Albula Railway Museum: Here’s What You Need to Know

The Albula Railway Museum (Bahnmuseum Albula in German) is next to the Bergün/Bragvuogn train station on the Albula line between Chur and St. Moritz. It has several floors of exhibits about the history of the Albula Railway.

Families can enjoy it during the holidays or as a place to visit when it’s raining. You can also go there on a day trip from one of the nearby tourist destinations such as St. Moritz, Davos, or Chur.

Overview: Albula Railway Museum

Between 2011 and 2012, the former military arsenal building was renovated and turned into a museum. On June 2, 2012, Albula Railway Museum in Bergün opened to the public. 

It’s run by the Stiftung Bahnmuseum Albula AG, a foundation that collects and displays historical train memorabilia. Many visitors travel to Bergün to see the museum. Along with the museum, they visit Bergün and its surroundings.

Combine the Albula Railway Museum with the tour itself, following the railway trail throughout the UNESCO World Heritage Site from Chur to St. Moritz via Bergün. Once you’re done at the train museum, you can hop on the next train to your next stop.

Bergün, Switzerland: Home of the Albula Railway Museum

Bergün/Bravuogn is one of the most beautiful villages in Graubünden, located on the famous Albula Railway route between Chur and St. Moritz. Located 1,367 meters above sea level, it is in Graubünden’s idyllic Albula region.

Bergün has a lot of lovely houses, secluded among mountains, amidst Ela Parc, one of the biggest parks in Switzerland. The center of the village hasn’t really changed, with its picturesque Engadine houses decorated with graffiti, frescoes, and bay windows.  It is also known for being a stop along the Albula-Bernina Railway line. From Bergün, you can also go up to their local mountain Darlux.

The toboggan run in this charming village is one of the longest in Switzerland.  Trains run from Bergün to Preda, where you can start the 6-kilometer run towards Bergün. Preda, which became a temporary village when the Albula railway tunnel was built between 1898 and 1903, is just south of Stugl/Stuls.

The picturesque Albula Pass links this village to the Engadine Valley in summer. Albula Pass is closed in Winter. 

Albula Railway: A Short History

The heart of the Albula line is actually the piece from Bergün/Bravuogn until Preda. Trains here have to pass 8 viaducts and 5 helical tunnels over a distance of 13 kilometers and an altitude of 416 meters.

Albula Railway is a single-track line that links Thusis with St. Moritz. Between 1898 and 1903, the Albula line was built mostly with stones from the Albula Valley. The viaducts have locally sourced construction materials and standardized semicircular arches, giving it a solid, uniform appearance that fits in with the landscape. Several factors led to this, including practicality, local sourcing, and lower costs from importing less. It was only large spans that needed iron reinforcements.

The Albula railway line is impressive from an engineering standpoint. Robert Moser ensured that the load-bearing capacity was quite good. Albula railway was built by renowned engineers to high standards.

Life in this area changed when the Albula line opened. Until the train line opened, the shortest route to get guests to Engadine was via Italy. As soon as it opened, you could take the train from Chur directly to Engadine.

Albula Railway Museum

Albula Carousel: Bergün to Preda

The Model Railway Studio features the train tracks, viaducts, and tunnels at a miniature scale. You can find this Albula Carousel at the Albula Railway Museum. It’s been there since January 2016.

Wooden slats formed the basic structure of the carousel. 1,600 screws and 600 meters of wood slats were needed for this. Soft fiber panels and plywood were used for the routes. True-to-scale bridges were constructed, and MicroScale models of signals were used in order to recreate the original. 

Albula Railway Museum Attractions

• The Albula Railway Museum houses artifacts from over a century of railway history. It also tells of the construction of the Albula railway.
• There is a Crocodile locomotive in front of the museum.
• Children can make a viaduct out of wooden blocks or wear train inspector costumes.
• Model Railway Studio – Albula Carousel
• Panoramic Image of the surrounding mountains in the Albula Region

Albula Railway Museum is a very interesting railway museum in Albula, Switzerland definitely worth checking out.

Our Review: Albula Railway Museum

Albula Railway Museum is one of the best museums you can visit in Graubünden. You’ll find lots of exhibits, all showing the history of the world-famous Albula Railway line.

It all starts when you walk into the museum. A miniature Albula carousel welcomes you, a model that shows what the various helical tunnels and viaducts look like when viewed from above, complete with a miniature train and signals. Of course, nothing beats the experience itself on the train. But seeing it as a miniature is also pretty cool.

Walking through the museum, you realize more of the hard work, years of effort, and most importantly, the engineering masterpiece that it is. Engineers and construction workers did an amazing job more than a century ago, and we can still appreciate it today. That’s a lot to be thankful for.

You should go to the Albula Railway Museum. I promise you won’t regret it.

Resources

• Rohner, Geni. “Graubünden – Land der 1000 Brücken.” Die Bündner Kulturbahn, 16. Jahrgang, (2019): 9.
• Hauri, Ernst. “Das ‘Albula-Kraussel’ en miniature.” Die Bündner Kulturbahn, 17. Jahrgang, (2020): 69.

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