Aug 8, 2016 - 10:07 AM
Hi Roh26,
Buying separate tickets is almost always more expensive than buying a train pass. The offers you mentioned usually include a discount of around 10%. A Swiss Travel Pass or Swiss Half Fare Card provide a 50% discount on mountain excursions, and the Rigi trip you mentioned is entirely free with a Swiss Travel Pass.
If you have a pass you still can make use of those offers if needed as they would deduct the travel portion of the package (100% or 50%, depending on the pass).
If want to be sure, you need to do the math as explained here and compare your options: no pass, Swiss Half Fare Card, Swiss Travel Pass. If you want one of the passes, be sure to order in time as it takes 1 to 3 business days to e-mail them to you so you can print the pass at home. That will save you time on arrival.
By the way, I just noticed in your itinerary that you plan to travel from Lucerne to Paris via Zurich. There is no need to travel via Zurich. The direct route via Basel is quicker. That's where you normally board the train to Paris if coming from Lucerne. You could stay in Basel for the night and only buy a Basel - Paris ticket (see here), which is cheaper than Zurich - Paris.
Last modified on Aug 8, 2016 - 10:09 AM by Arno