Pilatus Railway

The engineering pilgrimage. Opened in 1889, it is the steepest rack railway in the world, with a maximum gradient of 48% on its climb from Alpnachstad on Lake Lucerne to Pilatus Kulm at 2,073 meters. It uses the Locher system, a horizontal double rack laid between the rails, and the 4.6-kilometer line gains more than 1,600 meters on the way. Best as part of the Golden Round Trip, which links boat, cog railway, cable car and gondolas into one loop around the mountain from May to October. The cog railway itself runs from mid-May to late November, while the cable car side stays open most of the year apart from maintenance breaks. A Swiss Travel Pass covers the boat and bus, but you still buy a reduced ticket for the mountain itself.