[Removed user]

10 May 2017 at 21:24:04 #811773

We (two seniors) and will be in Switzerland in two weeks. We are on an tour with transport for 9 days then we will be based outside Lucerne for 9 days.

First, we are thinking about purchasing combination of a half fare pass and a museum pass not knowing how many trains we will use as we will have a car near Lucerne when the tour is over. A full Swiss pass flex or consecutive day pass (8 day version) appears to cost several hundred dollars more than the half fare/museum combination. BUT might the half fares we will make up for any savings in this difference. I know it depends on the amount of public transport we use. Tough to balance with out a definite schedule for the Lucerne stay. We might use the museum pass while on the escourted tour and surely during the Lucerne stay (18 days total.)

Second, am I correct that there is no particular advantage in buying any of the passes available for Switzerland while still in the USA, but rather buying at the Zurich airport or the Bern main station (first night) will be essentially equal in cost.

What might I be missing here?

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[Arno]

11 May 2017 at 6:18:11 #863142

Hello Uurriii,

I think the combination of a Swiss Half Fare Card and Swiss Museum Pass might indeed be a good idea in your case. Note that the Swiss Museum Pass costs CHF 166 so you will have to visit quite some museums to make it worth it. The Swiss Travel Pass includes the Swiss Museum Pass. The Swiss Half Fare Card will most likely save you money as a few cable car or train trips are typically enough to break even. Doing the math as explained here is the only way to know for sure.

You can buy train passes in Switzerland but it’s more convenient to buy online. You can print your pass at home so it’s ready to use and you can skip the queue at the airport train station (it may only take 5 minutes but it can also be 30 minutes of waiting time). Also, if the pass is delivered through e-mail you’ll have a backup in case you lose it. There is no backup for a local purchase. And finally, if there is a promotion, it is typically only offered online. You can check the Promotion tabs of our pass pages for current offers. The Price tabs show purchase options.

The Swiss Railways webshop can be found through http://www.swissrailways.com/ en. After filling out your address, they will show the delivery options. Pick “Online Ticket” from the bottom of the list. They will e-mail the pass within 1-3 business days (no delivery fees), so you can print it at home.

Does this help you out?

[Removed user]

11 May 2017 at 15:25:42 #863143

Arno, Thank you for the advise. One related question: Will I be able to use the Half Fare pass at the station in Austria when purchasing the Swiss portion of an Innsbruck to Zurich ticket. We end a tour in Austria and pick up a car in Zurich on 3 June. Ken

[Arno]

11 May 2017 at 15:39:40 #863144

Hi Ken,

I would think they can apply the discount but I am not 100% sure. You can buy the ticket online too, if your travel date and time for that trip are fixed. Go to http://www.happyrail.com/en/s witzerland-by-train and fill out your departure/arrival station and apply the Swiss Half Fare Card as the discount card for all travelers in the top bar of the website. Your departure station will most probably be “Buchs Sg” as that’s on the Austrian/Swiss border. You don’t have to get off the train there. Just make sure you have a discounted ticket for the Swiss portion and a regular ticket for the Austrian portion of the trip.