Swiss-France Eurail - help with itinerary

AFAIK, the Eurail pass is not valid past Interlaken, so for the final leg (Interlaken Ost - Lauterbrunnen - Mürren), and the return leg, you would need you to buy separate tickets.

But, the bigger question, is the Eurail Pass worth the money? For that you need to compare the price of the pass to that of individual tickets for each trip. And do not use the Eurail site to get ticket prices, use the websites of the actual railway companies: www.sbb.ch and www.voyages-sncf.com

And finally, are you really having only one night in each place? That is much too short, you will loose ½day travelling each time you change locations.

The TGVs in France will ONLY work if you are able to secure reservations for them well in advance (most likely) for the French trains.

A nasty little dirty secret about Eurail passes (one of many) is that the French TGV trains are very highly rationed for pass holders. The train could be half empty and discount tickets still available to the public but you as a pass holder may well find out that all the pass holder reservations are long sold out; if you want that train you will have to buy a ticket at whatever they charge you.

There is no way that I know of to find out how many pass holder seats are left in the system.

So it is well advised to get those tickets ASAP.

Please review my previous answer. The France-Switzerland Pass for 4 days of travel within 2 months costs about the same as a Swiss Travel pass for 4 consecutive days, and covers the French trains, but gives you lesser coverage and discounts from Interlaken to Muerren and during your stay in Muerren. Therefore, I think either one is a fine choice. Now is the best time to book either advance-purchase ticket discounts or pass holder seat reservations on the Lyon-Nice TGV for May 14.

Thanks, everyone! I had called Eurail this weekend, and though they were very helpful, they basically wanted me to get the Eurail Select Pass 8 Days/2 Months HIGH Flexi SAVER because of the above trips and the last two below—$1030 for 2 adults.

But it looks like we can do the Swiss-France pass for $524 + the last two legs for about $200 (a LOT less than $500!) if we buy point-to-point tickets for the last two legs:

May 17: Nice-Milan (60 euros for 2 people on Thello)

May 19: Milan-Zurich (110 euros for 2 on TrenItalia)

The SBB folks estimated just the Swiss portions for about $500! So point-to-point in Switzerland is more expensive. I really appreciate the help before and today, Chris, Nigel, and Laura. :)

Eurail pass validity ends at Interlaken. At the station they have put up a big sign over the tracks that head to Lauterbrunnen and then bus/tram to Murren. But having the pass will get you a discount on that part of the trip, just pop into the friendly ticket office at any station and they'll bang out the tix for you. Do this before you get to Interlaken just in case you need to sprint for a train (as we did).

For the stated itinerary for 2 adults, here is what I come up with.
ZRH>Muerren, 183.20 chf =$200
Muerren> Chamonx, 194 chf =$212
Chamonix> Lyon, 89.80 euro=$104
Lyon>Nice, 50 euro, =$58
Total Price, $574

The first three are everyday prices, no discounts. The last is an advance purchase nonrefundable ticket. Now even full fare is 184 euro, which is an extra $154 over the Prem's fare, but you are still talking $730 which by my math, is $300 less than $1030.

If possible, give yourself an extra night in Chamonix. A general rule for the Alps- if your plans don't have the advantage of a short-term weather forecast, budget at least three nights in any Alpine location. That gives you two full days, which is a needed buffer against losing a day to bad weather. Visiting the Alps is always a roll of the dice, but at least with two full days you stack the odds a little more in your favor.