Jun 11, 2012 - 10:07 PM
I would truly appreciate your opinion on Swiss Rail Passes for an upcoming trip to Switzerland.
I am traveling to Europe for 6 weeks. I will be in Switzerland on/off for during this time (I have family there). We will also be visiting two other countries during our stay but always come back to Switzerland: Switzerland, Italy, Switzerland, France, Switzerland. I looked at a Eurail pass but it did not make sense for me.
The problem I have when looking at Swiss passes is that most are limited to one month and I am there on/off for six weeks.
I am trying to decide between the Half Fare Card and Swiss Flexipass.
I am traveling as a single adult with two children under twelve.
HALF FARE CARD
If I buy the Half Fare Card I would have to purchase a ONE YEAR pass for $171 since I am in and out of the country for so long.
By my calculations (from sbb.ch) - for trips planned while in Switzerland I would spend about $235 on half fare tickets. For a total of $406 ($171+235),
FLEXIPASS
I estimate doing about 6 days of longer train travel during my stay in Switzerland. I could buy a 4 day flexi pass for $284 (under 2-1 promo – it is more expensive if I price out one traveler – go figure) to cover my most expensive days. From what I understand, I can use the Flexi on other days and get 50% off. I am assuming I tell them at the train station if I am using one of my four “travel days”. From my best guess I save about $50 under this option. This pass, however, is only good for ONE month - I do get worried that if I travel outside my one month window I will pay full fare on some tickets, so I could lose this savings.
ALSO – DO BOTH CARDS WORK ON HALF OFF FARES FOR MOUNTAIN TRAINS, LIFTS, etc. We will be in Interlaken and Zermatt for a few days.
Any insight on what I should do would be much appreciated.
Thank you.
