[needforsneed]

25 April 2018 at 14:38:01 #815528

Question on Golden Pass reservations – Traveling Montreux – Lucerne on June 2. I know that right now we can’t reserve the Montreux – Zweisimmen segment but I am looking at reserving the other 2 segments. I purchased Eurail Select 3 Country passes from Rail Europe and I have gotten irritated with them regarding these reservations. I looks like I can just reserve a seat online at tickets.goldenpass.ch/ reservation for much less than going through Rail Europe (i.e. Zweisimmen – Interlaken is $5 vs. $18 per person).

Am I missing something?

Thanks!

Mark

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[rockoyster]

25 April 2018 at 21:16:03 #883225

You don’t really need reservations at all. They are just regular trains.

[Removed user]

26 April 2018 at 2:49:35 #883226

Yes, don’t bother with reservations at all on those trains – not needed. 🙂

[needforsneed]

26 April 2018 at 13:48:28 #883227

Thanks Rockoyster and Lucas!

I think I am being a nervous traveler and concerned that we will miss out on something. For example, I see that on the carriage 1 (which seems to be the only 1st class carriage) there is only 1 seat

left on June 2 on the 13:04 from Interlaken OST to Lucerne. That makes me nervous

that 5 1/2 weeks from now that entire train could be reserved. Is the tickets.goldenpass.ch accurate?

[rockoyster]

26 April 2018 at 21:26:33 #883228

Make reservations if you feel more comfortable with that. The Luzern – Interlaken Express runs hourly. Maybe a tour group booked the 13:04?

[Removed user]

27 April 2018 at 2:27:33 #883229

Yes, that is the right website for reservations. Certainly you can do the reservations – it can get busy in the summer (especially with tours). So if you want to be sure you are on a specific train in a specific class than booking can’t hurt. )

[needforsneed]

27 April 2018 at 3:16:53 #883230

Thanks again Rockoyster and Lucas!

[Removed user]

28 April 2018 at 1:30:56 #883231

>> For example, I see that on the carriage 1 (which seems to be the only 1st class carriage) there is only 1 seat left on June 2 on the 13:04 from Interlaken OST to Lucerne.

I’m pretty sure there are additional seats, but they are just not reservable. They are kept for people travelling without reservations, as this train serves the local communities along the route as well as tourists.

I looked some months ahead in the booking system, and no first class carriage ever has more than 12 seats available for reservation. When you look at the carriage, there are another 19 seats greyed out – always the same 19 seats. That usually means they are occupied, but in this case, I think the more likely explanation is that they are kept aside as non-reservable. It’s the same for second-class carriages.

However, that route does get busy. Even though I think it is likely you would get a seat in early June without reserving, the advantage of reserving is that you can get a window seat on the best side of the train for views.

Travelling from Interlaken Ost to Luzern, sit on the right.

From Interlaken, you will first travel along scenic Lake Brienz and on to Meiringen. At Meiringen, the train changes direction, and you will then be sitting on the left (and facing in the opposite direction), which is the best side to see the views into the valley as you travel over the Brünig Pass, then past the beautiful lakes (Lungernersee and the Sarnersee) with their mountain and meadow backdrops, and pretty lakeside villages.

Alpenrose

[needforsneed]

29 April 2018 at 3:22:02 #883232

Thanks Alpenrose for the insight and advice! We will do what we can to get window seats on the right side!