Montreux Trail Festival

Crossing Switzerland (Montreux Trail Festival 400km) is a point-to-point trail race held in July, traversing the full breadth of Switzerland from Bad Ragaz in Heidiland to the Montreux lakeside across 7 alpine cantons. The course covers 400 kilometres with 25,000 metres of elevation gain — 62.5 metres per kilometre — within a 176-hour cutoff spread across 7 days. Entry is 745 CHF (approximately €2.03 per kilometre). The 2026 solo edition is sold out.

The race opens immediately with its most demanding challenge: a 15.5km, 2,072m climb — the 2nd largest single ascent out of 385 European trail distances in our database. Just 12% of the course is flat; 48 kilometres of uphill terrain exceed 20% gradient — nearly a full marathon of hands-on-knees climbing embedded across the route. The course passes through the Titlis and Eiger zones, over Klausenpass and Iffigenalp, before finishing under the Freddie Mercury statue on the Montreux waterfront.

Geneva airport (GVA) is approximately 106 minutes from Montreux by train. First held in 2022, the race is now in its 3rd edition and is described by one finisher as demanding a level of multitasking and problem-solving completely different to 100K and 100-mile races. It suits multi-day specialists capable of managing sleep, logistics, and alpine terrain simultaneously.

Q: How difficult is Crossing Switzerland 400km? A: Extremely difficult. The race covers 400km with 25,000m of gain (62.5m per km) over a 176-hour window. The opening climb gains 2,072m over 15.5km — the 2nd largest single ascent of 385 European trail distances tracked. 48km of uphill terrain exceeds 20% gradient. One finisher described the logistical and problem-solving demands as completely different to 100K and 100-mile races.

Q: How do you get to Crossing Switzerland from Geneva? A: The race finishes in Montreux, approximately 106 minutes by train from Geneva airport (GVA). The start is in Bad Ragaz (Heidiland), near the Liechtenstein border. Organisers run shuttle buses from Montreux to the start on July 17 and 18; check crossingswitzerland.com for current details.

Q: How many editions of Crossing Switzerland have there been? A: Crossing Switzerland 400km launched in 2022. There was no 2025 edition — the organisers took a deliberate sabbatical. The 2026 edition is the 3rd running of the 400km distance, though the broader Montreux Trail Festival is in its 9th edition overall.