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Swiss Pass and other train questions

My husband and I will be traveling May 17th to Chur on Berninia Express. From Chur to Lucern. Lucern to Murren. Murren to Zurich on the 24 th - 8 days. Out to the airport on the 25th.

I have signed up for Swiss Pass but am confused about a few things. It asks for my customer number which it says is on my card. Is a card something that will be sent to me? Can it come digitally and added to Apple wallet? Does my husband need to get his own? Or can he be my travel partner? I’ve looked around on the site and am not having much clarity.

Do I also get a Half Fare Travelcard? And where does this get purchased? I don’t see it on SBB Mobile.

I have reserved the seats on the Berninia and will purchase the tickets on Friday, 60 days in advance. Do I use Half Fare on this? I put us in First class.

I’m sorry if I’m being dumb - I really did go back and read the travel tips and other posts. I have booked us all over Italy so am not a total novice!

Thank you!

Posted by
283 posts

It definitely has my address and country as USA.

I’ll try your link

Posted by
21196 posts

With the Swiss Travel Pass, you do not need a Half Fare Card. You do not need to purchase tickets for the Bernina Express, that is covered by the Pass. It sounds like you have already purchased seat reservations.

If you buy a 2nd class Swiss Travel Pass, you will have to purchase a 1st class supplement for the Bernina Express. If you buy a 1st class STP, then you will not need to anything except show up on time for the train.

Beginning April 15, you can buy the Swiss Travel Pass and get bonus days on some passes. 1 extra day with the 4-day pass and 2 extra days with the 8 day pass.

The SwissPass is a different animal. It is really just an account which you can load tickets on to a card.
https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/swisspass.html

Posted by
283 posts

Sam,

Thank you! I think I’m understanding now!

For what we are doing, getting first class at 600 CHF vs 300 CHF, would be crazy since we were really thinking of it for just the Berninia. I assume we would get the upgrade when we’re getting on the train or after we’re on the train. We are coming from Lake Como and don’t have a lot of time between trains.

Posted by
5636 posts

And let me mix you with another thought- which could actually makes your life much simpler.
The regional trains travel on the exact same train tracks as the Bernina Express. The STP covers this entirely, no buying tickets, and no seat reservations are required. The regional trains have more schedule options, are not crowded, the windows open, and you can get off at various stops , then get back on the next train. It's a beautiful journey, and it worth all this organizational work.
Also- from my experience on Swiss trains, second class is very nice.
And if you have the Swiss Travel Pass, you don't buy any tickets, just show your pass when the conductor comes around. The STP covers you up to Wengen and Murren; covers the boat and cogwheel to Mt. Rigi and Mt. Stanserhorn, for example. The convenience of the STP is wonderful, and then I always wish the other countries had the same option.
And remember the sale that starts April 15 for the free days.
Safe travels!

Posted by
2512 posts

A few years ago the Swiss Railways introduced a little red plastic chip card that you can use to do things like put season tickets on, ski passes, reduction cars etc. This car is aimed at residents and to maximally confuse people they decided to call that card the "Swiss Pass".
And to further create more confusion they decided to link the account you create on the SBB website to this "Swiss Pass Account". So when you register on the SBB website you get automatically such a "Swiss Pass Account". If you log in you should have a account nr, in there somewhere. And the moment you buy a product linked to it they will send you the card. But for that you would need to upload a photograph first. One of the things you can buy this way is the Swiss Half Fare Card, which is valid for a year, and which is what residents typically get. (And personally, I think they should get rid of it and just halve the prices...).

But for tourists this is all not very relevant.

Here is the simplest thing you can do:
Just go to the RhB station in Tirano, the station where you will board the Bernina express. Go to the ticket office. Buy your ticket there (all the way to your actually final destination, it is never needed to ticket individual trains in Switzerland) and buy the Half Fare Cards there as well.

Alternatively if you really want to do this in advance you can buy both the HFC (the one for tourists, 120,- CHF) for you and your husband, and tickets from Tirano to Chur (lr to Luzern if that is where you are going on day one) on www.sbb.ch.

In Switzerland tickets are for travel, not for trains (in fact, there does not exist such a thing as a "train" ticket), they are always available in unlimited quantities, and you always ticket the whole trip, even if there are 10 different vehicles and companies involved... And tickets are flexible, not for a particular departure or service. That is why ticketing and reservations are done separately.

Posted by
3152 posts

And no need to validate tickets in Switzerland. I still remember trying to stick my ticket in some orange box on the platform of the train station at the Zurich airport. 😊

Posted by
283 posts

I jumped on the other thread by Helene and found it very informative. It’s looking like the 8 day Swiss Travel Pass is the one for us as convenience is the most important to us.

I still have one more question, do I still book the Berninia ahead of time? Seats are already reserved.

Posted by
21196 posts

However, as you say, you have 1st class seat reservations and a 2nd class Travel Pass, so you will have to pay the supplement. You also say you will be coming off the train from Varenna with a short time to make the transfer. In that case, I think you should take of this before you arrive in Tirano. All other trains, you can just board and your find a seat in a 2nd class carriage. Then just show your Pass when the conductor comes by.

Posted by
283 posts

Again, thank you both! We are fairly seasoned travelers so this seems overly confusing!

Posted by
3152 posts

I think once you get to Switzerland, you will see how easy it is to travel there. Especially with the Swiss Travel Pass. Switzerland was my first trip to Europe in 2021. If I can manage, anyone can. 😊

And when you purchase your Pass during the sale, you will get an email. You will have the option to print out the Pass, which is a QR code, and also will be provided a link to add the Pass to your apple wallet. I do both as I like the comfort of having a backup. Then, when the conductor comes around, just show the QR code. Some will also ask to see your passport. I have always used a photo copy of my passport and this has been sufficient for the train conductors.

Posted by
283 posts

Carrie,

I’ve checked. We have almost an hour and a half to transfer to the Berninia Express in Tirano. I would think that would be plenty of time to get the upgrade, wouldn’t you think?

Funny, we did a similar trip around Switzerland 8-9 years ago and I don’t remember any issues but I think we just did point to pint. As I’ve become older, I like to have things buttoned down. 😃

Posted by
3152 posts

If it was me, I would just purchase the upgrade ahead of time. one less thing to worry about.

The swiss travel pass you will buy online. SBB doesn’t offer the promotion, so you won’t be able to get that at a train station.

Posted by
283 posts

So April 15th has the sale for the Swiss Travel Pass. Do I get the upgrade after that or does it matter?

Posted by
3152 posts

I think you said you already have the seat reservations, so there’s no hurry to purchase the upgrade. See class upgrade for a specific route:

https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/tickets-for-switzerland/class-upgrades-supersaver-class-upgrades/class-upgrade.html

You would just need to show the Travel Pass along with whatever you get for the upgrade.

Looks like the promotion on the Pass is April 15 – May 14. So, no need to get on April 15th. Not sure of your travel dates, but I would just buy the pass a few days before you leave, assuming that’s within the dates of the promotion. Obviously, you need to buy before May 14th.

You can check the link below for updates on the promotion. Or I’m sure myself or someone will post more info. when it’s available. Although, I’m headed to Italy in a couple of days, so it probably won’t be me. 😊

https://www.myswissalps.com/forum/topic/the-swiss-travel-pass-spring-2023-promotion?utm_source=Newsletter+EN&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=Newsletter+EN+20230225

Posted by
5 posts

Two days ago, I purchased seat reservations for Gotthard Panorama, Bernina Express and Glacier Express. I heard right away via email from Gotthard with my reservation. Even though money was charged to my credit card, I still have not heard about the other two. I neglected to write down the confirmation number on one of them. Should I expect it to take awhile? Thanks, Judy

Posted by
326 posts

@photomom1 - When I reserved the Bernina Express (in 2018) and the Glacier Express (in 2022), I also did not receive the booking confirmation emails. After waiting a few days, I wrote to their respective email addresses and received a quick response with the booking confirmations ([email protected] and I believe the Bernina was [email protected], although that email may work for both trains)

Posted by
283 posts

Carrie,

Your links and advice saved me a ton of time! Thank you! Have a great trip to Italy! Maybe we’ll bump into you - that’s the first half of our trip.🤗