Need help in planning my swiss trip

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Jul 10, 2011 - 11:21 AM

I am coming to Geneve on 14th of July, 2011 and will be swiss till 21st july. We are a family with 2 kids. I planned to stay in Geneve for one night and 3 nights in interlaken. Didn't plan anything for the last two days. Can I take the chocolate train from interlaken? Also, what is the best pass (like swiss pass, half fare card etc)? Can you suggest what I can do in the last two days.

As there is not much time, any suggestions is greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Annika

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Jul 11, 2011 - 3:32 AM

Hi rswiss, and welcome. Well, there are lots of options for the remaining two days. If you don't want to travel too much, you can choose to stay in the Interlaken area. It's a beautiful region, where you can easily spend weeks. This day trip overview may help you to get an impression of what Interlaken and its surroundings have to offer. If you don't mind making some longer train trips and/or if you want to see more of the country, you could include another resort such as Lucerne (but this isn't the most convenient option if you'll be leaving from Geneva again) or Zermatt. The timetable helps in searching for routes and connections. Yes, the Choccolate train trip is an option, although it makes more sense to make this trip from Geneva instead of from Interlaken. When heading for Interlaken, please consider the beautiful Golden Pass route.

As for a rail pass: that's a bit hard to say, as your plans aren't finalized yet. But I'd say that either a Swiss Saver Pass (if you end up traveling a lot) or a Swiss Saver Flexi Pass (if there are a few days with longer train journeys) is a good choice.

MySwissAlps.com recommends to read this:
All Swiss rail passes How to choose a pass?

Last modified on Nov 1, 2018 - 4:17 PM by Arno

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Jul 11, 2011 - 11:55 AM

thank you very much for the reply.

Yes, we need to travel back to france from Geneve.

Will be coming to Geneve on 14th, to interlaken on 15th and will be staying there until 19th.

So, I am thinking of coming back to Geneve on 19th from interlaken and back to france on 21st. Then, is chocolate train a good option for 20th?

Can I go from Geneve to interlaken with golden pass train? Does swiss saver flexi pass cover the fare for the golden pass or do I need to buy that ticket separately?

Out of 3 days in interlaken, I am planning jungfrouch one day and titlis on the second day. 3rd day I thought of spending around interlaken.

With this plan, what do you think is a better option - half fare card or flexi saver pass?

To my bad luck, I see the weather is going to be rain for most of my trip. Can I go to Jungfrouch or Titlis if it rains? If not, what is the best option for a rainy day?

I want to make boat ride? what is best place for that?

Please help in planning my trip.

thanks in advance.

Annika

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Jul 12, 2011 - 4:03 AM

Hi rswiss. Yes, you can make the Chocolate Train trip when returning to Geneva. Please check the timetable though, as the Chocolate Train doesn't run on all days (you can use the link I provided above). The Golden Pass train is covered by the Swiss Flexi Pass, so the ride itself is for free if you use a free travel day (if not, a 50% discount applies). Please take a look at the Swiss Flexi Pass page and click the link 'Overview of the network on which the Swiss Flexi Pass is valid'. You do need separate seat reservations though.

In all, a Swiss Half Fare Card may be a bit cheaper, but you should make some calculations to know for sure.

Boat rides can be made on lake Thun and lake Brienz near Interlaken. The BLS website provides more information. It's not wise to go up to the Jungfraujoch and Titlis in rainy, cloudy weather. That's a waste of your money, as it's all about the views. There are lots of bad weather alternatives, such as the Traffic Museum in Lucerne, boat rides, train rides, the Trümmelbach falls, the Aare gorge, the Beatus caves, and so on. More information on these activities is listed in the day trip overview I mentioned.

I hope you'll have a great trip, and that the weather turns out to be not that bad after all!

Last modified on Jan 27, 2020 - 11:19 AM by Arno

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Jul 12, 2011 - 6:40 AM

Thank you very much Annika.
Your information really helps me a lot. I am a bit confused about all these passes and their benefits. If I take the swiss flexi saver pass, is all my train travel
from geneve to interlaken(back to geneve), chocolate train, train from interlaken to jungfrojouch, titlis, golden pass fares fully? Can you please let me know about this. That is help me to choose between half fare card and flexi pass.

With the flexi saver pass, do I get the family card which allows my child (7 years old) to travel with me at no additional cost?

I think, we can get this family card for free with the Half fare card. Can you please tell me whether I am right or not.
Thanks in advance.

Annika

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Jul 12, 2011 - 1:38 PM

Hello rswiss. What's covered by the Swiss Flexi Pass, depends on whether you use a free travel day for a specific trip or not. If you use such a day, traveling by regular train, bus and boat is for free. So in your case, the return trip Geneva-Interlaken would be for free if you use a free travel day for that trip. You only have to pay the additional seat reservation when traveling in a Golden Pass train. The train trip to the valley station of the Titlis cable car would be for free as well on a free travel day. And so would a boat ride over lake Thun, lake Brienz or lake Lucerne be. Special (mountains) trips such as the Chocolate train (40-50%), the Jungfraujoch (25%) and the Titlis cable car (50%) are discounted, even on free travel days. The discounts for the Chocolate Train can be reviewed at the page I linked to before.

On non-free travel days, a 50% discount applies on most trips (again: 25% for the Jungfraujoch), whether they're made by regular train, bus or boat or by mountain train or cable car. Details are listed under the header 'Swiss Flexi Pass features' at the Swiss Flexi Pass page. The map I referred to also shows which lines are for free (on a free travel day) or discounted (on remaining days).

With both the Swiss Flexi Pass and the Swiss Half Fare Card you can obtain the free STS Family Card, allowing you child to travel along for free on all trips (even if they're discounted for the adults).

I hope it's clear now! Best regards,

Last modified on Dec 28, 2014 - 4:34 PM by Arno

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Jul 25, 2011 - 5:27 AM

Hi

thank you very much for all your suggestions. I finished my one week swiss trip, and enjoyed a lot during my trip. I almost followed the plan I made out from your suggestions, except for the chocolate train (it was full for that day).

Once again thanks a lot

Annika

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Jul 25, 2011 - 8:58 AM

Hi rswiss. Thanks for getting back to us! I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed your trip! Was the weather good enough to get clear (or reasonable) views up at the Jungfraujoch and Titlis? I hope you enjoyed the train trips, even without the Chocolate Train plan.

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