Question about using the Swiss Family Card

My question is, can you get a Family Card if you only buy a Berner Oberland Pass? That is not a Swiss Travel System product. Otherwise, it is another 30 CHF for a Children's Pass.

Where are coming from and where are you going after? Since you get 95 CHF discount with a Half Fare Card on the 4-day Berner Oberland pass, you can get a Half Fare Card for net 25 CHF. Then you get the discount for travel to the B-O pass area and travel when you are leaving and can also get the free Family Card. Yes, your son will get free travel everywhere as long as you are accompanying him.

That's an interesting question about using the Swiss Family Pass with the OB pass. It says on their website that the two can be used together, but they don't sell the Swiss Family Pass, so I wonder if they're assuming someone has both a Swiss Travel Pass product AND the OB pass? Hmm.

Getting the half price pass and then using it to purchase the OB pass - and anything else not covered by the OB pass - is a very interesting idea. Off to investigate...

Thank you for your reply to my post!

Hi! We are trying to investigate the same options for our family of four (two under 16) by purchasing the half fare card and the the OB pass with the discount. I am just unclear as to whether the kids will be free on everything with the Family Card or if I need to purchase the 30CHF add on for the OB pass too? Soooo..many options!

• Edit - If Half Fare Card purchased first, we receive the discount for the BO pass plus the Family Card extends to it. If I am doing my math correctly, the savings alone covers the Half Fare Card cost. =)

It really does not matter whether or not you buy the Swiss Half Fare Card first. If you buy a pass at the reduced rate, you just need to have the Half Fare Card bought and in your possession when you use the pass.

"Hi! We are trying to investigate the same options for our family of four (two under 16) by purchasing the half fare card and the the OB pass with the discount. I am just unclear as to whether the kids will be free on everything with the Family Card or if I need to purchase the 30CHF add on for the OB pass too? Soooo..many options!

Edit - If Half Fare Card purchased first, we receive the discount for the BO pass plus the Family Card extends to it. If I am doing my math correctly, the savings alone covers the Half Fare Card cost. =)"

Yep, having done more investigation since I first posted, that's my understanding, too. The Swiss Family Card really does mean that anyone under age 16 travels FREE with a parent who is traveling using a Swiss Travel product (Swiss Travel Pass or Swiss Half Fare Card). It covers EVERYTHING the adult gets a pass or ticket for - gondolas, funiculars, etc., not just trains. You apparently do need to show ID that matches the names on the pass/card when using them. (I just bought a Half Price Pass with Swiss Family Card and they listed my name on the Half Fare Card and my son's name on the Swiss Family Card.)

If you use the Half Fare Card to buy the OB pass (and get the Swiss Family Card with the Half Fare Card), then the Swiss Family Card apparently applies to everything covered under the OB pass. (If you just bought the OB Pass alone, the Swiss Family Card is not available - thus the 30 franc ticket per child for the OB pass.)

I'm still fine-tuning a spreadsheet, but it looks like, for the two of us, using just the Half Fare Card (with Swiss Family Card) would probably save us $60 - 100 (total in 4 days) over buying the OB Pass, given our anticipated itinerary. Of course, if it's rainy most of the time we're there (not worth taking the gondolas to the highest peaks) or we decide to spend a day hiking instead of riding trains or gondolas, we'd save more $ using the Half Fare Card. Yet the on-off convenience of a pass (no need to buy tickets!), and the freedom to repeat adventures or change our minds last-minute, may be worth the slightly higher overall cost to us - I just haven't decided for certain yet!