[Anonymous]

13 February 2022 at 18:58:26 #826500

Thanks for letting me post on this forum.

We are planning a visit from April 18th to April 27th to Switzerland.

Here is our schedule.

We will be getting by train from Lake Como to Zurich and planning to use April 18th as a day off just seeing things around.

I am wondering given our schedule below if it is better to get the Swiss Travel Pass (or Flex) or rent a car. I realize car is cheaper (We will be renting a SUV but I am not worried about the money. I am wondering which is more convenient and lets us see more attractions up close and personal)

My wife and I are both US citizens and have US drivers licenses. This is our anniversary trip and we are excited about this trip. Never been to Switzerland.

We are planning to use Zurich as a base (Renting a hotel there).

We are planning to visit the following places. Of course visiting Zurich is assumed.

Just wondering if renting a car or taking the Swiss train pass is the better option. Can I use the Swiss travel pass flex to get to all these places and back to Zurich?.

Also, if there are any attractions that I am missing I would appreciate it if you could let me know.

Lucerne

Matterhorn

Interlaken

Jungfrau

Montreux

Bern

Lake Geneva visit Lausanne.

St Moritz

Geneva

Thanks in advance,

RK

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[Anna]

Reply 1 of 9 • 14 February 2022 at 11:05:43 #938602

Hi RK,

Welcome to MySwissAlps.

You can reach all these destinations by train and you won’t need to buy tickets if you have the Swiss Travel Pass (click on the link for more info). Just get on and off the train as you wish. The Swiss Travel Pass Flex works the same way but you need to select a valid travel day as explained here: http://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpassflex/howtouse

If you plan to rent a car, you can find some useful tips here: http://www.myswissalps.com/car/carrental

For your information, some destinations like Zermatt are only accessible by public transport. Almost all mountain tops are only accessible by mountain railways, gondolas or cable cars. Almost all railpasses provide discounted travel on these mountain railways and cable cars, so even if you rent a car you would still need to consider getting a railpass to avoid paying expensive point-to-point tickets to these mountain destinations. You might want to read this quick guide about travelling by car in Switzerland http://www.myswissalps.com/car

I hope this gets you going. Let us know if you need more information.

Regards,

Anna

[User]

Reply 2 of 9 • 14 February 2022 at 18:31:46 #938603

Anna, thank you very much.

That answers my questions.

[User]

Reply 3 of 9 • 15 February 2022 at 1:01:19 #938604

A car is only useful in summer to get to the top of mountain passes and to some of the smaller out of the way valleys, but in April the major high pass roads are closed so there is no advantage

[Annika]

Reply 4 of 9 • 15 February 2022 at 8:27:03 #938605

Hi RK! This comparison between car and train traveling can be useful too: http://www.myswissalps.com/carversustrain.

[User]

Reply 5 of 9 • 17 February 2022 at 1:13:10 #938606

Hello Anna,

Does Swiss travel pass cover metro (U-bahn) in Zurich? Thanks, Igor

[User]

Reply 6 of 9 • 17 February 2022 at 1:25:24 #938607

The Swiss Travel Pass includes all urban transport in Swiss towns and cities, so yes, you can arrive in Zurich by train and immediately switch to a tram without having to do any separate ticket purchasing.

Zurich famously opted not to have a heavy rail underground aka metro aka U Bahn many years ago, but to keep its famous street tram system network, although in recent years the tram s have been given subways and underpasses in various places to speed up travel times

[User]

Reply 7 of 9 • 17 February 2022 at 2:01:26 #938608

@1960man

Thank you for your suggestion regarding city transportation in Zurich. However, I would like to have your opinion about the rationality to buy 6 days Swiss travel pass for two seniors. We plan to arrive to Lucerne from Vienna on April 27 evening and to move to Zurich on May 2 meaning to get on a flight on May 3 morning. We definitely want to visit Bern, Interlaken and one-two peaks around Lucerne + some museums + a boat tour(s), etc. Does such tentative plan requires Swiss pass or it would be cheaper to pay for each leg separately? Could you please suggest other ‘must see” attractions for seniors in and around Lucerne?

Thank you in advance. IB

[User]

Reply 8 of 9 • 17 February 2022 at 7:56:01 #938609

Hi Igor i brown,

yes, trains, buses, boats and city transport are free with Swiss Travel Pass, you can find the validity map here: http://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass/validity.

This one can be useful for you too: http://www.myswissalps.com/zurich/travel.

If you doubt the rail passes, we have a great spreadsheet here: http://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses/practical/chooserailpass, you can use this to compare the prices and your options. I recommend having a look at Swiss Travel Pass and also at Swiss Half Fare Card (http://www.myswissalps.com/swisshalffarecard).

Swiss Travel Pass can give you discounts on museums too: http://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass/details.

Regarding Lucerne, we have a list of recommended activity tips at http://www.myswissalps.com/lucerne. I wouldn’t miss the Transport Museum (http://www.myswissalps.com/museumoftransport).

Ildiko

[User]

Reply 9 of 9 • 17 February 2022 at 14:58:55 #938610

@Ildiko Thank you so much! IB