Hi. I plan to use a Swiss Travel pass for train travel in October. I understand the card is valid for a set period in a month, say 15 days.
However, I wish to make a reservation on the Glacier Express now for mid October. If I do so does this activate the period of use for the pass, meaning I have 15 days from the time I make the Express reservation to buy all the rest of my train tickets?
The reservation, and the payment for travel (pass or normal ticket) are independent.
You can make the reservation without having a pass or ticket, as long as you have one when you get on the train.
If you buy a Swiss Pass online, you specify its dates when you buy it. If you buy it when you get to Switzerland, you specify the dates then. The dates are listed on the ticket. In both cases the price is the same.
Making a reservation now for October I would guess is way too far in the future.
Thanks Chris. This is very helpful. I've noticed you have answered several questions on this site. I know others appreciate this as well. Best, Lari.
This may have been answered but.if you buy a 15 day STP is that 15 consecutive days or can you pick which days you use it.?
Oops, sorry, I misread. If you buy a fixed period Swiss Travel Pass, you specify the dates when you buy it.
If you buy the "x days in y" variety, you fill in the dates as you go along. These passes cannot be "self-print", you need to buy at a Swiss station or an online travel agent that posts it to you.
Either way, you can get the reservation at any time, independent of whether you have your pass yet.
All versions of the Swiss Travel Pass are pre-validated at the time of purchase for the travel window you choose - either a one-month period for a flexi pass or a shorter period for a consecutive-day pass. They cannot be purchased more than 6 months in advance through our site and possibly even shorter through SBB.
When I did the pass some years ago, you had to fill out each trip you took separately. The conductor sternly told me this was necessary so the various rail companies in CH could seek reimbursement for the trip.
Hi, Phred. You're probably referring to the "Travel Diary" that is part of the pass cover for either a Eurail or BritRail pass, and that is the background purpose of filling in destination details on those forms. They can make you fill them in but can't force you to mail them back. However, it's not a feature of the Swiss Travel Pass, which only needs dates.
