Confused about the Swiss rail pass

hello, so my family and I are arriving into geneva on the 16th of july. from geneva we plan to leave for montreux the next morning, then get to interlaken on 18th july. we are in interlaken till the 21st of july, then leave for Milan from Interlaken. I had a couple of questions:

1. I definitely want to buy a swiss pass but am confused since its valid for 4 days and we are in Switzerland for about 6 days. What days should i buy it for? the days we are leaving for interlaken from montruex? that would mean we would have to pay a separate fair for our train from geneva to montruex right?

2. what is the best route to take to milan from itnerlaken, and will this be covered but eh swiss rail pass?we definitely want to see part of the alps but also do not want a journey the is more than 6 hours to reach milan.

3. does the swiss rail pass cover activities like going to the jungfrau region? also any idea if intercity trains and trains through alps run if its raining?

Thank you!!!

Hi ua1234, welcome to MySwissAlps!

1. The pass you need is the Swiss Travel Pass. A Swiss Pass is something different. The 8-day version would work fine, but it looks like you can do with a 4-day pass from July 17 to 20. You'll only be in Geneva on July 16, and public transport there is free if you book a hotel there. You may not need any transport at all if you book a hotel close to the train station. You can buy a ticket from Interlaken to Milan for July 21 through any of the websites listed here.

I'd recommend to buy that ticket to Milan asap as it's high season and some trains may book out. Also I'd recommend to order your Swiss Travel Pass no later than the 13th so you have time for it to be e-mailed to you. You can print it at home and save yourself some time by skipping the ticket office in Geneva. All options are here.

2. I'd suggest to just take the quickest route since you won't have a pass that day. Apart from that there are no alternative routes that take less than 6 hours. Well, perhaps there's one option: you'd normally travel via a long tunnel between Spiez and Brig. Instead, you can take a local train from Spiez via Kandersteg to Brig. That's for sure more scenic. If you choose this option, then don't buy a ticket Interlaken - Milan, but only Brig - Milan. Additionally buy a ticket Interlaken - Brig via Kandersteg from the train station in Interlaken.

3. Rain does not stop the trains, no worries. Please see the map for what's included in the pass.

Thank you so much for your reply!

1. So what you're saying is I should buy the swiss travel pass for 17th to 20th July? That way it could cover my geneva to montreux, montreux to interlaken journeys as well as boat rides etc?

2. For Milan, I should take a train from interlaken to Spiez, and then Spiez to Brig via Kandersteg. and then finally Brig to Milan for the more scenic and shorter route? So which one should i book in advance, and which sector of the journey will I be able to book on the spot? Since we are leaving from Interlaken on the 21st, my journey would not be covered by the swiss travel pass right?

3. Does the swiss travel pass cover journeys on the hernia express etc? which sector of the bernia express do you think i should take for a 'day trip' to be able to get a good view of the alps and return back to interlaken? Thank you!

You're welcome!

1. Yes, that seems to make sense with your plans.

2. Yes, that's the route. My previous post explains what, where and when to buy.

3. If you mean the Bernina Express, then yes, that's covered (see the map I referred to). You can't do it as a day trip from Interlaken, it's too far away. There's plenty to do and see much closer to Interlaken: myswissalps.com/ interlaken/ activities.