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My wife and I will be in Switzerland from September 11-16. We will arrive at the Zurich airport on Sept 11 at 6:30 am and will travel to Grindelwald, via Lucerne, afterwards. Additionally, we will travel from Grindelwald to Paris on Sept16. The Bernese Oberland Pass seems to fit nicely for us for our activities and travel on the 12th-15th and it also seems that we may be best off by purchasing a 6 day pass as the incremental price difference in the 4 day vs the 6 day pass is only 60 CHF per person and we may spend more than that paying for the rail tickets outside the region (for travel on the 11 th and 16th). I have spent a great deal of time using the Swiss rail travel site and have some questions:
1. Do I need to purchase my Sept 11 ticket from the Zurich airport to Lucerne in advance or should I wait and get it at the rail station? I’m concerned about how long it will take to get baggage, clear customs and possible flight delays so I really don’t know what time to book the rail trip.
After we arrive in Lucerne, we’re good to hop on the next train to Grindelwald, right (i.e. do we simply show the conductor our BO pass after we’ve boarded)
2. Do I need to purchase my Sept 16 ticket from Bern to Paris in advance or can I get it at the Grindelwald rail station a few days before? I see a rail trip from Grindelwald to Paris (5:47 am to 11:43 am); assuming that we want to go on that one, which Bern to Paris ticket do I need to buy? After arriving in Bern from Grindelwald, do we simply show the conductor our Bern to Paris pass?
3. Do you agree that we’re better off with the 6 day BO rail pass? In other words, will this be the most economical way?
Thank you in advance for your help!
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Hi Hughandlisa1!
Yes, I think your choice for a 6 day pass makes sense, as it would cover parts of your inbound and outbound trips which would be slightly more expensive if you’d have to buy regular full-fare tickets for those segments. Please find purchase options at http://www.myswissalps.com/re gionalpassberneseoberl and/price.
As for your other questions: you can get your ticket Zurich Airport-Lucerne either or online or at the railway station. In both cases, regular tickets will be valid all day long, so it doesn’t matter if you’re unsure of your exact timing yet. Just mind that you don’t buy a cheaper Supersaver ticket (if available), as that’s valid for specific trains and connections only: http://www.myswissalps.com/tr aintickets/switzerland. While on board, just show your regular ticket when asked for between Zurich and Lucerne, and your Regional-Pass Bernese Oberland between Lucerne and Grindelwald.
You’d best get your ticket to Paris well in advance: http://www.myswissalps.com/tr aintickets/france. There are several retailers available, and it usually pays off to look around a bit to find the best deal for your specific travel date and time: http://www.myswissalps.com/tr aintickets/france/pric e.
I hope this answers your questions!
Thank you. I’m still confused about the Grindelwald to Paris segment on Sept 16 and am hoping that you can double check me. Assume that we leave Grindelwald at 5:47 am and arrive Bern at 7:24 and that we want to arrive in Paris early in the day:
the best and most economical route for us would be Bern to Paris departing at 7:36 and arriving at 12:33, right? As of a few minutes ago, it was 104…am I looking at this correctly?
Bern hbf is the Bern train station, right?
forgot to ask another question: we’re planning to use a no fee credit card fir as many purchases as possible while there but realize that we’ll need CHF and Euro for some things…are we best off going to an ATM at Zurich airport and at the Alaric’s train station for this ?
thank you for your help…I’ve really struggled with this portion of the planning
Hi Hughandlisa1! Yes, the 07.36 departure from Bern would work. According to the SBB timetable, which is the most reliable one for all trips in, from and to Switzerland (http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable), you’ll arrive at Paris-Gare de Lyon at 11.37 though, not 12.33. Note that there’s an ongoing connection from Bern to Paris, without a change in Basel, leaving at 11.10. But it will get you in Paris by 15.38, which is probably too late for your plans.
Bern Hbf is what you need indeed. It’s an abbreviation of Hauptbahnhof, which means “main railway station” in German. Just entering “Bern” in the timetable above will work too.
Yes, you’d best withdraw some Swiss francs from ATM’s. You’ll find them at many central spots in towns and villages, not only at Zurich Airport. Please refer to http://www.myswissalps.com/sw issfranc. I don’t know about Alaric, I’m sorry.
Thank you, very much!
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