My girlfriend and I will be traveling from Zurich to Murren for 3 nights and then to Paris. While in Murren we plan on traveling up to the Schilthorn viewing area and also down into Lauterbrunnen valley.
Like most Americans, we are not too familiar with the train system and are looking for advice on how best to manage our travel. Would the Swiss Rail Pass, 1/2 fare card, ect. be worth investing in? Do any of those help with costs associated with the train to Paris?
Also, are there any tips, tricks or general mistakes people make that we should be aware of before our trip? Like I said, we know next to nothing about the trains so any advice would be helpful
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
8340 posts
You can look up ticket prices online and compare with the costs of the pass. You can get discount prices on French trains with advance purchase.
Posted by
Kansas
1174 posts
Go to www.seat61.com for all you'll need to learn about trains in Europe. Also www.bahn.com, the German rail system, has all the schedules for all of Europe. Rail passes are almost always a rip off. Point to point tickets are the best if bought well in advance of travel. Stay away from Rail Europe since they have higher fares and don't show all the schedules, to make you buy more expensive tickets.
Posted by
The Heartland USA
8421 posts
wscgmi3 you didn't get much response so I'll chime in. The best advice is to get or borrow RS guide for Switzerland as it gives a lot of detail on traveling this part of Switzerland. What I can tell you is that to get to Mürren involves either a cable car and short train ride from Lauterbrunnen (in that order), or a cable car from Stechelberg. You can't get there solely by train. Schilthorn is also a cable car ride from Mürren. I don't know if any of the Swiss Passes or cards include or discount these trips. But I do know that everything up-valley past Interlaken is on private railways, so you have to look carefully at what the passes include.
But, it probably sounds more complicated than it really is. The Lauterbrunnen Valley and Mürren are well-traveled, and you can see one place from the next, so it will be clearer when you see the lay of the land.
Swiss Pass won't help all the way to Paris, but maybe to Basel or Geneva, from where you will need to have a ticket to Paris. You'll have to research the cost of that trip. Paris has several big rail stations, so you have to know which one you're arriving at. Unlikely a French rail pass will save anything for just one trip, vs buying an advance fare ticket.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32701 posts
When is the trip?
Posted by
Seattle, WA
16178 posts
I wrote a long response on your other question, in "Switzerland".