Hey everyone, my wife and I are going to Switzerland and Italy in late September, and I'm trying to figure out the best way to get from place to place. Our itinerary is: Fly into Zurich 9/21, spend the night, go to Wengen, spend 3 nights, on to Florence for 2 nights, finish in Corniglia, Cinque Terre for 3 nights. My main questions are, should I get a Swiss Pass for the two of us? Weather permitting, I think we'd like to hike to Kleine Sch. and take the train to Jungfraujoch, so half off fare there would be nice. My other question is, how should we get to Florence from Wengen (Interlaken)? The train seems quite expensive, but with the Swiss Pass I guess we could go to Lugano, then pay separately to complete the trip to Florence. I looked into renting a car in Interlaken and dropping it off in Florence, and it was only $120 (sans fuel and tolls). I'm just a bit nervous about navigating. Am I right in thinking that two country rail passes don't work for Italy and Switzerland? OK, any insight would be great. Thanks. -Jesse
Posted by
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
If you are travelling from Interlaken to Firenze, the fastest rail route is via Brig and Domodossola, not via Lugano...
Posted by
Bend, OR, United States
1167 posts
You might want to recheck that car rental quote. Just about every company adds a hefty charge for drop-off in a different country.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32209 posts
Jesse, Travel by train will be quicker and more efficient than by car, and you'll likely arrive in a more rested state. There's also the issues of needing an International Driver's Permit for driving in Italy, and the possibility of transgressing one of the many dreaded ZTL areas in Florence (hefty fines will result). I haven't checked but your Swiss half-fare card should get you to Domodossola. Travel time from Wengen to Interlaken Ost is about 42M (1 change in Lauterbrunnen). From Interlaken to Domodossola travel time is as short as 1H:43M (one change in Spiez?). From there to Florence SMN the travel time is as short as 3H:48M (one change at Milano Centrale?) and current fares are as low as €58 PP. While the overall travel time will be about 6 hours or so, given the distance you're covering that will be the best method (IMO). Happy travels!
Posted by
OP
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
3 posts
Gents, thanks so much for the help. Andre, I was thinking that Lugano would be the closest I could get to Firenze whilst still in Switzerland, but after you mentioned Domodossola, I saw that the Swiss pass gets you there, then you can just book through Italian rail for a reasonable rate to Florence. Jeff, good call on the additional fee. I'm trying to get out of driving anyhow. Ken, thanks a lot for the advice. I've only ever done rail in Europe before and enjoyed it, so I think I'll stick with it. 6 hours of scenery is no problem. So I guess my follow up question is this. On the map Swiss Railways map, there are a few dashed lines from Spiez to Domodossola (http://shop.swissrailways.com/downloads/uebersichtskarte_en.pdf,) so does that mean those stretches are not covered by the Swiss Pass? Do you just pay extra when the conductor walks around on those stretches? This is starting to make sense though, so thanks a lot.
JR
Posted by
BROADSTAIRS, Kent, United Kingdom
120 posts
Jesse, you will find that the dotted/dashed areas on the map are tunnels and no you will not have to pay anything. You mentioned the Swiss Pass, have a look at the price of the one month half fare card 120 Swiss francs, which may prove a better choice. You can buy this pass in advance or on arrival whichever you prefer.
Posted by
OP
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
3 posts
Pauline, thanks so much for the info. The map key was throwing me for a loop there. I will research the half fare card and add up all of our anticipated trips. I'll let you know what I come up with. Thanks again.
JR
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
You'll get a larger discount on the Jungfrau trip with a Half Fare card rather than a Swiss Pass. I think that's a bit counter-intuitive, but that's how it works.