7103 posts
Hi las327! In all, the Swiss Half Fare Card would be a than buying regular tickets. That’s mainly because the three youngest children will travel along for free with the free STS Family Card that can be obtained with your Swiss Half Fare Card, whereas a Junior Travelcard costing CHF 30.00 per child (free from the 3d child) has to be bought if you don’t have a Swiss Half Fare Card.
If you’d use a Swiss Half Fare Card, it will be valid for the Swiss legs of your inbound and outbound trip. Please review the downloadable validity map at the page I linked to for an exact overview of validity. Depending on your exact train connections, this would mean you would have to buy regular train tickets for the Italian leg (lake Como-probably Chiasso) and the French leg (Basel-Paris) and 50% discounted tickets for the Swiss legs.
72625 posts
Thanks for the information. I have a few more follow-up questions. What do we do with the 16 year old’s ticket? Is he an adult? We also have friends traveling with a 15 year old. Is she an adult? To buy tickets with our half fare card, do we purchase a ticket at the Como station to Chiasso and then do we need to get off the train and purchase tickets for our next leg in Switzerland? Or can we stay seated and buy them from the conductor? Also, are there any deals on the Mount Titlis cable cars with the half-fare pass? Thank you!
7103 posts
Hello las327! The 16 year old is considered an adult, so he needs is own Swiss Half Fare Card. The 15 year old can travel along for free with her parents if they get her a (free) STS Family Card.
Discounted tickets shouldn’t be purchased in the train. You should see if you can do so at a manned desk at the railway station of Como, but if that doesn’t work you should indeed get out at a Swiss railway station and arrange for your tickets there.
The Titlis will be discounted by 50% too. Please check the Swiss Half Fare Card page for details, including a downloadable validity map.