Railpass calculation check for 9-day Swiss trip

  • Uallin
    Participant
    115 posts
    4 September 2022 at 13:08:33 #828250

    Good afternoon! Have previously mentioned about this upcoming trip but haven’t gotten down to the detailed planning, except booking all the hotels. Now am looking into the passes to buy for the 6 of us, all adults – 1 above 60 and 2 below 26 years old. This is our 10 day 9 nights itinerary:

    2 days Zurich (2nd day heading out to Schloss Laufen & Stein am Rhein). Day 3 Zurich to Bern 2 days. Day 4 Bern to Niederhorn (hoping to take the Combined Package with the Tour starting at Thun (ship and bus). Day 5 Bern to Montreux. Immediately heading to Glacier 3000 upon dropping luggage. Day 6 Montreux to Chamonix (Plan to take train from Montreux to Geneva Station. Then take the bus to Chamonix Sud Bus Station as our hotel is right beside the bus station). Day 9 Chamonix to Geneva by bus. Day 10 Geneva to Airport.

    After some calculations, would like to double check if a Half Fare Card (HFC) is indeed a better deal for us compared to a 4 Day Continuous Swiss Travel Pass. After 2 youth 30% discount, the 4 Day Pass would amount to CHF 1930, inclusive of going up Niederhorn & Glacier 3000. Add another 2 days of full fare Zurich Airport to City & Day 6 Montreux to Geneva, total is CHF 2124. This is still excluding Day 9 when we return from Chamonix. By contrast, with HFC the total for 6 days with the 2 mountains is about CHF 1866. Wonder if i got it right? In addition, could still enjoy half fares on Day 9 & 10 if have the HFC. Hence, would like to ask, please:

    1. With HFC, do all 6 of us need to download the SBB app and buy our individual HFC or can 1 person buy for 6? We will be travelling together at all times.

    2. Also, is the half fare applicable to trains only or buses & trams too? For example, getting from Zurich Airport to our hotel near the Zurich Station, would there be half fare and where would we buy the tickets?

    Thank you!

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    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    4 September 2022 at 13:49:59 #946418

    Hi Uallin!

    Good that you’ve been doing calculations. I can’t tell whether they’re correct. If you’ve followed the excact steps at https://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses/practical/chooserailpass, and made sure you’ve been comparing pass options against normal full-fare tickets (and not the half-fare rates displayed by default in the Swiss timetable), the outcome should be reliable. If you want one of us to have a quick look, you can upload a screenshot as an attachment to your forum post.

    I’d advise to compare the Swiss Half Fare Card to the 8-day Swiss Travel Pass and not the 4-day Swiss Travel Pass. With an 8-day pass you’ll have all of your train/bus/boat journeys covered, plus discounts for mountain trips. It’s a much easier solution than either the 4-day Swiss Travel Pass or the Swiss Half Fare Card, as you can simply hop on and off without buying tickets for train, buses and boats. The only days left would be day 9 to Chamonix (but that trip is not included in either the Swiss Travel Pass or the Swiss Half Fare Card) and the short trip to Geneva Airport on day 10.

    The 8-day Swiss Travel Pass costs CHF 389. This comes down to about CHF 48 per day, and that’s good value for your money. The Youth Pass is even more economical of course: https://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass.

    Concerning your questions:

    1. Buying passes

    2. Swiss Half Fare Card discount for urban transportation

    Yes, the Swiss Half Fare Card also offers discounts on urban buses and trams. Usually this is 50%, but there can be a few exceptions in some cities. Please refer to https://www.myswissalps.com/swisshalffarecard for details. Here’s info about getting your 50% discounted tickets: https://www.myswissalps.com/traintickets/switzerlandhalffare.

    I hope this helps you out!

    Uallin
    Participant
    115 posts
    6 September 2022 at 12:13:01 #946419

    Thank you, Arno, for the detailed info!

    I’ve compared the Half Fare Card with 4/6/8 Days STP. And it would indeed seem the Half Fare Card is a better deal. Perhaps because our travels mainly point to point (Eg: Zurich to Bern 1 day & Montreux to Geneva 1 day). I’ve attached our planned journeys and comparison table as Arno suggested, if someone be so kind to take a peek. It is for the 6 of us- 4 adults & 2 youths. Thank you!

    Removed user
    Participant
    72625 posts
    7 September 2022 at 5:28:23 #946420

    Hi Uallin,

    I’ve checked your screenshots and the full prices seem too low for me. Like the Bern to Montreux, your table says it’s 29 CHF, while I’ve checked the prices in the timetable and the full price costs 42 CHF one way, one person. See the attached screenshot.

    I am afraid that you did not use the full prices in your tables but the prices SBB timetable shows by default and SBB shows already half prices by default. (Learn more about the timetable: http://www.myswissalps.com/timetable).

    Ildiko

    Uallin
    Participant
    115 posts
    10 September 2022 at 6:51:04 #946421

    Thank you for checking through, Ildiko.

    I’ve double-checked and for the Bern to Montreux, it could be I might have put in the Supersaver tickets instead of point to point. I will change to point to point to compare again. Thanks!

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    10 September 2022 at 14:12:19 #946422

    Hi Uallin,

    I’ve had a look at your screenshots, and I’m afraid you haven’t been calculating with the actual full fares. It’s important to list those when calculating. Supersaver tickets, or other discounted/variable prices, give the wrong impressions. Those prices would only count for those exact tickets, and only if you’d buy them right now. Paragraphs about finding standard full fares in the timetable, and why that’s important, can be found here: https://www.myswissalps.com/timetable.

    Some examples from your screenshots:

    • Zurich-Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall = CHF 23,20 and not CHF 17,20
    • Zurich-Bern = CHF 51, and not 30,80
    • Bern-Montreux = CHF 42, and not CHF 29

    I think you’d have to re-calculate the full fares of all your town-to-town transfers. You’ll probably see that Swiss Travel Pass savings are better than your current outcome. If the price difference between the several options isn’t huge after correct calculations, I’d advise the 8-day Swiss Travel Pass (https://www.myswissalps.com/swisstravelpass) for its convenience.

    I hope this helps you to find the right pass. If all detailed calculations get too demanding, our quick railpass overview can also help you to find the pass that seems to be the best match for your plans. You can find this as a free download at https://www.myswissalps.com/train/ticketspasses/practical/chooserailpass.

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