

Your group is met at Zürich Hauptbahnhof, or the airport fifteen minutes away, and walked to a hotel in the old town. The evening is deliberately soft: time to land, then a welcome dinner with the whole group at one table, where I run through the days ahead over the first glass.

Four-star superior, old town
Welcome dinner
Lucerne

Days 2–3 | Lake Lucerne & Mount Rigi

Two nights on the lake. A day across the water by boat to the foot of Mount Rigi, the queen of the mountains. The cogwheel railway, Europe's oldest, climbs to a long summit lunch with the whole of central Switzerland below. Down by cable car, and an evening free under the frescoed facades of the old town.

Four-star superior, lakefront
Summit lunch on Mount Rigi
Interlaken

Days 4–5 | Interlaken & the Top of Europe

The Luzern–Interlaken Express carries you over the Brünig Pass in reserved panorama carriages. Two nights between the lakes: cog railways climb through Alpine meadows, then inside the Eiger itself, to Jungfraujoch at 3,454 metres, the highest railway station in Europe. Harder Kulm at dusk, prosecco on the platform above two lakes.

Four-star superior, facing the Jungfrau
Jungfraujoch & Harder Kulm, tickets in hand
Zermatt

Days 6–7 | Zermatt & the Matterhorn

The car-free village beneath the most photographed mountain on earth. The Gornergrat railway at first light, the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, the highest cable-car station in Europe, and time to simply be in the mountains.

Four-star superior, mountain-facing
Gornergrat & Matterhorn Glacier Paradise included
The Glacier Express, the full traverseZermatt to St. Moritz in a single day. First class, with lunch served at your seat as the Alps pass by the panoramic glass.
St. Moritz

Days 8–9 | St. Moritz & the Engadin

Two nights in the high valley: the chain of Engadin lakes, larch forests and mountain air, a breath before the crossing south.

Four-star superior, heart of the village
The Engadin at your own pace
The Bernina Express, over the Alps to ItalyThe UNESCO-listed line across the high pass and down to Tirano, then on along the water to Lake Como.
Lake Como

Days 10–11 | Lake Como

The villas and gardens of the lake, a day on the water by boat, and slow lakeside evenings where the Alps finally soften into Italy.

Four-star on the lakefront
A classic Lake Como cruise included
Milan

Days 12–14 | Milan

Three nights in the Italian capital of style: the Duomo, the fashion quarter, the galleria, and a farewell dinner worth the name.

Four-star design hotel in the city
Farewell dinner
Homeward

Day 15 | Depart

Direct rail from Milan back to Zürich in under four hours, in comfortable time for evening flights, or fly home straight from Milan. You travel home having done none of the carrying.

Rail to Zürich, or fly from Milan
Zürich

Day 1 | Arrive Zürich

Your group is met at Zürich Hauptbahnhof, or the airport fifteen minutes away, and walked to a hotel in the old town. The evening is deliberately soft: time to land, then a welcome dinner with the whole group at one table, where I run through the days ahead over the first glass.

Four-star superior, old town
Welcome dinner
Lucerne

Days 2–3 | Lake Lucerne & Mount Rigi

Two nights on the lake. A day across the water by boat to the foot of Mount Rigi, the queen of the mountains. The cogwheel railway, Europe's oldest, climbs to a long summit lunch with the whole of central Switzerland below. Down by cable car, and an evening free under the frescoed facades of the old town.

Four-star superior, lakefront
Summit lunch on Mount Rigi
Interlaken

Days 4–5 | Interlaken & the Top of Europe

The Luzern–Interlaken Express carries you over the Brünig Pass in reserved panorama carriages. Two nights between the lakes: cog railways climb through Alpine meadows, then inside the Eiger itself, to Jungfraujoch at 3,454 metres, the highest railway station in Europe. Harder Kulm at dusk, prosecco on the platform above two lakes.

Four-star superior, facing the Jungfrau
Jungfraujoch & Harder Kulm, tickets in hand
Zermatt

Days 6–7 | Zermatt & the Matterhorn

The car-free village beneath the most photographed mountain on earth. The Gornergrat railway at first light, the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, the highest cable-car station in Europe, and time to simply be in the mountains.

Four-star superior, mountain-facing
Gornergrat & Matterhorn Glacier Paradise included
The Glacier Express, the full traverseZermatt to St. Moritz in a single day. First class, with lunch served at your seat as the Alps pass by the panoramic glass.
St. Moritz

Days 8–9 | St. Moritz & the Bernina

Two nights in the Engadin, its lakes and high valley, with the Bernina Express as a day to Italy and back, over the UNESCO-listed pass in glazed panoramic cars.

Four-star superior, heart of the village
Bernina Express day return, 1st class
The Arlberg line, east into AustriaOut of the Engadin and through the Arlberg to the Tyrol, the great east-west crossing of the Alps.
Innsbruck

Days 10–11 | Innsbruck & the Tyrol

The Tyrolean old town on the river, and the Nordkette cable car rising from its lanes to the ridge above, slow Alpine-city evenings in between.

Four-star by the old town
The Nordkette, old town to summit
Salzburg

Days 12–14 | Salzburg

Three nights in Mozart's city, with the Salzkammergut lakes and Hallstatt within easy reach, and a farewell dinner worth the name.

Four-star near the Altstadt
Farewell dinner
Homeward

Day 15 | Depart

Westward by rail through the Alps back to Zürich, or fly home directly from Salzburg. Every guest travels home with the same story, and you travel home having done none of the carrying.

Rail to Zürich, or fly from Salzburg

A similar itinerary, bespoke for your group?

Tell me your occasion, and I will design the journey around it.

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The Excursions

Included, not optional extras

The summit days that coach tours sell on the ground are inside my price: guided, seats reserved, tickets in hand before your group flies. Four of the moments that decide the trip:

The Bernina Express curling around the Brusio spiral viaduct
Scenic Rail Days · Included

Glacier Express & Bernina Express

Two UNESCO-listed lines in glazed panoramic cars: lunch at your seat over the Alps, then down to Italy.

View details
The Gornergrat railway climbing above Zermatt in the snow
Zermatt Days · Included

Gornergrat & the Matterhorn

The open-view railway at first light, and twenty-nine four-thousand-metre peaks.

View details
The Sphinx observatory at Jungfraujoch from the air
Interlaken Days · Included

Jungfraujoch, Top of Europe

Inside the Eiger by cog railway to the highest station in Europe, 3,454 metres.

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Château de Chillon on Lake Geneva at dusk
Montreux Days · Included

Château de Chillon

Byron’s water-fortress, rising straight from Lake Geneva beneath the Savoy Alps.

View details

Inclusions

Price Hold

Your per-person price holds while your group gathers names, firm before anyone pays.

Start your proposal
First-class rail throughout: every train reserved, Zürich arrival to Zürich departure
Three summits: Mount Rigi, Harder Kulm and Jungfraujoch, guided, tickets in hand
Four hotel nights: four-star superior, central, named in your proposal
Daily breakfast, the Rigi summit lunch, and welcome & farewell dinners
Station welcomes & luggage: met at every station, bags handled between hotels
Lake Lucerne boat crossing and all cable cars and funiculars on the route
One curator throughout: me, on WhatsApp, before and during the journey
Swiss customer-funds protection on every booking, publicly verifiable

Dates & pricing

A figure to picture the journey by, per person for the full journey: your firm price arrives in the 48-hour proposal. Choose a season: the journey runs on your dates, May to October.

Snow still on the summits, quieter carriages, long evenings on the lakes. The easiest window for reserved first class.

Plan these dates

Full summer in the Alps and the most requested window. Reserved group carriages need the longest lead here.

Plan these dates

Golden larches, harvest tables and the clearest mountain light. The last Grand Tours of the year run mid-October.

Plan these dates
Good to Know

There is no departure calendar to fit around. Pricing is per person, everything in the left column included, and firm in your 48-hour proposal. If you are holding a cheaper package quote, send it over: I will put it beside mine, line by line.

Start your proposal

Winter, not summer?

The Northern Lights Arctic Adventure runs for private groups, December to April.

See the journey
Group sizeMax 15 guests
SeasonMay to October
Start / endZürich, door to door by rail
PaymentOne invoice, or per person by card in CHF
ProtectionSTS customer funds, Swiss-registered
ProposalComplete within 48 hours