[Removed user]

13 February 2014 at 0:18:26 #806235

Thanks for the very useful site.

I am from Australia and will be travelling around Europe for six weeks in May-June of this year. We will fly from Barcelona to either Geneva or Zurich and then catch the train to Lauterbrunnen and then on to either Murren or Wengen, most likely Murren. We will spend 4 nights (from 27 May) in Murren (or Wengen) before catching the train to Venice.

I am still undecided about whether to get a Swiss Pass or a Half Fare pass, but either way I understand that I can use them straight away from either Geneva or Zurich (any recommendations of whether to fly to Geneva or Zurich from Barcelona?).

My confusion comes when we leave for Venice. I believe either pass (Swiss Pass or Half Fare) will be eligible for travelling to the borders of Switzerland but am unsure how this works. I have read that we will need to go to Domodossala on our way to venice, but on another website it lists the train as going from Interlaken to Spiez to Milano Centrale to Venice.

I ask these questions to try and figure out how to get in and out of the alps but also to gain more information to help decided which pass to get (keeping in mind that a 4 day Swiss Pass may have expired before we leave for Venice).

Other train travel that we will do includes London to Paris, Paris to Barcelona (or possibly fly), Venice to Florence, Florence to Cinque Terre and Cinque Terre to Rome.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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[Removed user]

13 February 2014 at 15:01:44 #839499

All I can tell you is what I did this past summer and it worked for us. I also was in Barcelona this summer but I actually went to a few other places before flying into Geneva where I immediately caught a train to Laussanne . I got a 2nd class ticket to go there. I stayed there one night which was well worth it. I then picked up a 4 day Swiss Pass. My first destination was Murren where we stayed there two nights at Hotel Bellevue (which was delightful). We took the GoldenPass train to get there. Very pretty. We took plenty of cable cars and trains while there. Hiked all around. Nice easy (flat) hike from Schilthornbahn Valley station to Lauterbrunnen. Also went up to Shilthorn, which was an extra charge. We then went to Luzern for two night , again by train. While in Luzern we took a boat trip and train to Mt Rigi. All included with the Swiss Pass. Finally we took the train to Zurich to fly back home. The Swiss Pass worked well for us. And best of all no waiting in lines. Show the pass and you are good to go. Best thing to do is do the math as to what will work best for you and your plans, although not easy to calculate 100%.

As an aside we have been to Venice and Cinque Terre as well as other cities in Italy. All fantastic, although I think Cinque Terre was the best. Enjoy the trip

[Arno]

13 February 2014 at 15:14:48 #839500

Hi ezlab,

That is a great trip you are planning to do! Flying into Zurich or Geneva doesn’t make a difference timewise. The train ride from Zurich to Murren is 30 minutes shorter, but I estimate the flight to be 30 minutes longer. Zurich airport is larger than Geneva airport. If you fly into Geneva you could choose to travel via the southern part of the Golden Pass route as suggested by Scwolbarst, from Zurich you can take the northern part. Both are scenic, see here for details.

For a full explanation of which pass is best you can go here. If you don’t take a Swiss Pass, then also consider the Swiss Card. It’s like the Swiss Half Fare Card, but with your in- and outbound trips included for free. Most probably, that is the cheaper option, but it depends on your itinerary.

Either of the passes will be valid to the border; either free traveling (Swiss Pass) or discounted. The border is indeed Domodossola in your case. See the links to the passes I just provided for all details about how they work and where they’re valid. From Domodossola onwards, the Swiss rail passes are not valid so you need a point to point ticket or a pass for Italy. You don’t need to get off the train in Domodossola. It’s not even important whether the train stops there or not. Just make sure you have tickets or passes for the entire journey.

Since you’ve planned a lot of traveling, a Eurail Global Pass could fit your plans too. You’d have to do the math as explained on the page I gave you above (the example is for Switzerland but the basic principles apply to multi country travel as well). Note that until March 28 you will get free travel days with the Global Pass as explained here and here.

Scwolbarst mentioned some really nice day trips, so be sure to look into that too. Details are all on this website.

[Removed user]

18 February 2014 at 0:32:59 #839501

Thank you both for replying. I greatly appreciate the time and effort you have taken to help a stranger.

As you have both pointed out, I need to spend more time doing my calculations and preparing the costs of the different passes. I was not aware of the Swiss Card so thanks for pointing that out though.

I do question whether the passes will be valid for my outbound train travel though. If we purchased a 4 day Swiss Pass, and then stayed in Murren for 4 nights, we would be leaving on the 5th day and I would think the Swiss Pass would not cover our outbound trip to the border. More reading for me to do.

Again, many thanks for the help.

[Arno]

18 February 2014 at 9:18:05 #839502

Hi ezlap,

A 4-day Swiss Pass would indeed not be valid on the 5th day. A Swiss Card however, is valid for a maximum of one month. Just follow the links I gave you to find all details about the various passes. If questions remain, feel free to post them here.