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Advice on train travel and what is best pass to purchase for multi country itinerary

Husband and I (seniors) will be traveling Sept to Oct through various locations in Switzerland, Austria, Slovakia and Poland. We are Portuguese citizens, so I’m thinking about getting the Interrail Continuous Pass for 22 days. From what I can see on the website, this pass only covers travel by train. Can anyone advise if that is correct?
It states “discounts on local transport” so I assume we need to buy tickets for trams, buses or ferries. In SW there are several other pass options. Does the Interrail Pass work on all the trains in Switzerland? Does it make sense to get a different pass for our time in SW? We will be there 8 nights.

Here are the trains we are taking:
Zurich to Innsbruck
Innsbruck to Salzburg
Salzburg to Vienna
Vienna to/from Bratislava
Vienna to Krakow
Basel to Lucern. (Going to Mt Pilatus & Mt Rigi)
Lucern to Interlaken (Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, Murren)
Interlaken to Zermatt
Zermatt to Zurich

Your experience and advice is much appreciated.

Posted by
3377 posts

Definitely get an Interail Pass because it will cover your train travel in the EU countries and also most of the trains in Switzerland. It also offers discounts on the Mt. Rigi and Mt. Pilatus cogwheel trains.
You will still need to buy tickets for the trains that are privately operated in Switzerland, such as the short train lines from Tasch to Zermatt and from Lauterbrunnen up to Murren and Wengen. City buses and trams are not covered by an Interrail Pass. However, the Interrail Pass is a great bargain for the largest expense of your trip—which is the extensive amount of intercity train travel.

Detailed information on the Interrail Pass benefits are at www.Seat61.com. Enter “Interrail Pass” in the search box at the top of the first page.

Posted by
5237 posts

yes, get the Man's take on the interrail pass. An option sadly not available to us US citizens.

I watch a lot of train vlogs and they seem to use the hell out of that pass.