Train from Brig to Domodossola - Reservation?

Dear All,

I am traveling with a Swiss Pass this coming June and spending 6 days in Switzerland. My last days will be spent in Murren and from there I will be traveling by train to Venice. I recently read on this forum (or another, I cannot remember or find the post) that with a Swiss Pass reservations need ONLY be made from Domodossola. Confirming this with SBB I went ahead and purchased a train ticket from Domodossola to Venice using TrenItalia.

However, now my concern is that the train from Brig to Domodossola could be fully booked, causing me to miss my reservation. Is this a valid concern, or is this highly unlikely? Using SBB timetables, it seems there are only two connections from Murren that will get me to Domodossola before 10:20 AM.

I appreciate any help and advice.

Thanks!

John

Hi John,

Last year I did almost this journey - getting the train from Spiez to Milan via Brig and Domodossola and then onto Venice. We reserved the whole journey as it came up as reservations only on the rail planner app. I distinctly remember at Spiez station announcements saying that the train was full and that you could only board with a reservation. I put this down to the time of year as it was the Milan Expo in August but I would say there would be no harm in making reservations if you can if you don't want to risk it. Ours cost 11 Euros per person from Spiez to Milan. We didn't do it with a Swiss Pass though - we had Interrail tickets so there may be differences?

Best wishes,

JoeyA.

Welcome to MySwissAlps John!

You may have read this thread. I assume you have a Swiss Travel Pass. A Swiss Pass is an entirely different product for Swiss citizens. With a Swiss Travel Pass, Brig to Domodossola is covered. You need a ticket, and for most trains a reservation, from there onwards. You will be able to board in Brig. Worst case is you will have to stand for 30 minutes until your seat becomes available in Domodossola. The situation JoeyA ran into is an exception. Things like that do happen, but it's rare. Milan Expo was a big event. They even had extra trains scheduled to get everyone to and from Milan.

Joey A.,

Thanks for getting back with me. Your story definitely causes me more worry =) But I'm glad you shared it because I may just pay a little extra and purchase a seat reservation at Brig for peace of mind.

Annika,

Thank you for your reply. That is the exact thread that I read last week (which I couldn't find again because I was looking at another forum). This is exactly why I went ahead and purchased my reservation starting at Domodossola instead of Brig. However, this is also why I'm worried about not being able to board at Brig and therefore missing my train at Domodossola. You have made me feel better though! So it's perfectly acceptable to stand on an EC train then even if all seats are taken? For some reason I thought standing was not allowed on these trains. So you don't think I need to call SBB and make a seat reservation at Brig? My travel date is mid June.

Thanks again to you both,

John

Hi John,

Yes, that's perfectly acceptable. They won't leave passengers with a ticket behind at the station, unless there's an emergency of some sort. Of course you can book a seat for that leg if you want.