Jun 26, 2010 - 12:30 PM
Hello Shandraw! In order to find out which pass is best for you, you can calculate the regular costs of your trips in Switzerland through the timetable. These costs are as follows (per person, in 2nd class):
- Chiasso (the first border station in Switzerland along your inbound trip from Como) - Lucerne: CHF 59.00
- Lucerne - Mürren: CHF 47.20
- Mürren - Bern return trip: CHF 86.40
- boat trip lake Thun, example: Mürren - Thun: CHF 33.00 + boat trip Thun - Interlaken West: CHF 38.00 + Interlaken West - Mürren: CHF 20.20, making a total of CHF 91.20
- Mürren - Wengen return trip, as a base for hiking: CHF 32.80
- Mürren - Kleine Scheidegg return trip (Kleine Scheidegg is an intermediate station along the route to Jungfraujoch): CHF 20.40
- Kleine Scheidegg - Jungfraujoch return trip: CHF 109.00
- Mürren - Geneva (via Bern): CHF 82,80
Of course this isn't complete, as you'll have other trips in mind as well during your stay in Lucerne and Wengen, and in some cases I can only use examples. But even an incomplete calculation may help you decide which pass is best. The trips I mentioned above make a total of CHF 528,80. As your stay lasts for 11 days, you'd actually need a 15 day
Swiss Saver Pass to cover all trips, which would cost CHF 387.00. Regular train, bus and boat trips are all for free with a Swiss Saver Pass; cable cars and mountain trains are discounted. The trip from Wengen to Jungfraujoch, for example, is discounted by 25% and would cost CHF 111.75 with a Swiss Saver Pass. So the total costs in this case would be CHF 387.00 + CHF 111.75 = CHF 498.75. This means that a 15 day Swiss Saver Pass does save you some money. Moreover, it offers the convenience of being able to get on and off trains, buses and boats without having to purchase tickets each time.
With a
Swiss Half Fare Card, which costs CHF 99.00, almost all trips are discounted by 50%. The costs in this case would therefore be CHF 264.40 + CHF 99.00 = CHF 363.40, which in fact is a lot cheaper. The Swiss Half Fare Card does require you to purchase discounted tickets for each trip.
The
Regional-Pass Bernese Oberland may come in handy during your stay in Mürren, but it doesn't cover your inbound trip, the stay in Lucerne and the trip to Geneva, so it should probably be combined with another pass. The combination of a Swiss Half Fare Card and a Regional-Pass Bernese Oberland may work out fine, but this depends on your travel plans from Mürren. I think this combination is only cost effective if you plan on very intensive travel by cable cars and mountain trains on some days (as some of them are for free with Regional-Pass Bernese Oberland, and discounted with a Swiss Half Fare Card). If you know exactly which trips you want to make, you can further calculate all options using the advice in our
rail FAQ.
For now, I hope this gets your started!
Last modified on Jan 27, 2020 - 11:19 AM by Arno
