Family of 5 adults traveling via train from Vienna through Germany to Wengen. Please advise which train routes are more scenic and/or require fewer switches. When traveling to and from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, it appears one can go through either Munich or Innsbruck. We are planning one day of travel from Garmisch-Partenkirchen to Wengen. Should I book part of the train tickets on Eurail Global (also taking short trips from Vienna to Budapest and Slovakia) and then switch to Swiss Train pass tickets once arriving in the Interlaken region?
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Nashville, TN
781 posts
For such a long day I’d take the route with the least train changes, even though it takes an hour longer.
Garmisch > Munich > Zurich > Interlaken Ost > Lauterbrunnen > Wengen — it’s going to be over 8.5 hours, so you’re going to need to leave early in the morning to get to Wengen by dinner time. To get the direct train from Zurich to Interlaken you need to time it correctly, otherwise you'll have an extra stop. Doing the options that are 7.5-8 hours have more train changes and with that long of a day you don't want any more changes than you have to, as it adds to the stress of the day having to manage so many changes. Make sure to use the SBB app on your phone, which will show you what platform you're arriving and departing from, as well as maps of where you need to walk to get to your next train.
Buy your entire ticket from Garmisch to Wengen on SBB.ch/en or on int.bahn.de/en — don’t split up the ticket. And if you plan to get a half fare card, make sure to input that info on either of the sites (the German site will accept the SBB HFC as well, to give you the correct discount on the Swiss portion)
The best route to get from Vienna to Garmisch is one change via Munich (around 5 hours 40 min). Buy that ticket on int.bahn.de/en or on Austria’s official site - https://www.oebb.at/en/