Train vs Car?

Trains in Switzerland are SUPER EASY and the way to go. The employees in the train station are very pleasant, helpful and the ones we encountered spoke English. I live in the midwest. I like a car to explore, as well. But, not in Switzerland. It is very well connected by train and other public transportation. If I were you, I'd not spend any time in Zurich, nor sleep there. I'd spend at least one night in Luzern and at least three in Berner Oberland staying in Lauterbrunnen, Murren or Wengen. There are many walking/hiking trails in BO. Both Berner Oberland and Luzern are right in the mountains. You can't get better than that.

Thanks! And, would you say trains are cost-effective?? We were planning to take a mother-daughter trip to Washington/Oregon but found these rates and figure why stay in the USA if we can go to Switzerland for almost the same price! That being said, we will be on a super budget... like, willing to stay in a "shared bathroom" type situation :-) . Any other thoughts or advice?

I found driving in Europe to be more expensive than the U.S. Gas, vignettes, parking, all adds up. There is a hostel in Lauterbrunnen. I didn't stay there, because I had booked an Airbnb. There is also a hostel in Gimmelwald and I think in Grindelwald, as well. Restaurants are pricey in Switzerland. There is a campground in Lauterbrunnen that I've heard serves excellent, well priced meals. You could also check if you could stay there. Perhaps they have tents or camper cabins. I recommend the Coop grocery stores for breakfast and picnic lunch items. If you have cooking facilities you can also get supplies for dinners. Wine in grocery stores is well priced and good, too. We had pizza twice in Switzerland and that can be a budget saver. In Luzern we stayed at Drei Koenig. We liked it very much and it was reasonably priced and included breakfast. There is also a budget hotel close to the Luzern train station. I think it was an Ibis. I've stayed at other Ibis hotels and while they are sterile in atmosphere, they are clean and a great value. We purchased a Swiss Travel Pass which makes things very easy, but you have to do the math to figure out if it makes sense for you. It does include the entire cost of some trains/gondolas that take you up into the mountains, and part of some of the others. In Luzern, we took a wonderful boat ride to a cog train up to the top of Mt. Rigi for great views. That was all covered by the Swiss Travel Pass.

I've only been once and this worked for me as a beginner on a budget in July 2017:
Take the train from Zurich Airport directly to Luzern.
Stay in Luzern 2 nights.
Take the the train from Luzern to Lauterbrunnen via Interlaken this route is quite scenic for a regular train.
Stay in Lauterbrunnen valley 3 nights include a trip to the top of the Schilthorn https://schilthorn.ch/en/welcome

; Lauterbrunnen has a lot of public transportation options from buses to gondola to trains you can use to explore the area. You don't need a car there.

You either have to get a Swiss half fare card or buy Super Saver train tickets (30 days in advance) to save money.
But you need to decide where you want to go first.

julia,

If you're on a "super budget", Switzerland is probably not the best choice. I haven't seen "shared bathroom" places for a few years, although I'm sure they still exist. If you want the lowest prices possible, you might consider Hostels.

Regarding the car / train question, I would recommend using the excellent Swiss transit system, as it's very efficient and quick. As others have mentioned, using one of the Swiss passes will likely save you some money, but you'll have to decide where you'll be going in Switzerland first. This website may help - https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/switzerland-rail-passes .

If you could provide more information on your proposed Itinerary here, the group will be able to help with fine tuning. You may also want to have a look at the Rick Steves Switzerland guidebook.

A cheap airfare to Switzerland, does not necessarily make for a cheap trip. Just about everything IN Switzerland will be more expensive than its counterpart in WA or OR

Not to be too intrusive, but what does Super Budget mean? You are going to THE most expensive place in Europe.

That being said, we will be on a super budget... like, willing to stay in a "shared bathroom" type situation :-) . Any other thoughts or advice?

Denise still has a shared bathroom arrangement in Mürren. At the Chalet Fontana. http://www.ferntree.ch/chalet/fontana_summer.htm

She has lived there for many years, is a former champion of the running race there, lots of fun, very helpful, and one of the cheapest places in town. Easy to get to, right in the middle of everything.

Y'all are the best! And to clarify, by "super budget", I would like for us to spend between $1200 - $1500 (after airfare and not including souviners). I mentioned the "shared bathroom" more to describe our desire to GO and less of an actuality :-). The flights I'm looking at would give us 5-6 days of travel. Be honest - is that doable??? No fancy meals, no wine needed.

Cars in Europe have other issues. Mostly that rules in Europe are different. There are many threads here at RS about the special moment when you get a note from the car rental agency that you got a photo-enforced traffic fine of E 100. I'd do the trains.

I'm a budget traveler. I want to get the most from my dollar or Euro as the case may be. I think there are lots of ways to make Switzerland more affordable but I'm not sure your budget is doable. I recall my Swiss Travel Pass being at least $800. Now you have to make a list of what you want to do to determine if the STP is worthwhile. Activities won't cost you much other than the transportation be it gondolas or train to get you there. If you are looking for a mountain experience, you might look in Austria or Bavaria, Germany. As nice as Oregon and Washington are, I wouldn't give up on going to Europe, yet.

Unfortunately, that airfare to Zurich is low for a reason. May is not a good time to visit Switzerland, especially for outdoor adventures. The lakeside and valley locations could be lovely, but higher elevations will still have mud and even snow.

And as noted above, Switzerland is one of the priciest countries in Europe. Hotels and restaurants are expensive. They charge even for a glass of tap water in restaurants, as many have discovered to their dismay.

You can find less expensive places to stay, and eat less expensively from the grocery stores. Or book apartments like we do, and make your own meals.

Transport is also expensive. For such a short stay, it is probably not worthwhile to get a train pass. I priced out a sample itinerary, with 2 nights in Luzern and 3 in Mürren ( based on the suggestions above as likely places to go). The Swiss franc is $1.01, so just about par today.

Zurich airport to Luzern, 30 CHF

Luzern to Mürren, 51.80 CHF

Mürren back to Zurich airport for your flight home, 92.80 CHF if you take the faster route via Bern; slightly less if you take the longer slower route via Luzern

Lodging: Hotel Stern is a good budget option in Luzern. A double room in May is 189 CHF.

https://www.sternluzern.ch/en

There may be cheaper places in Luzern but I did not search. In Mürren, the above-mentioned Chalet Fontana is one of the best bargains around. In May, a double room with shared bath is 105 CHF. Or you could book the ground floor apartment for 155 CHF and make your own meals.

So that is around $1050 -$1400 for transport and lodging for two, no meals ( but breakfast is included in the lodging). You can price a rental car to compare, but be sure to add the expense of fuel, parking, and the vignette.

Now I will make an alternative suggestion. Given that May is not the best time for the Berner Oberland, you could head south to Italy instead. You can get a Mini fare on the direct train to Milan from either Luzern or Zurich for €29,00 by booking 3 months in advance on Trenitalia. The travel time is just over 3 hours, not much longer than the travel time to Mürren (but not as scenic, to be sure). From Milan, it is a one-hour ride to Varenna on Lake Como, and that ticket only costs €6.70.

So if you went from the airport to Luzern for a night or two, then to Varenna for 2-3 nights and back to Zurich, the travel expense for two would be 60 CHF plus €116, instead of the 350 or so Swiss francs you would pay for a Mürren visit. I did not price out lodging, but both food and lodging are considerably less expensive in Italy than in Switzerland. And Varenna should be nice in May, with opportunities to walk, take a cooking class, and ride boats to other locations around the lake.

that's funny: Trains are duanting but rental cars are not??? And so you understand that cars models are different, instructions not necessarily in English, road signs in German, French (not English). You have now idea where your destinations are in order to driver there. Do you know how to use the petrol pumps in Switzerland? Do you know the rules of the road?? Hopefully you can drive a stick shift, etc

There are just so MANY gotchas when driving even thought it "sounds" so simple.

Trains are VASTLY easier in that you just jump on and go and end up smack dab at your destination.

It's certainly true that Switzerland can be expensive, but it's also true that there are ways to save money.

While restaurant food in Switzerland is very expensive, supermarket prices are quite good. If you get a place with a kitchen, you can save a fortune. If you don't have a kitchen, Swiss supermarkets have all kinds of prepared things (soups, sandwiches, salads, and hard boiled eggs they call "picnic eggs"). For my lunch while in the mountains, I often have trail mix, since this doesn't go bad or get smushed in my day bag. Minimizing restaurant meals is the main key to saving money. Well, minimizing shopping is too, but you've got that covered.

The right kind of train pass is essential. Unfortunately, it's also hard to figure out. You have to decide on an itinerary, then list all the trains you are definitely taking and possibly taking, then compare it with the various deals. There is no shortcut to this, but keep the following points in mind:

The Swiss Pass covers the whole country so it may be overkill for a limited trip. But it also covers museums and other attractions (like the Ballenberg Open Air Museum). Museums in Switzerland are very expensive, so if you're seeing these, a Swiss Pass can be a good deal (that's how I made mine pay off). On the other hand, if you're focusing on the Berner Oberland, a Swiss Pass only has full coverage up to Mürren (50% off if you go higher) and Wengen (25% off if you go higher).

The regional passes (such as the Berner Oberland Pass or the Jungfrau Travel Pass) will be cheaper and have better coverage of the specific region, but they include fewer museums, and you have to add the cost of travel outside of the region (for instance, from the Zurich airport to where the pass becomes active). They still usually don't have full coverage.

The Half Fare Card gives 50% off of everything that moves in the entire country, from a local tram to the Jungfraujoch ride. Since it costs 120 CHF, if you're spending more than 240 CHF, you can't lose. The Jungfraujoch is extremely expensive without a pass, and is often only 25% off with other passes. The disadvantages of the Half Fare card are that it doesn't cover any museums or attractions. and that you have to buy tickets every time. This is not hard (machines always have a "Half Fare/Child Fare" option), but is more hassle than just flashing your pass (with a pass you only have to buy tickets for things not fully covered).

One final tip. I wanted to stay in Zurich the night before my flight, but hotels there are very expensive, even by Swiss standards. The usual advice is to stay in Luzern, and it's good advice, but I had seen it on a prior trip and wanted a new place. I found that hotels in Winterthur are about half the price of Zurich hotels. The one I chose (Hotel Wartmann am Bahnhof, http://www.wartmann.ch/en/home) was right behind the train station, and was very nice. Winterthur is only a few minutes farther from the airport than central Zurich is, with very frequent train service. It's also an easy day trip to Zurich - that's also where my Swiss Pass came in handy.

It is risky and takes a lot of attention to planning but I managed to buy all super saver tickets available 30 days in advance of the day you want to travel on specific train and at a set time; those were all 50% off but sell out fast.
https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/tickets-for-switzerland/supersaver-tickets.html

I did not buy a Swiss Pass of any kind and paid the 105 CHF to go to the top of the Schilthorn and back to Lauterbrunnen. But that way I got to stop in Murren and Birg on the way back

One other point on cars - standard transmission (stick-shift) is the usual situation in Europe. You can get automatic, but there may be a price increase.

As I mentioned above, it would help if you could provide more information on where you're planning on going in Switzerland. With that information, it would be easier to provide more detailed instructions on transportation.