“ Trains are wonderful … To travel by train is to see nature and human beings, towns and churches and rivers, in fact, to see life.”

So spoke Agatha Christie. And she should know. Dubbed the ‘Queen of Crime’, Christie is one of the most well-loved writers of detective novels - and a consummate observer of human life.

Trains as a Plot Device
Trains are a frequent plot device in Christie’s stories and each time the tale in question evokes such pizzazz that I think it’s safe to assume it was one of her favoured methods of travel.

Whether Christie ever visited Switzerland I know not, but I can well imagine she would have loved the train line that winds its way from Montreux through the Saanenland all the way to Zweisimmen (and, from December 2022, through to Interlaken). Operated by the Montreux Oberland Bernois Railway Company (MOB), it’s a journey worth making for the journey’s sake.

Belles of the Line
The two main trains that run on the line are the GoldenPass Panoramic and GoldenPass Belle Epoque. The former comprises modern and comfortable carriages which – as the name suggests – offer panoramic views. If you’re a keen photographer, this is the train for you. If you can, book the seats right at the very front of the train – you get the same view as the driver whose seat is on an upper deck. It’s quite a thrill to whizz through the tunnels with this perspective.

The latter train configuration has a retro vibe, its coaches inspired by the Golden Mountain Pullman Express, a luxury train in the style of the Orient Express that ran in the 1930s. Alas that train wasn’t long in circulation thanks to the economic crisis of the period, but lucky for us that we get to experience similar grandeur today.

The GoldenPass Express
As of December 2022, there’s an exciting new kid on the block: the GoldenPass Express, offering a direct service linking Montreux and Interlaken. Technically this is a big deal. A very big deal, in fact, featuring a nifty mechanism that shifts the train from one gauge of track to another without any manual intervention. In technical-speak this means that in just a few seconds the train switches from the metre-gauge track of the MOB to the Swiss standard gauge of 1435 mm. (There’s a remarkable video on YouTube that shows this in action.)

The Original (and the Best?)
My personal favourite, though, is the old-fashioned regional train that chugs along the line. Technology is improving all the time, but I still fondly remember taking the very, very early morning train out of the valley where the driver would announce each station name in a brief monotone, including those that are ‘arrêt sur demande’ – the teeny tiny platforms where the train only stops if you press a button. This is a common enough concept on buses, but I love having this capability on trains too. It feels special, a bit like having your own private train taxi service.

Yes, I am an old romantic at heart. And as you may have guessed, a bit of a train nut. I haven’t journeyed from Gstaad to Interlaken on the GoldenPass Express yet, but when I do you’ll find me fully soaking up the experience. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll have a copy of Agatha Christie’s gripping ‘4:50 from Paddington’ in my lap too.

ANNA CHARLES