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Swiss Train & Passes including Lauterbrunnen area

Posted by (Hayden, Idaho, USA) on

Hi, when we've traveled previously in Europe we've never purchases the country's passes, and I've purchased the tickets on-line ahead of time. This Fall we'll be landing in Zurich and take a train to Wengen (Lauterbrunnen area) the same day. During our time at Wengen, we want to take the train further up to hike. If it's really bad weather we might go into Interlaken or similar one day. After 4 days we'll take the train into Italy heading to Stresa. Should we consider a Swiss Pass and if so, which one do you recommend? Typically I purchase our train tickets on-line at home. Is there an advantage to that for Swiss train tickets, or should I just wait until we're in Switzerland to purchase the tickets (& pass)?

Appreciate your help!

Posted by
16893 posts

Swiss point-to-point tickets don't have advance-purchase discounts. The cheapest rail pass option is the Swiss Card, which covers you from Zurich airport to Wengen, and Wengen to the Swiss border (each about a $75 value), and gives you 50% discounts on all transport tickets you buy during your stay there. Cost is about $225 per person. The value of 50% discounts can add up pretty quickly on lifts, trains, boats, buses, etc.; see some regular ticket prices listed further down on the same page link, or see the Berner Oberland chapter in Rick's book (p. 151 in Switzerland).

Posted by
7232 posts

Thank you Larry for all of the details & links! I appreciate both of your quick responses as we're looking forward to our trip to Switzerland & Italy!

Posted by
16893 posts

Thanks, Tim. They're sure not making the discounts easy to find, unlike the discount with the Half-Fare card. I have never seen one offered when making a standard ticket price search on SBB.ch; it looks like you have to use the specific Super Saver search link.

The frequent Swiss train connections and flexibility of the Swiss Pass mean that we rarely consider advance-discounts here. In this case, when counting on flight arrival time, I would not be inclined to book ahead.

Posted by
7209 posts

I never prebook train tickets on flight arrival dates in any country. We've also found that booking point-to-point tickets directly with SBB group sales is much much cheaper than investing in any kind of Swiss Pass which is just overkill for us. SBB personnel are top notch to deal with and will bend over backward to make sure we have exactly what we need.

Posted by
7232 posts

Thanks Laura & Tim! I appreciate your help! We'll purchase our tickets when we arrive at Zurich, ready for some fantastic weather to hike in the beautiful Lauterbrunnen area.

Posted by
7209 posts

Good luck on your "fantastic weather search". Mountain weather is unpredictable, and beautiful weather in the Lauterbrunnen area just makes the trip SOOO much better.

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