Mines de Sel de Bex – a salt miners’ train 1.6 km into the mountain

Last updated: 11 October 2026

Overview

A miners’ train carries visitors 1.6 kilometres inside the mountain at Mines de Sel de Bex. Salt has come out of this rock since 1684. Beyond the rails the galleries of Bex Salt Mines keep going: more than 50 kilometres of them, hand-dug over three centuries. Several kilometres stay open to visitors. The temperature is 18 degrees all year, whatever the weather in the valley. Consequently, this is one of the few Vaud Alps outings that ignores the forecast entirely.

We left daylight at the portal of Bex Salt Mines and did not see it again for two hours. The carriages ride low and narrow, and the rock passes close to our shoulders. Where the train stops, the walk covers about 500 metres through chambers cut by hand. The guides explain how the Alps came to hold salt, and how the Bernese found it. Water still dissolves the seams and comes out as brine. At the end, the shop sells the salt itself, and the tasting puts several grades side by side.

Practical Information

Mines de Sel de Bex charges CHF 26 for adults and CHF 13 for children aged 6 to 15. Children under 6 enter free. The tour lasts about two hours, including the train and roughly 500 metres on foot. Opening hours run 09:00 to 16:30, Monday to Sunday. The mines close on 1 January and on 25 and 26 December. Tours leave at set times, and the operator asks visitors to reserve through its booking form. Guides work in French, apart from scheduled departures in German. An app called SmartGuide carries written and audio commentary in other languages, including English.

Bring a jacket. The galleries of Bex Salt Mines are chilly, and stay at 18 degrees C, which feels cold after a warm afternoon outside. Wear shoes with grip, because the rock floor of Mine de Sel de Bex stays damp throughout. Walking the mine needs steady feet: no wheelchairs, walkers or pushchairs go beyond the entrance. The route suits children from about four, and under-6s ride the slide only with an adult. From Bex station a local bus reaches the mines, and drivers park at the site. The mines lie twenty minutes below Villars, so the two combine into one day.

Also called Bex Salt Mines and Die Salzminen von Bex in German.