Buying Wilhelm Tell Express tickets

Posted by Sean (Los Angeles) on 07/05/10 12:21 AM

I tried calling Rail Europe to purchase Wilhelm Tell Express tickets today and they said they can't sell them for Aug. 26. They didn't know why, just that their system couldn't do it.

Online allows you to buy regular first class tickets for that route, but I was hoping to buy the ticket and supplement/reservation at once.

Any ideas on how to purchase the tickets? We are leaving in the beginning of August. I've heard you can call the Swiss rail company and they can sell them, but I am concerned about getting them in time. Or should we just chance it and hope we can buy the tickets on the spot when we get there?

Also, does anyone know the entire cost per ticket for the train?

On a side note, any recommendations for good simple unlocked cell phones that will work in UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and France. Assuming I get correct sim cards for each?

Posted by Sean OP

Los Angeles

07/05/10 12:46 AM

4 posts

I've tried looking on the Swiss site, but am unclear about how to purchase the correct fare. Is it just the first class fare. Also, we want to ake the boat from Fluelen, which I'm not sure how to add on from the Swiss site.

http://www.wilhelmtellexpress.ch/index.cfm?parents_id=214

Posted by Elaine

Mission Viejo, Calif., USA

07/05/10 06:46 PM

1010 posts

We bought our international phone through the ekit USA, where we bought our Euraill Pass. www.raileurope.ekit.com. We took the William Tell and the Bernina Express last year. I just booked them in advance on the Eurail Europe site, without any problem. We also booked a TGV from Zurich to Paris that way. I advise you to get your tickets as far in advance as you can and buy the insurance. We just went to London and Paris two months ago. I wanted to book the Eurostar on-line. I delayed one day and all the seats at the origional price had been sold. I was advised to get the insurance, in case there was a rail strike. If you hesitate, you might find your tickets will not be available when you want to travel. Elaine, Mission Viejo, Ca.

Posted by Iain

Edmonton, AB, Canada

07/05/10 07:09 PM

668 posts

We did this a few years ago and just bought them in Lucerne before we left. We had come in from Basel that morning. We got a small Swiss army knife, a meal on the boat - adequate, but not fantastic - and quite a detailed map and, of course, the panorama car, otherwise, a first class ticket would get you the same route and view.

Posted by Lola

Seattle, WA

07/05/10 08:59 PM

17442 posts

I doubt you need to book the William Tell route long in advance. It consists of a boat ride + train trip, and both are freely available without advance purchase. According to RS, the cost is 166 CHF if you go to Lugano. You could do the same or similar for far less by arranging it on your own apart from the official William Tell route. For example, advance-fare tickets from Zurich to Milan (via Lugano) are available for 30 CHF and ride the same rails. You could start at Luzern, take a lake-boat trip for a few hours, maybe combined with a trip up Rigi (great for views), and then the next day take a short train ride to Arth-Goldau to meet your train to Lugano. You won't lose your reserved seats by boarding the train late, and you don't have to ride past Lugano in order to take advantage of the special fare. Just a thought.

As far as the phone. . . it is not a mistake to talk to RailEurope. We bought tickets for a short trip from Milan to Verona, and they came with an offer from ekit (mentioned by Elaine) for a free $20 SIM card. To use the offer, you need to either add another $20 to the card, OR buy a $30 dual-band world phone from them. We chose the latter, and it worked out great. The SIM card has a UK number and is good anywhere in Europe (at .99 per minute for outgoing calls). But you also get a US number and an 800 number that your friends and family can call (or text) for free. And you are free to replace the SIM card with its .99 for outgoing calls with a local SIM card per country as you wish.