I posted our rough itinerary a few months ago in an effort to get some ideas. However, we're within the 60 day window now to actually purchase our tickets, and as much as possible, we'd like to do that. I think originally I may have indicated that we were thinking of doing an overnight stopover in Milan on our way from Rome to Zermatt, but I think that's been scrapped. It just seemed like it was adding complexity unncessesarily. So now we're planning to go straight from Rome to Zermatt on Friday afternoon, arriving in Zermatt Friday evening. After 2 days in Zermatt, we'll leave and head for Disneyland Paris. It looks like I can buy the entire trip through the Swiss Rail website, but I'm unsure if that is my most economical approach. The leg from Zermatt to DISParis for 2 people in 1st class is ringing up to be $582 CHF. I wanted to try to book Zermatt to Geneva in 2nd class, and switch to 1st in Geneva, but Swiss Rail won't let me book just that leg until 30 days out. If the savings will be insignificant, I'll just go ahead and book it to be done, but before I spend that kind of money, I thought I should do one last call for advice. Thanks!
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17438 posts
You do not need to reserve the leg from Zermatt to Geneva in advance. You could just buy a second-class ticket in Zermatt when you get there. Tor the Italian portion, you may be able to get a "mini" fare from Rome to Milan. Does the SBB website show this option? You can book this on Trenitalia (people have been reporting success with booking on Trenitalia this year) or get the same price (including mini fares) on BootsnAll, with a $5 handling fee per ticket. SBB may offer a discounted ticket for the Geneva to Paris trip, but you have to work through the booking for your date to see if it is offered.
Posted by
OP
Orlando, Florida, USA
5 posts
Thanks! So you're suggesting that I buy the leg from Rome to Milan in 1st class, then perhaps a 2nd class from Milan to Zermatt? Would I book that under Italian or Swiss rail? Secondly, from what I've seen there is hardly a price difference between booking the Geneva to DisParis leg through TGV vs Swiss Rail. Is this expected? I appreciate your insights!
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17438 posts
Rome to Milan in either 1st or 2d depending on your preference. The ES trains are very nice; first class comes with a free "welcome" beverage (which we barely had time to drink between Bologna and Firenze). Milan to Zermatt again could be 1st or 2d class, depending on your preference. Depending on your transfer time it might be nice to have this ticket in advance, as lines at Milan can be very long. Book on Trenitalia if you can, but you can only book as far as Brig, where you change for the train to Zermatt. Most of the connections will leave you plenty of time to buy your ticket to Zermatt at the station in Brig (it is small). If you book the Milan to Brig part on SBB you will have to pay to have the tickets shipped to you (45 CHF) as you will not be picking them up in Switzerland. On the other hand, I would book the Geneve to Paris train on SBB; since you are starting in Switzerland you can just use the code they give you and pick up the tickets at any Swiss train station. I don't know how that would work if you book on the TGV site. Any time you can avoid paying to have tickets shipped to you is good.
Posted by
OP
Orlando, Florida, USA
5 posts
This is fantastic information, exactly the kind of knowledge I was looking for. My last question is regarding the 30-day window. Should I wait to book the Milan-Zermatt (or Brig-Zermatt) leg until the 30-day window on SBB, or will the cost savings be minimal. If there isn't much difference in price, I'll just book the whole thing from Milan on up the mtn. We'd prefer 1st class since we'll be travelling with bags, and I want to be able to plug in at my seat as much as possible, but the difference between 1st and 2nd class fare-wise on Swiss trains is dramatically different than the 1st vs. 2nd class cost on Italian trains. If I book the whole thing without waiting until the 30-day window, I'll just book us in 2nd class, with first class from Rome to Milan.