Best rail pass for 3 weeks car and train traveling in Switzerland
Don is planning a 3-week trip to Switzerland with his wife next year. They will rent a car to travel between cities but want to rely on public transport in cities like Zurich and use ferries and funiculars around Zermatt, plus take the Bernina Express. He is looking for advice on whether the Swiss Travel Pass or Half Fare Pass would be useful or if it's better to pay for transport as they go.
- Using the Swiss Travel Pass can provide great value, offering free rides on certain mountain excursions and discounts on others, like in Zermatt.
- Public transport in Switzerland is highly efficient and may be more convenient than driving, especially with parking costs and busy roads.
- Consider using Lucerne as a base for excursions, as it offers better ferry services and easy train links to other cities.
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Next year I am spending 3 weeks in Switzerland with my wife, we are both in our fifties.
We are hiring a car to travel between cities, but still want to use local public transport in cities like Zurich and ferries from Interlaken. In addition we want to use chair lifts and funiculars around Zermatt and also take the Bernina Express one way.
Is the Swiss travel pass (or half fare pass) of any use on a holiday like this or are we better off paying for transport as we use it?
Thank you
Don🇨🇭 The official SBB tourist webshop✓ Discounts for passholders ✓ Instant email delivery ✓ Free cancellation option
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Hello Don
Welcome to MySwissAlps.
Inter-City Travel in Switzerland
I have to admit that I gasped in astonishment when I read We are hiring a car to travel between cities,’
Swiss public transport (not just the trains) is the best in the world. Everything runs at least hourly, twice an hour on the main intercity routes. All public transport is timed to inter-connect.
The top speeds of trains are not as fast as in its larger neighbours, but Switzerland is a small country. Zurich to Bern (117 kms, 73 miles) takes 56 minutes by train.
Thanks to the new Gotthard Base Tunnel (at 57 kms currently the longest rail tunnel in the world) Zurich to Lugano (train every 30 minutes) now takes just under two hours.
Your Car will Spend Most of its Time Parked
That is the conclusion I draw from reading the rest of your thread. (And did you know that you cannot drive to Zermatt?)
Invest in Swiss Travel Passes (https://www.myswissalps.com/travel-ticket/swiss-travel-pass/). (15-day followed by 8-day).
This gives you the freedom of Switzerland’s superb public transport. And I would stress that includes all the buses (urban and rural), trams/streetcars, and the boats on the lakes.
Lines which simply go up mountains are (usually) excluded from the free travel. On those lines, for example the lines radiating form Zermatt, the STP will usually give a discount, normally 50%
Consider Lucerne as one of your bases.
Lucerne: https://www.myswissalps.com/town/lucerne/
In your thread you say ‘ferries from Interlaken’. The boat services on Lakes Thun and Brienz are not very good and can get very crowded. In particular there are some two hour gaps in the timetable. Contrast Lake Lucerne (in German called Vierwaldstattersee), where in summer the boats on the main line from Luzern to Flϋelen run hourly.
Luzern (that is the German spelling) is a great base for longer distance excursions. There is even an hourly through train to Geneva, going via Bern, Fribourg and Luasanne. For trips up the Pilatus and Titlis mountains, the STP gives a 50% discount. But, wait for it! …….. Trips up Rigi and Stanserhorn are FREE with the STP.
Kind regards
Roger
Hi Don,
I concur with Roger – not unusual. Not only will the car spend a high ratio of your time parked but, when you find somewhere to park, you will have to pay large amounts for the privilege.
I don’t know the current rates for car hire in Switzerland as in summer we always have Swiss Travel passes and in winter it’s Saver Day Passes plus ski passes. But even if STPs cost more than a hire car plus fuel, they will more than make up for it in convenience. No having to buy tickets and no being stuck with those tickets if you want to change your route/plans.
The roads are busy too in the popular tourist areas. For example, on our recent holiday we met two people who said it now takes 50% longer to drive up to Grindelwald from Interlaken than it used to and they now use the trains – which are soon due to run every 15 minutes instead of the present 30 minutes.
Andrew
Hi Donlecon,
There are pros and cons to using a rental car to travel around Switzerland. You can find useful information and tips here: https://www.myswissalps.com/travel/car/
If you decide to rent a car, consider getting a Swiss Half Fare Card (https://www.myswissalps.com/travel-ticket/swiss-half-fare-card/) especially if you plan to do multiple mountain excursions during your trip.
Regards,
Anna
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