Take the Window Seat on the Bernina Express & Jack's Festive Facts

Season's greetings, Travellers!

First off, to all those celebrating this week and next, I wish you a very happy festive period! Be it munching on Hanukkah sfenj in Morocco, celebrating Christmas with a slice of Filipino Bibingka, or hibernating with Netflix and a pizza, may your bellies be full, and your hearts be warm.

If you're anything like me, this last week has involved a lot of wrapping up (pun intended) before the end of the year. Turns out, it's no different for airline staff, as the big names have been dropping their January sales this week, ready to turn their out-of-office on until next year.

So, if you're keen to lock in a 2026 trip before the year is out, jump into the Members Lounge and check out all the Flights we've been finding. And if you've already sorted your travel plans for the new year, tell us where you're heading in the comments!

Happy travels and safe landings,

No white-glove service or curated grandeur here. For everything the Glacier Express is, the Bernina is not. And that’s exactly why I loved it. 

After basking in the glitzy carriages of the Glacier Express, my travel mates and I jump off in Pontresina. An idyllic alpine village that seems to share Swarovski snow with its high-end neighbor, St. Moritz.

We're only here for a brief stay, long enough to flop ourselves on the feathery pillows at Schloss Hotel & Spa before catching the Bernina Express across the Alps.

But first: bundling up for a quick hike and horse-drawn carriage into the pine-clad peaks of Val Roseg — the kind that makes you forget the world and your onward ticket.

Whoever dreamed up winter clichés clearly had the Roseg Valley in mind. From underneath heavy fur and wool blankets, we wave our mittens at passing horses and hikers.

The only sounds are the soft snort of the horse and the snow crunching under its hooves. 

It’s a snow-globe kind of serenity as we make our way to the gingerbread-perfect Roseg Gletscher, lured in by its legendary dessert buffet and views over the Roseg Glacier.

But snow globes always settle eventually, even metaphorical ones. With dessert plates empty, fingers numb, and daylight thinning, it's time to trade the trail for the tracks and hop on the Bernina Express. 

The Bernina is the Glacier Express's wilder, less polished counterpart, forgoing the bells and whistles in favour of raw switchbacks and dramatic elevation changes.

It feels more like a local train that just happens to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site, passing through some of the Alps' most stunning scenery.

The train does offer first and second class cabins, but our pockets were a feeling a little light after breathing the Swiss air for almost a week.

We opted for second class; it had everything we needed, including phone chargers and openable windows. Surprisingly, we had the cabin mostly to ourselves.

Unlike the Glacier Express, it's less about being served an experience and more about moving through one. You're far outside the sightseeing bubble, sharing space with locals on grocery runs. 

Now and then, I spot lone stone huts in the distance, snow-dusted and silent. I wonder who owns these quiet outposts in such a vast landscape that barely notices our humming train. I imagine the winters and wars they have weathered.

How many hands has their hearth warmed, and how many lovers have stolen a brief embrace on their doorsteps?

The views don't let up as we climb, looping past glaciers, lakes, and peaks. The highest point, 2,253 meters, is one of Europe's loftiest railway crossings.

When the line was built in the early 1900s, just like the Glacier Express, local workers braved avalanches and thin Alpine air to carve tracks into impossible slopes.

Cresting the Bernina Pass, the world outside our window shifts again. Snow melts into emerald green as glaciers give way to forests. Pines blur past, villages flash by — fast, alive, and totally unstoppable.

The pretty town of Poschiavo lives in between worlds. Sitting north of the Italian border, the language, food, and daily rhythm sway toward the “dolce vita” lifestyle.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, many locals left to work abroad, often as pastry chefs or traders in Spain and Portugal. Those who returned quietly transformed the village with their earnings, giving Poschiavo a surprisingly elegant feel.

Nowadays, you'll find artisan boutiques and ancestral ateliers, like StoneArt Swiss run by Angelo Boninchi. He works with local Val Poschiavo marble and regional stones like serpentinite and nephrite jade to create everything from countertops and sculptures to one-of-a-kind jewelry.

Keep reading for essential Bernina tips...

As soon as December arrives, some of the Jack's Navigators kind of lose the plot. In particular, our Member Experience Lead, Jo, gets a little carried away with all the festivities, and this year, she decided to share Christmassy facts from around the world with the team.

In the spirit of the season of giving, I thought I'd gather all our fave nuggets of seasonal wisdom together in one place to share them with you. And where better to start than with the cute little gonks that have been creeping into Christmas decor in recent years?

The eyeless infiltrators started life in Scandinavia as nisser, small spirits that live in a family’s house or barn and secretly act as their guardian. All would go swimmingly if a nisse felt appreciated - they would protect the family and its animals from evil, and they might even do the farmyard chores.

You don’t want to offend a nisse, though. One too many tea breaks or forgetting to leave out the obligatory bowl of porridge on Christmas Eve is enough to get you in the bad books, and that’s when the pranks start. Tying cows’ tails together and turning objects upside down sounds fairly silly and mostly harmless, but word has it they’d also break things or even attack people.

These days, nisser are considered friendly Christmas spirits who might still pull a few pranks here and there (much more elf on the shelf). They became the bearers of gifts in Denmark in the 1840s, with Sweden and Norway following suit later in the 19th century. The Yule Goat had previously held the reins on Scandi Christmas, but now they occasionally show up to hand out gifts together.

The festive season in the Czech Republic is all about finding love for the new year and predicting marriage. If you're in the market and bored of Tinder, here are a few tips:

Shoe chucking:

Stand with your back to the door (any door will do) and chuck a shoe over your shoulder. If the toe lands pointed towards the door, then it is meant to signify that you will marry in the new year. If the toe points any other direction, better luck next time!

The elder tree shimmy:

Třesu třesu bez, pověz ty mi pes, kde můj milý dnes! (Shake, shake, shake the elder tree, tell me, dog, where my love will be!)

These are the words that single ladies may want to recite while standing under an Elder tree and giving it a good shake. Once you're done, stand quietly and listen out until you hear a dog barking. Whichever direction the sound comes from is the direction from which your future husband will appear.

Barborky a.k.a. cherry tree twigs:

On St. Barbara's Day, which lands on the 4th of December, cut a twig off a cherry tree and place it in a vessel of water. If the twig blooms before Christmas Eve, there's a good chance we'll be hearing wedding bells in the new year!

Tió de Nadal (a.k.a. Caga Tió, a.k.a. Poop Log) is a festive wooden log that appears in houses around Catalonia each Christmas. No Tió is complete without little stick legs, a painted cheerful face, and a traditional Catalan barretina hat. Every family has their own unique log, some with a simple charcoal face while others are more intricately decorated.

Tió de Nadal becomes part of the Christmas celebrations from the 8th of December (Feast of the Immaculate Conception) and stays till Christmas Eve, placed in his own special corner of the home. The kids in the house are responsible for keeping their festive friend covered with a blanket to stay warm, and for keeping him fed. Tangerines, cookies, nuts are ideal to 'prime' him for the big day. 

Continue reading festive factoids... 

All the important (or silly, or strange) travel news from across web this week.

• Imagine spending all day in bed while sipping champagne, followed by a hot shower and a plushy robe. Now imagine doing it 40,000 feet up in the air.
  
  
• KLM is expanding its "UK presence"… but not where you might expect.
  
  
• Soon you’ll have to pay a small admission fee to see the iconic Trevi Fountain, which offers visitors a glimpse of Rome’s incredible ancient history. But don't worry, it’ll still be free to check out the Las Vegas replica, which offers a glimpse of the Guy Fieri restaurant across the street... similar enough, right?
  
  
• Scottish adventurer Alice Morrison has become the first recorded person to walk the entire length of Saudi Arabia on foot. The journey was so long, even her camel had to wear shoes. 
  
  
• Romania has revealed plans for a vampire-themed amusement park, featuring a replicated Victorian London, Mardi Gras carnival, and — of course — Dracula’s castle.
  
  
• And finally, a recent study chose this European city as the world’s most relaxing place to live. Any guesses before you click?