I am having a little trouble getting a handle on the finer points of train travel, so please bear with me. I've done a search and couldn't find the answer to my particular question (or, rather, couldn't figure out how to make the search engine pull up the correct info.)<BR><BR>At any rate, during our trip to Europe in Sept. several of us will be traveling via overnight train from Paris to Venice. The train we're interested in leaves Paris Bercy at aroung 8:00pm and arrives in Venice--via Switzerland--at around 8:30am. Now, my question is, if this is the case, do I need to buy a three country pass and make Switzerland one of the my three countries? We're not going to Switzerland other than when we pass through it on our way to Venice. We were just planning on buying a France &amp; Italy pass. However, now I'm confused and I want to make sure I'm buying the correct pass. (We are going from London to Paris to Venice to Florence to Rome in all). <BR><BR>Thanks in advance,<BR>Jennie<BR><BR>

Rick Steves says that the night trains from Paris to Italy are covered by the pass, regardless of their route.<BR><BR>http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/combo.htm

Now, I'm no expert but on the Rick Steves' site, he also says that:<BR><BR>&quot;If your train passes through a country not on your pass, you must buy a separate ticket for that stretch in advance, or pay a fine for purchasing the ticket on board...Examples:...Crossing Switzerland on the way from Paris to Italy costs $40 second class.&quot;<BR><BR>It's on p. 9 of his &quot;booklet&quot; at <BR>http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/03railguide.pdf<BR><BR>hope this helps...

I think the France/Italy pass is an exception to the rule. I recall seeing this on another railpass site, eurorailways.com

Okay, hopefully this will finally answer your question. This is from the Rick Steves site (again! It's just so much easier to look for info there):<BR><BR>&quot;Be aware of your route. Many daytime connections from Paris to Italy pass through Switzerland (an additional $40 2nd class or $60 1st class if not covered by your pass). Routes via Nice, Torino, or Modane will bypass Switzerland (consult a good timetable for details). Paris - Italy night trains are covered by the pass, regardless of their route. A three-country Selectpass can include Switzerland for about the same 1st class cost per day of the France-Italy pass.&quot;<BR><BR>http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/combo.htm<BR><BR>So, bottomline: if you're using the overnight train (as you are!), you're covered! yay for you! <BR><BR>

...which is what jahoulih was trying to say in the first place until I messed it up!

Thanks for all the thoughtful replies. See why I've been so confused! =0)<BR><BR>At any rate, I finally found out the DAY trips through Switzerland do require the purchase of a ticket to cover that part. However, overnight trains do not. <BR><BR>I guess they figure that, at night, you'll be asleep and, thus, not be able to enjoy any scenery you might pass by! If you're awake, they want you to pay for the priviledge of looking at that beautiful Swiss countryside! =0)<BR><BR>Thanks again!<BR>Jennie

Hi Jennie,<BR> Have you checked with www.railsaver.com to see if point-to-point tickets are cheaper than a railpass?<BR> Remember that if you are planning on a sleeper, the cost is extra.