Help please. Eurail ques/ZRH to Varenna/Varenna to Murren/Reservations/Agent Recommendations...

First question to you: Can you get your money back on those silly Eurail Passes??? If so, do it. Those things are WAY more hassle and expense than they're worth - especially for your itinerary. Italy transport is cheap. Switzerland is best traveled with some sort of Swiss Pass - not a Eurail which is very limited in it's discounts to the most beautiful parts of Switzerland.

I will check. I did buy the insurance but it may only be for cancellation/credit toward future purchase. The Eurail was $500. I priced the Varenna-Murren on sbb.ch and it was $370. I priced ZRH Airport to Varenna and it was $360. Plus we want to go Murren-Bern, Bern-Lucerne, and Lucerne-ZRH Airport, 2 adult/1child 1st class.

I don't understand how the Eurail can be such a bad deal...

Assuming I can't get refunded the Eurail - do you have any advice?

Buy an Eurail pass for this trip is a bad idea. In Italy especially, just buying normal tickets is a lot cheaper, and for long distance tickets (Milan - Swiss border) there is a big discount for advance purchase.

Re your route. The quickest way is via Milan. But one way I recommend you go Zürich/Mürren - Chur - (Bernina Pass line) - Tirano - Varenna, or vice-versa. This is famously picturesque.

Q1) Don't know if it is valid. But you can buy tickets at Milan for both directions. These are "Regionale", not long distance, and no discount for advance purchase. It cost €6.70 per person (I looked it up on the Trenitalia website).

Q2 + Q3) Don't know about passes. Don't buy one. The train from Milan to the Swiss border (and vice-versa) requires a reservation, trains in Switzerland do not.

Q4) The SBB website will always find the quickest route. Go with its suggestion unless you want to go a different route, e.g. Bernina Pass as mentioned above. AFAIK a Eurail pass is only good to Interlaken, thereafter you need to buy tickets.

Q5) Reservations are only needed in Italy. Try booking on the Trenitalia site: http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en

After 2 nts in Murren, onward to Bern (1 nts) to Lucerne (1 nt) to ZRH Airport - those trips seem pretty simple after Varenna to Murren! I believe Interlaken-Bern-Lucerne-ZRH is all covered by Eurail passes - do you all recommend Reservations on those? (Murren to Interlaken is back to Ques #4).

No reservations on Swiss trains.

I priced the Varenna-Murren on sbb.ch and it was $370.

I don't know how you got that price. I just looked on SBB. For Varenna-Esino to Interlaken Ost (the last station your pass is valid for), it gave me CHF 86, 2nd class. For Varenna-Esino to Mürren, CHF 105 2nd class or CHF 139 1st class.
Doing it as a split transaction, Trenitalia Varenna-Esino to Brig €45.70, SBB Brig to Mürren CHF 65. - No saving

"but are traveling July 1-5 - high season." - there is no seasonal price difference for trains.

Mürren - Bern = CHF 48
Bern - Luzern = CHF 40
Luzern - Zürich Flughafen = CHF 30

@Chris F

Were your prices VAR-MUR for 2 adults and 1 child? or just one Adult? I got Varenna-Murren on sbb.ch for approx. CHF 370 for 2 adults/1 child, 1st class.

Regardless, I bought non-refundable Eurail passes - so I will try to exercise my Rail Pass Protection plan to exchange for RailEurope credit toward indiv. train tickets - but if that doesn't work - I am really looking for advise using the Eurail Select passes (1st class) I have.

Re question 1. simply email Rail Europe and ask them about validity on the Trenord Milan-Tirano route. It is valid with an Interail Pass, which is the version sold to European residents.

Re Interlaken to Muerren and any cable lifts, Eurail Pass only gives a 25% discount, you still have to buy tickets.

You bought a Eurail pass, I guess you'll just have to live with it. Just don't bring any Travelers Checks.

If exchange is the only option, consider exchanging your Eurail Pass for Swiss Passes of some sort---maybe 2 4- day Select passes, or there may be a better choice. But you do not need one for the child. Simply request a free Family Card with the Swiss Passes and your child will,travel,with younfor free within Switzerland.

But do not use the Swiss Pass to get to Varenna. Right now you can find Supersaver tickets on SBB for the Zurich to Milan trip for 63 CHF in 2d class or 195 CHF in First. That price is for all three of you, and includes seat reservations. ( our family used these advance tickets from Zurich to Milan a few years ago and I saved $500 on the round trip.). Then buy the Milan to Varenna portion on Trenitalia---this is an inexpensive one-hour trip on a regionalmtrain and costs about €6-7. That is the adult price, and there may be a child or family discount.

Then use your new Swiss Pass to get your family to Mürren. The discounted international tickets are harder to find on this route. The Swiss Pass coverage kicks in at Domodossola in Italy, and will fully cover your travel the way to Mürren. You would just need to pay for tickets from Varenna to Milano and there to Domodossola.

Then the Pass will fully cover travel from Mürren to Bern and on to Luzern. It will also cover 50% of a ride on the lifts above Mürren--the Allmendhubel funicular is a good choice with the child ( and remember the child is free, even on the lifts where the adults must pay half).

I think you will be much better off this way than with the Eurail Pass. You do not need First Class on any of the trains to be comfortable--and past Interlaken, going to Lauterbrunnen and up to Mürren, the trains and lift do not even have a First Class.

I just read in full Chris F's post where he suggested the Bernina Pass route ( via Chur) for your trip from Zurich airport to Varenna. That is an excellent idea, as this route is beautiful, and takes you to Varenna with no need to travel through Milan.

I would not, however, suggest you do this the same day you arrive in Zurich after your long flight. You will be tired and not so interested in the scenery and the experience. Plus depending on the time of your flight's arrival, it could be a late start. But if you could alter your plans to spend that first night in Switzerland, in Zurich or perhaps Luzern or one of the Lakeside towns,, you should really enjoy the journey to Varenna on the following day.

If you can do this, then you would use your Swiss Passes to cover the train from your overnight stop (close to Zurich) to Tirano on the Swiss/Italy border. That would be Day 1 on a 4- day Select Pass. You would then purchase tix on TreNord for the 2.5 hour journey from Tirano to Varenna. ( we did this exact trip when we went to Italy in 2015, although we spent a couple of nights in the Engadine on the way).