We're heading into Switzerland's Lauterbrunnen valley in late June and are thinking of getting a 3 day Swiss Rail Pass to cover travel from the German border to the valley and it's included or discounted gondolas, etc. We'll also take the Swiss train to somewhere at the northwestern French border where we'll again rent a car for France touring. Trying to avoid the upcharges I've read/heard so much about when taking rental across borders.
I'm really struggling to find out how to handle returning the rental car at the most convenient German border so my family of 4 (2 adults + 2, 17-year olds) can easily get into Switzerland to begin our rail pass usage? Friedrichshafen or Lindau perhaps?
Also, how best can we arrange the last leg of our trip out of Swizerland and into France to rent the car as mentioned above? An help is greatly appreciated!
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Ursula, The surcharge is not for taking a car across borders. You can take a German rental car to France and Switzerland without surcharge, as long as you return it to Germany. You only get the surcharge if you return it in another country. This might affect your plans.
As far as I understand, you have a German car you want to drop of at the German-Swiss border, and later pick up a French car on the Swiss-French border? Exactly where is best depends where you will be coming from /going to.
German locations:
Lindau (this requires an extra train to the Swiss border, which is not covered by Swiss passes) and it is worth a visit.
NOT Friedrichshafen - no convenient transport over the border
Konstanz (Konstanz is a border station, Swiss passes are valid from there)
Lörrach (suburb of Basel). local train to Basel SBB.
French locations:
Basel airport - joint Swiss/French airport. Swiss bus from Basel station to airport (covered by passes). French car hire companies at airport.
Geneva airport - joint Swiss/French airport. Swiss trains to airport. French car hire companies at airport.
Posted by
11579 posts
We have done this but with Portugal and Spain. Go to autoeurope.com, a rental car broker. Use their search feature to find the answer to your questions. Look at a map and enter the closest towns on each side of border. Keep trying until you find a good pair. We took a taxi arranged by our hotel to the car pick up location on the other side of the border in Spain. The cost of the taxi was a pittance compared to the buge srop fee in a different country.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you for this great information! Yes, we're doing " open-jaw" so no return trip to Germany, Konstanz is a great idea, as well as ch cking Autoeurope.
What a great forum with such helpful answers! : )
Posted by
Paradise
7079 posts
I'm thinking you need to fire up your calculator.
We're heading into Switzerland's Lauterbrunnen valley
Where will you spend the night before moving into Switzerland? And exactly where are you headed in Switzerland once you cross the border? Lauterbrunnen?
You are going to pay around $900 - $1000 for 3 days of Swiss pass travel - right?
At the moment I am looking at DB saver fare tickets from Munich to Lauterbrunnen (random date at the end of June.) The price for 4 is €160.
We'll also take the Swiss train to somewhere at the northwestern French border
Let's pretend you're traveling to Strasbourg FR. The fare I stumbled onto at the DB site for Lauterbrunnen to Offenburg is €120 for 4. The local fare for Offenburg - Strasbourg would be €29 for 4 (buy at station.)
Then you pick up your car in Strasbourg.
So for less than €310 ($395) I'm certain you can buy train tickets.
You will get discounts with the Swiss pass, but you'll still have additional costs beyond the $900-$1,000 - right? What's your total guesstimate for your passes + all your those additional train/lift/etc. expenses in Switzerland?
I'm guessing you'll be much better off with TICKETS than the passes, given the initial price difference. Add to those ticket prices the normal costs of your lifts, etc. The discounts and goodies you get with the Swiss pass would have to be huge over the normal cost for those things to justify your strategy.
Posted by
Bavaria
2481 posts
Lindau (this requires an extra train to the Swiss border, which is not covered by Swiss passes) and it is worth a visit.
NOT Friedrichshafen - no convenient transport over the border
Well, there is an hourly ferry from Friedrichshafen to Romanshorn. Going by train from Lindau to St. Margrethen there is almost always a transfer in Bregenz (with the except of the four direct ECs Munich - Zürich per day).
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Let's pretend you're traveling to Strasbourg FR. The fare I stumbled onto at the DB site for Lauterbrunnen to Offenburg is €120 for 4. The local fare for Offenburg - Strasbourg would be €29 for 4 (buy at station.)
Then you pick up your car in Strasbourg.
That is a circuitous route. There are hourly direct trains from Basel to Strasbourg, via Mulhouse and Colmar. All three are suitable places to pick up French cars (as well as Basel airport). No need to go Basel - Offenburg - Strasbourg.
Posted by
Paradise
7079 posts
Yes - a longer route via Offenburg - but one that avoids train travel in France (and thus the French train strike) as much as possible... who knows when the OP is traveling and when that strike will be over? The OP hasn't said they're going to Strasbourg - so all of this is just conjecture - and an example of the inexpensive alternatives to the Swiss rail pass .