Options when 15 day Swiss Travel Pass Expires

Wow this is not an answer to your question at all: but whatever amount time you are planning for Bern and Zurich skip it and add the time to Murren. I understand sleeping in Zurich the night before your flight, that always is a good idea. However, Murren deserves a lifetime and Bern is a waste of time. J

What are your plans for Zurich? It might makes sense to start the Pass a day or 2 after your arrival.

When I was in Switzerland this past Sept, we were there 3 days longer than our 15-day passes. For us, as our travel expenses weren’t great our first few days, we started the Pass later and used until the end of our trip. We just bought train tickets for the days not covered by the Pass. I wouldn't recommend an additional Pass just for a few days. Well, unless the things you have planned for those days are close to what the Pass would cost.

The 15-day Swiss Travel Pass FLEX might be worth looking into. It only costs a little bit more than the continuous pass, and lets you define your use days within a month. There will certainly be a few days when you do not travel much, and won't need a pass day.

What is the 3 day Swiss Travel Card?
Except that you will be in Zurich and Muerren, where else are you planning on?

Thank you for your responses. We will be in Appenzel (2 nights), Luzern (2 nights), Lugano (1 night), Pontresina (2 nights), Zermatt (2 nights), Lausanne (3 nights), Murren (4 nights), then Zurich for 2 nights. Thanks for the feedback re Bern - we are undecided as to whether to stop - and can certainly leave Murren later in the day. It sounds amazing there. We wanted a day in Zurich just to get ourselves ready for the long trip home. We leave very early morning on Sept 26 for home.
We can use the Engadin card in Pontresina and the Lausanne transport card in Lausanne (for one of the days). The idea to start the card a little later might work as the train from Zurich to Appenzel is only about 2 hours - I will check on cost. We have thought about the flex card - but have to see what the Engagin and Lausanne card will cover while we are there.
Sorry - I meant to write the 3 say Swiss Travel Pass - but yes, I agree - seems silly to purchase another card for just a few days. Again, thank you so much for your thoughts - we have plenty of time to plan - must admit, this has been the most complicated trip to plan - but we are so excited for our trip!

OK, reading between the lines, looks like you intend on doing the Gotthard Panoramic Express, the Bernina Express, and the Glacier Express, plus some others.

Are you getting 1st class Swiss Travel Passes or 2nd class? Just curious.

For a 2nd class pass, you are paying about 28.60 CHF/day. Assuming you are going to Appenzell direct from the airport, an undiscounted ticket is 34 CHF, so tuff it out and just buy a ticket. Then start your pass when you leave Appenzell. In Zurich, you can buy a local ticket to the airport. That is only 13.60 CHF.

Thank you! We are buying the 2nd class Swiss Travel Pass. Yes, we are planning on the Bernia , Glacier, and Golden - not the Gotthard - Everyone has been so helpful - I think we can make it work. One last question - if you use the Swiss Travel pass for a museum - does that count as a travel day? I think it does, but cannot really find confirmation on that.

Yes, the free museum entrance must be used on a pass day with the Flex Pass.

Some hoteliers or B&B hosts offer their guests a free rail/museum pass good for the local area. I've been offered them in Zurich, Luzern, and Montreux. If you spend your first few nights in Zurich, you could utilize such a pass for your visit there before activating your Swiss Pass. And you could then spend your last couple of nights in Luzern instead of staying in Zurich again. Luzern has a direct rail link to the Zurich airport that takes only 70 minutes.

We like the 8-day Flex Pass for our Swiss trips that last 2-3 weeks. We use it for the expensive travel days and pay for the rest.

Of course, the 8-day Flex saves only 20 CHF over the 15-day continuous. Considering museum admissions and free urban transport, 20 CHF is a bargain.

But they will have travel expenses the last 3 days that could be covered if they plan their flex days right, so it is more than a matter of 20 CHF. We generally use ours for the first and last days (long travel days) and the most expensive in between. On many days we are hiking and don’t use lifts or trains at all. So the Flex works out well. Just a suggestion. . . They can take it or not.

Thank you all so much for the recommendations! I think we just have to sit down and do the math- to figure out what works best for us. I think the 15 day flex pass will be the best as probably the most expensive part of our trip will be in the Berner Oberland- so paying for the shorter train trips and using the cards given out at hotels in Pontresina and Lausanne will allow us some flexibility. We are so excited for this trip! I agree with other posters - this forum is so helpful!

I think you are right. The 15-day Flex pass is only 40 CHF more than the 8-day Flex we usually buy, and it would pretty much cover all your travel days, plus discounts on lifts you may want to take.

If you are spending time in Luzern, the Rigi round trip by boat, cogwheel train, cablecar and boat again is fully covered with the Swiss Pass and a really nice excursion.