Swiss Pass vs Half Off

Is there something you want to see in Eichberg? Otherwise it is a bit of a side trip to get there from/to Sargans, one local train and then a post bus.

Prices look correct, although I did not check every single one of them. What does jump out, is that you show Eichberg to Innsbruck as free with a Swiss Pass, but it will cost you 41 CHF because the Swiss Pass is only valid to Buch SG, where you cross into Liechtenstein then Austria, so you will have to pay for that portion.

You could just buy a ticket from Wengen to Innsbruck. You will go to Zurich Hbf, then a direct Railjet train to Innsbruck.

Are you eligible for a youth pass? I use Swiss prices, 265 CFH for a 4-day youth flex and 380 for an 8-day youth flex. I come up with 587.40 CHF with a Half Fare Card, 635 with an 8-day Swiss Flex Pass, and 733 CHF for a 4-day Swiss Flex Pass and paying for day 1 & 2 out of pocket.

PS, I see you can buy a nonrefundable advance ticket (looked at August 15) from Lauterbrunnen to Innsbruck for 69 CHF, with or without a Half Fare Card. If you have a valid Swiss Pass, it is 26 CHF.

No to the youth Swiss pass.

We are 30+.

I was just trying to find the closest route to Austria on the "free pass." Wasn't sure where that stop would be.

Then the 4-day Swiss Travel Pass Flex is 310 CHF, and the 8-day is 445 CHF. So that changes my results.
700 CHF with the 8-day STP Flex, and 778 CHF with a 4-day STP Flex.

Now if you do go with advance nonrefundable tickets to get from Wengen to Innsbruck for 69 CHF, then the use the 4-day flex for the middle portion, and go out of pocket for the first and last days, then I get 607 CHF. But the Half Fare Card again saves to most money, 547.60 CHF.

And there are no other tickets that need to be bought in advance. No reservations is the norm in Switzerland.

The 2nd class 8 day Swiss Travel Pass is 398 CHF on the SBB site, US $401. if your 6 days are within 8 consecutive days, would that work for you? One difference though, is that the Jungfraujoch trains are 25% off not 50% off. We had a similar situation where over 8 days, 2 in the middle were in France. We went for the 8 day pass because the numbers came out close enough that the convenience of the pass made the difference. We feel we easily got our money's worth from the pass because with it we could take pretty much whatever transportation we wanted. We did the Schilthorn rather than Jungfraujoch because it was free, and with clouds, it would not have been worth it. Besides the trains, we used a lot of lifts, buses, a boat ride on Lake Geneva, and several museums.

We bought them from the SBB site and printed them from home. Our first stop was in a small town on a Sunday and I wasn't sure we could get a pass there. An advantage of that is that if you loose them, you can reprint from the email. If you loose a pass purchased in Switzerland, it's gone.

Figuring transportation/passes out is one of the most time consuming parts of planning time in Switzerland!

Our first stop was in a small town on a Sunday and I wasn't sure we could get a pass there.

Unlikely. According to the SBB website "You can also purchase these tickets (except for the Swiss Transfer Ticket) at every major rail station in Switzerland (e.g. at Zurich or Geneva airports) as well as at the tourist offices in Zurich, Berne, Basel, Geneva and Lucerne." Link: https://help.myswitzerland.com/hc/en-us/articles/213634385-Where-can-I-buy-a-Swiss-Travel-Pass-a-Swiss-Transfer-Ticket-or-a-Swiss-Family-Card

Smaller stations are unmanned, and you definately cannot buy them from ticket machines. If you are flying in you just buy at the airport station before you catch your first train; or if you arrive by rail you buy when you first change trains.

Looking at the front of our trip and the end, it almost seems worth it to just get the 8 day pass as mentioned. Save the hassle of having to go buy a ticket every step of our trip.

Question - do we have to go to a kiosk or booth to get tickets for each train/boat/bus with the swiss pass? Mainly curious about the long legged trips from LUCERNEto LAUTERBRUNNEN and LAUTERBRUNNEN to INNSBRUC, we might even consider upgrading to first class for these trips. What are your opinions on that?

Thanks everyone!

"Question - do we have to go to a kiosk or booth to get tickets for each train/boat/bus with the swiss pass?"

No, that's one of the big advantages of a Swiss Pass. For any trip fully covered, your Swiss Pass IS your ticket. You just board, and show the pass when asked for tickets. You only need to buy tickets in advance for travel not fully covered by the Swiss Pass, such as the Jungfraujoch or the lift from Wengen to Maennlichen. In those cases, you go to the ticket booth and show your Swiss Pass; the appropriate discount will be applied.

Yes, second what Harold said. Once you have a Swiss Pass you don't need tickets (that is your ticket), except on mountain railways where it only gives a reduction.
Except, Lauterbrunnen to Innsbruck, the Swiss Pass is only valid in Switzerland. You would need to buy a ticket from the last Swiss station (Buchs (SG) in this case) to Innsbruck.

Awesome! Thanks everyone.