Rail Pass or Country Pass

Hi Mary

We were there in late 2007 and traveled mostly by rail. I suggest you first, go to the Railpass tab on this website. Afterward look at the cost of point to point tickets for each leg of your trip, then multiply that by the number of people in your party. Then compare it to the Railpass that you can get on from Rick and see if that works better. You will want to know how many days you'll be on the train because that's how you buy the rail pass. If your group will always be traveling together and you choose the rail pass, look into a Saver Pass which saves you money. The price is calculated on the number of days you travel and the number of people in the group. That's what we bought from Rick for three people for five days that could be spread over a two-month period. We flew into Rome and out of Paris with a two-country pass. I did not see a combination pass for Switzerland and Italy, so you may have to do point to point in Switzerland and a rail pass in Italy if you choose that mode.

Your itinerary looks easy enough, although you didn't list the number of days in your trip. We had 2 days in Rome and Paris, stayed in Florence for 5 nights and took a day trip to Siena by bus and the Cinque Terre by train, then back to the CT for two days before taking the night train from Milan to Paris, a memorable experience. On some of the faster trains you'll need reservations that cost extra, even with a rail pass, and the sooner you make the reservations, the more likely you will get what you want, especially on a night train. We learned that the hard way and were in a six person compartment. Not that it was bad, but six small beds with the usual tossing and turning, train stops and snoring. My fault, and a real learning experience.

Hope you have a great trip. Sounds like you've done a lot of planning. If you can afford it, get first class tickets. Larger seats, less crowded and fewer passengers so that you can really spread out.

Jim

If you are looking at a Eurail pass, a) I don't think you can get a regional Eurail pass for Switzerland and Italy and, b) I don't think you can get a single country pass for Switzerland, c) You can get a single country pass for Italy, but it is not recommended as P2P tickets are less expensive. Dozens and dozens of threads on this site clearly point that out.

In Switzerland, I would suggest looking into the Swiss Flexi pass or the Swiss 1/2 Fare Card. If you are going to be there for more than 5-6 days, I might suggest the full Swiss Pass. On the full Swiss Pass, you will be fully covered on everything except to the tops of the Jungfrau and Schilthorn. You get 50% for those runs. Or, the Swiss 1/2 fare card costs 99CHF and is good for 30 days. 50% off on all transportation including the mountain tops.

Note that from Montreau to Intelaken Ost (transfer station to Wengen), you can ride the best part of the Golden Pass train run. Your Swiss Passes will work here. Buy your tickets to Venice at the Interlaken Ost train station. You might be able to do this in the Lauterbrunnen train station as well.

CLICK HERE to see an overview of Swiss Passes.

Thanks Jim and Larry:

I have priced out the point-to-point tickets for this itinerary totalling $395.50. The cost of a Eurail flexipass saver for my husband and I is $410 each. Doesn't seem like much of a savings and a lot more hassle. We are planning on going up to the Jungfrau, however, so that could make a difference. I am somewhat mathematically challenged so could you guys verify my calculations? Much appreciated ...

Mary

Mary, FYI, once you enter the Lauterbrunnen Valley from Interlaken Ost, your Eurail pass will only cover 25% of the fares. That includes going to the top of the Jungfrau which costs $180 round trip without a pass of some type. Also, in Italy, there is a supplemental fee of 18Euro to ride the Eurostar trains. Your Venice/Florence trip could be one of those journeys.

Geneve-Glion = €21

Montreux-Lauterbrunnen = €37

Lauterbrunnen-Wengen = €4;
Wengen-Lauterbrunnen = €4

Wengen-Jungfrau return (roundtrip) = €93.20

Lauterbrunnen-Venezia Santa Lucia = €78 or €56 (advance purchase discount fare)

Venezia Santa Lucia-Firenze = €32.30 or €28.80 (advance purchase Amica fare)

Firenze-Vernazza = €16.70

Vernazza-Roma = €33.70

FULL FARE TOTAL = €319.90 ($405 US)
This total doesn't take into account the Swiss pass or half-fare card described by Larry.