Car or train to Geneva-Beatenberg-Vitznau-Zurich?

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    15 May 2019 at 11:50:23 #821659

    Hello All, need help

    am traveling to Switzerland on June second week and will be landing to Geneva. I have done my hotel reservations 1 night Thermal hotel, 3 nights Beatenberg near to Interlaken, 2 nights Vitznau. Shall I rent a car? Or take a Swiss pass. I want to go Jungfrau region as well. Am interested to drive a car as I don’t want to carry luggage moving from 1 hotel to another. I will be staying for 1 week in Switzerland and from Vitznau will be travel-to Zurich airport. Please advise shall I rent car or Swiss passto enjoy scenery.

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    15 May 2019 at 19:48:06 #912424

    Hi Zain264033 and welcome to MySwissAlps!

    This is a common question on our forum and our reply is always that Switzerland is best seen by train. There are few instances where a car is better for travelling whilst in Switzerland. To find out why, please read this section on our site: http://www.myswissalps.com/ca rversustrain

    To plan your travel, you can use the timetable: http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable

    In regards to the luggage, carrying luggage on Swiss trains is easy, and you can even forward your luggage if you prefer. Read all about how convenient it is to transport your luggage on Swiss trains here: http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/practical/luggage

    Once you’ve read these sections, let us know if you have more questions or you want us to critique your itinerary and we’ll be happy to help!

    Maria.

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    16 May 2019 at 5:06:07 #912425

    Thank you for reply, if am taking Half card and book train if I miss my connecting train as the time table shown in website is very narrow so do I need to buy again tickets?

    If taking Swiss pass which place you recommend other than Jungfrau and Mount Rigi. 2 nights in thermal hotel , 3 days in Beaten-berg and 2 nights in Vitznau.

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    16 May 2019 at 7:52:05 #912426

    Hi again

    If you buy your tickets with the Half Fare Card http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isshalffarecard your tickets are valid between destinations on any train. This means that if you miss your connection you can always take the next one. However this shouldn’t happen as you can read under the section “Tight connections” on this page http://www.myswissalps.com/ti metable (scroll down to view)

    The same is applicable with the Swiss Travel Pass of course http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isstravelpass

    To recommend any excursions we would need a detailed itinerary (which day you plan to be where). There are many excursions you can do but they depend on your starting point and time available. Here are some day trips you can do from Lucerne: http://www.myswissalps.com/lu cerne/activities

    More info on Rigi http://www.myswissalps.com/ri gi and Jungfraujoch http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfraujoch

    Hope this helps!

    Maria.

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    16 May 2019 at 8:05:46 #912427

    Hello,

    On June 14th morning 8 AM will be landing to Geneva, then will be moving to Thermal hotel for 2 nights and then 16th til 19th will be n beaten berg near Interlaken and on 19th moving to Vitznau for 2 nights on 21st return to Zurich. I was planning first 2 days i wll pass by Monthreaux near, when am staying in Beatenberg will explore Jungfrauch region, for Vitznau will be exploring mount Rigi. Let me know where i can explore more other places. If am taking driving plus 50 Half card will it be suitable?

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    16 May 2019 at 9:05:09 #912428

    Hi again Zain,

    You can find plenty of suggestions here on day excursions:

    The Half Fare Card should be suitable for the mountain excursions if you prefer to drive and keep it simple: http://www.myswissalps.com/sw isshalffarecard

    However if you want to be methodical you should compare passes according to your itinerary. We have a full section that shows you how and you can download a spreadsheet to help you: http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain/ticketspasses/prac tical/chooserailpass

    Hope this helps and have a great trip!

    Maria.

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    16 May 2019 at 9:05:56 #912429

    Hi Zain,

    Most drivers buy a Swiss Half Fare Card to limit costs on day trips. So if you prefer to drive then that card would be a good idea. Otherwise the Swiss Travel Pass.

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    16 May 2019 at 10:57:17 #912430

    Thank you for details, please advise if am taking Swiss pass do i need to book train online or in station i can buy the ticket, also about the luggage to drop in station it seems woww service, so i can drop my luggage in geneva and can roam freely in geneva till evening and then take a train to Lukerabad hotel. Also advise me which is the best website to navigate train from 1 destination to another? and thank you for your service. A big thumbs upp 🙂

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    16 May 2019 at 11:34:51 #912431

    One more thing if i buy Half discounted pass, from Interlaken till Jungfraujoch sphinx observatory what will be the total cost of 1 person including all the entry fees to Sphinix.

    Arno
    Moderator
    15471 posts
    16 May 2019 at 11:50:47 #912432

    Hi Zain,

    The web page to find train timetables was mentioned in Maria’s first and second post.

    With a Swiss Travel Pass you don’t need to buy tickets for trains, you can simply board and ride. With the Swiss Half Fare Card you will need to buy tickets for each trip. Maria gave links to both passes, so you can compare them in detail there.

    There are no entry fees at Jungfraujoch, you only need the train ticket to get there. The ticket costs between about CHF 180 and 230 (return), depending on the season. A link to details can be found here: http://www.myswissalps.com/ju ngfraujoch/tickets.

    I’m sure you’ll enjoy the trains 🙂

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