Rail pass options for 2 days in Switzerland

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    18 November 2017 at 16:34:45 #813693

    Hello & Greetings,

    Really not sure on this and hoping someone can clear things up for us? We (2 adults and 2 children 11 & 14) are flying into Zurich on a thursday and traveling to Interlaken Ost via train, the next day we are going up to Jungfraubahn, then when we will go to Bern (after Bern we are renting a car), should we just buy regular tickets for all of us? a 1 day pass? 2 day pass? We are really not sure as we have read kids travel free if adult(s) have a pass? should we buy in advance? day of? Trying to minimize cost and maximize efficiency? We do not have a rail pass of any kind, it just works out that we are making a very quick trip and were able to bring the kids along to see.

    Thank You,

    GruncleStan 🙂

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    18 November 2017 at 19:10:25 #872136

    Hi GruncleStan and welcome to MySwissAlps!

    We typically recommend people travel by train everywhere in Switzerland – rarely a need to rent a car here but of course it is a personal choice.

    If any of the adults have one of the Swiss rail passes – listed here then, if you also order the Swiss Family Card (free), the kids will indeed travel free with you.

    For 2 days in Switzerland I would look at the Swiss Half Fare Card for the adults. With a few local city-city trips plus the trip to Jungfraujoch it should pay for itself (all trips are 50% off, including a ticket to Jungfraujoch). You could go with just 1 day passes but you need to Swiss Half Fare Card as well to use it.

    There is a new Saver Day Pass that you could look at but there are a few restrictions and you need to luck out a little on pricing (it fluctuates) to get a good deal.

    To be sure about the best option be sure to check out our page here on how to choose the best rail pass.

    I’m guessing if you are renting a car in Bern you are staying in Switzerland for more than 2 days? If so, I would recommend just getting a Swiss Travel Pass for the whole trip (rather than renting a car) you can get them for 3, 4, 8 or 15 days.

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    19 November 2017 at 17:23:27 #872137

    Hi Lucas,

    Thank you for response that is very helpful information. We are actually not staying in Switzerland beyond the day-n-a-half, the car rental is to get to Europa park then Neuschwanstein Castle, then home. Its a bit of a whirlwind tour but we want to expose the kids to a few things and let them have some fun also. I am thinking of the destination pass for myself, then getting the Swiss Family Card (kids are now free), but would this cover the jungfraubahn trip also? I remember from Interlaken to top of Jungfraubahn was expensive and if the kids are free that makes a huge difference. I am also not sure if us adults should each get the half fare card? or I am able to use it for both adult ticket purchases? Thanks again for your help, trying to figure the Swiss system out has been one of the more challenging aspects of this entire trip!

    Kind Regards,

    GrUncleStan

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    20 November 2017 at 8:40:28 #872138

    Hi GrUncleStan,

    I’d be tempted to not rent the car in Switzerland if you are not returning it to Switzerland – high fees that way.

    I’m not sure what you are referring to as the “destination pass”?

    I would think the Swiss Half Fare Card for both adults (you each would need one yes) and the Swiss Family Card for the kids is your best bet. The kids will travel totally free with you anywhere, including Jungfraujoch. The Swiss half fare card gets both adults 50% off all tickets bought within Switzerland.

    Use the links on my last post to read more about the Swiss half fare card etc, including where in Switzerland they are valid.

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