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My mother and I will be travelling to Switzerland this coming April for two weeks.
I am not sure how to use the flexi rail pass. We will do the eight day one and do we just present it at the rail station?
I’ve priced it out and it seems like a better deal to get the rail pass because we will be visiting 7 cities and will only be travelling by rail.
If I could get some guidance, that would be fantastic. Thank you!
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Hello olijnykh and Welcome to MySwissAlps,
You can read all about the Flex pass here http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpassflex/howt ouse.
The 8-day Swiss Travel Pass Flex will have 8 boxes on it. You can use it for travel on any of 8-days within your nominated 30-day period.
Each day you want to use it you write that date in the next blank box. Then you hop on any train you like that day and show the pass to the inspector (if asked) on the train. He will just check that you have validated the pass (ie written in the correct date) for that day.
You will also need some ID, normally a passport.
The Flex pass cannot be ordered for on-line delivery so if you want to get it shipped to you before you leave home allow 2-3 weeks delivery.
You can of course purchase on arrival in Switzerland.
Hope that helps.
Thank you so much! Makes sense.
Do I get ‘1 day ticked off’ if I use it to travel on the furnicular railways? For example, the tram from Interlaken to Harder kulm? As well, if I were to use it at a museum, or if I wanted a boat cruise, do I just present the card? Does that again have me lose a travel day should I use it for something non rail related?
Hi olijnykh, welcome!
Yes, that’s indeed one travel day. So I won’t just use the card for a museum visit if that’s the only thing your planning to do on a day. Nor would I use it for the tram from Interlaken to Harder Kulm only.
Your 8-day Swiss Travel Pass Flex cost on average CHF 55,- a day. If you’re spending far less money on a travel day, I would suggest to buy point-to-point tickets.
You can use the Swiss railways timetable to plan your trips by gondola/train/boat and find prices – the first price you will see is (almost always) the Swiss Half Fare Card price so you have to double the price. Sometimes you’ll have to go to the web site of the attraction to find prices.
I have priced it out without the card and it does make financial sense to get the card. It’s disappointing that if we did choose to see a museum, go on a boat cruise etc, that it would take a day of travel off of the card.
So, I guess my next question is if we get into Geneva by train on one day, we have unlimited travel on that day, so we can do the lake cruise and see a museum on that travel day and that would be covered? Providing that the river cruise and museum are on the list of free excursions.
Yes, you could do it like that.
I believe that you should always try to combine a museum with an activity that involves transportation for your day trip (train, bus, boat, cable car). It’s in the end a rail pass and not a museum pass.
In December I did the round trip Thun – Interlaken – Thun. It was a last minute thing and I didn’t have the right pass so had to pay full price which was CHF 70,-.Depending on your plans you’re probably better of with the Swiss Travel Pass.
I personally don’t think that Geneva is the best place for a boat trip. It’s much nicer between Lausanne and Montreux. Even better are Lake Thun, Lake Brienz and Lake Lucerne.
Or have a look at this scenic trip where you combine boat and coghweel train. All covered by the Swiss Travel Pass.
Indeed, take a look at the 15-day Swiss Travel Pass instead of the 8-day Swiss Travel Pass Flex. It’s only CHF 40 per person extra, and for that you’ll get full coverage for your two weeks in Switzerland. No worries about when to go to a museum.
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