[Removed user]

16 March 2018 at 18:58:57 #814808

Hello! My husband and I will be spending a little over a week in Switzerland in July. I would very much appreciate advice about which rail pass option makes the most sense (ease and economy) for our itinerary? We will arrive to the airport in Basel. From there, we will take the train to Murren. We spend 4 days in Murren hiking and exploring and probably taking a few of the gondolas, etc. (at least up to Murren and back down when we leave, but possibly others to different hiking areas, waterfalls, etc.). Then we take the train from Murren to Geneva.

So, Basel-Murren-around Murren-Geneva

Which option would work best for us?

Thank you so much,

Emily

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[rockoyster]

16 March 2018 at 19:43:52 #878975

Hello Emily,

As well as the Swiss Travel Pass (http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpass) there are many regional passes (http://www.myswissalps.com/re gionalpasses) which can work depending on where you are based and how much travel you plan.

A clearly mapped out itinerary is the basis for deciding which pass (if any) suits. Based on your itinerary you need to do the sums based on the cost of all your planned trips on trains, boats, cable cars etc. You can use the Swiss Train Timetable (http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable) to work out the fares for any trip. When you go to buy a ticket the fare you see on the right hand side of the page will normally be the half-fare price. Double it to get full fare. With A Swiss Travel Pass it is free provided it is shown as free on the Area of Validity map ( PDF downloadable from http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpass/validity).

You should read “How to choose the best travel pass” (http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses/prac tical/chooserailpass).

Of the regional passes the Bernese Oberland Pass and the Jungfrau Travel Pass would be the ones to focus on.

If all that calculating is just to much for you then the Swiss Travel Pass is the most convenient and comprehensive

[Removed user]

16 March 2018 at 19:54:36 #878976

Thanks so much for your quick reply. Dang! I was hoping someone would figure it out for me! Lol. I’ll buckle down and do the calculations. Thanks for the suggestions.

[Like2Travel]

18 March 2018 at 7:07:42 #878977

Hi, Emily. My husband and I are visiting friends in Paris and planning to stay 10 days in Switzerland May-June 2018, we have the reverse route. We are arriving in Zurich last week of May 23rd and plan an overnight stay in Geneva and take TGV trip to Paris the next day. After our 5-day Paris visit, we are re-entering Switzerland in Basel.

For the trips within Switzerland, we are buying the Swiss Half-fare Card (HFC) for reduced tickets not covered by the Bernese Oberland Regional Pass. You can glance at the Validity area map for the Bernese Oberland Pass (it covers a very large area). If you already have the HFC card, you can buy the BO Regional Pass at a reduced rate and it covers almost all modes of transportation within 4-entry points to the Bernese Oberland (Saanen, Bern, Luzern, Brig). Occasionally there are ones which are reduced rate as indicated in the map.

BO Regional Pass is very convenient. You do not have to buy tickets unless they are reduced rate ones. In case you want to visit outside of the area or take excursions to Schilthorn and Jungfraujoch then you can use the card which gives bigger discount. Jungfraujoch will be cheaper if you buy the ticket from Kleine Scheidegg as you are very close to it already. Murren is a nice place, up the mountain from Lauterbrunnen valley. You might want to visit the other side of Lauterbrunnen, Wengen and the Grindelwald areas towards Jungfraujoch. Lots of nice places. The BO Regional Pass will be a great help in your travels. I like Switzerland’s easy and moderate hiking places, if you get tired you can bail out and take any mode of transportation (if there is one available) to get back to your base. Murren and Wengen will be our bases for the May-June trip.

I did a few calculation, and we decided the use of HFC and BO regional pass, very convenient OR you can just use the HFC if you will take fewer rides. Moreover, check the weather, if it is sunnier in Zermatt , the BO Pass can take you to Brig and just buy HFC train rides from Brig to Zermatt and visit the Klein Matterhorn /Glacier Paradise or Gornergrat excursion. If Luzern is sunnier than your base, trips to Luzern is covered by BO Pass, too. HFC is a great discount for all mountain excursions. Last year we visited Luzern, Zermatt and Murren areas when we joined packaged tours. This year, we are doing it on our own and you chose a great place in the Bernese Oberland. I hope this helps. Take care and Happy travels.