Any benefit in Swiss Pass vs. Half Fare Card for Lugano to Venice train?
 

Hi all,
We are arriving in Switzerland Sept 14/12 for 17 days before moving on to Venice. We will be departing from our last "base" in Lugano and taking the train to Venice on Sept 30. Based on everything we want to see and do, we have gone through the pros and cons of a 15 days SP vs. a Half Fare Card, and the Half Fare card comes out slightly less expensive (approx 50 CHF pp). In addition the 15 day SP leaves us with two days where we are on our own without a SP either at the beginning or end of the time in Switzerland. I also calulated the costs of 4 4-day 2 for 1 Swiss Passes, and it is quite a bit more than either the 15 day SP (saver pass) or the Half fare Card.
Is there any benefit in using a SP vs. a Half Fare Card when taking the train from Switzerland to Italy (Lugano to Venice) or will we need to pay full fare regardless since our destination is Italy? As I've poured over the many posts on here regarding Swiss Passes I agree with most that the best way to figure it out is to do the math based on what you want to do. Thanks in advance for any suggestions/advice!

Your pass will cover you to the border only. It's not good on the Italian train system.

Kybourbon is correct. Are you planning to take any other rail trips in Italy? If so, and depending on how many it might be worth your while to get a two-country pass but I suspect from what you haven't said that this is not a viable option.

I had the exact same question. Will you use the SP for the portion in Switzerland and then just buy a ticket on the train once you cross the border into Italy? We are going to be on the train from Spiez to Stressa and won't make a connection anywhere along the way. Thanks.

to see and do, we have gone through the pros and cons of a 15 days SP vs. a Half Fare Card, and the Half Fare card comes out slightly less expensive (approx 50 CHF pp)>

IME of having many passes I always, especially with consecutive day ones, travel quite a bit more than I plan on - especially if I am basing the the Alps and the not so infrequent rainy day comes and like from Wengen or Murren, etc I want to day trip to Bern, whose vast system of arcades in part helps make it a better day than in the soggy Alps - plus never having to wait in line. On on a nice sunny day in later afternoon go down to Interlaken and hop on a lake boat to float around with the majestic glacier-girdled Jungfrau massif rising high above it - things you may not planned on doing.

and if going to any museums the Swiss Pass covers 400 and more in full - like those in Lucerne and Lugano, etc.

For $50 or so difference I'd get the pass unless you are totally sure you will not travel anymore than expected.

Though Half-Fare Cards I believe give a 25% discount into Germany on direct trains or connections from Switzerland not so with Italy - so end up in Lugano and if having a pass stay a day or two in your arrival area.

The 15-consecutive-day pass can be used on city trams and buses - not sure Half-Fare Cards can be, etc.

anyway great sites for loads of great info on Swiss trains, passes, half-fare cards, etc I always spotlight these fine fine info-laden sources - www.swisstravelsystem.com; http://www.budgeteuropetravel.com/id3.html and www.ricksteves.com. And in buying Swiss Passes for years now I always compare prices sold here, if Stateside, in dollars with the same exact pass sold in Switzerland in francs - often the past several years they have been cheaper here for some reason but not always so check each sources, take in calculation any % your may have on foreign transactions on your c card and if not much difference just buy once there at any Swiss train station. But do compare because at times the difference here over there has been substantial and could make a difference in your cost comparisons.

If so, and depending on how many it might be worth your while to get a two-country pass but I suspect from what you haven't said that this is not a viable option>

well I think that that would be a Eurailpass - a 2-country pass and thus would not have nearly the benefits in Switzerland of a Swiss Pass (or Half-Fare Card or a Swiss Card, which has everything a Half-Fare Card has but also provides a trip from any airport or border station to anyplace in Switzerland and then from any place in Switzerland to any border station (like to Chiasso but you could easily get off at Lugano) - so no that is not a good option simply because Eurail passes do not cover many mountain trains a Swiss Pass does and do not give 50% off mountain gondolas, cable cars, etc.

Thank you for the great replies! We have decided the 15 days consecutive Swiss Pass will be what we purchase. I'm a little worried that if I order the passes now via online (Rick Steves or swiss travel systems) that they may not show up in time. We depart Sept 13th, and there may be delays due to Canadian Border Services. The CDN $ is almost on par currently with the Swiss franc, so there won't be a significant savings in buying the passes online ahead of time. As long as we can purchase the 2 Swiss Passes (saver) for 15 days when we arrive at Zurich aiport (I believe there is a rail station and ticket counter in the basement of the airport) we should be fine (she says with fingers crossed!).

You are buying one pass with two names on it and if one person does not want to travel on some conveyance the other person can still use it.

In any case do not use steves from Canada but RailEurope Canada, the subsidiary of the French and Swiss railways that actually originates the pass - Steves automatically routes you thru Rail Europe USA or perhaps Canada I believe so why not deal with the source - eliminating the middle man - easier in case you have to refund you pass - but yes if no significant savings just wait till Switzerland.

Thank you PalenQ!

http://www.raileurope.ca/index.html

thanks Jenn - and yes why not buy directly from the source, after comparing prices for buying in Switzerland can Canuck Land!