Paris - Switzerland 9 day
Jul 13th, 2006, 01:13 PM
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Paris - Switzerland 9 day
Hi!
I love what you all have to say about Paris and Switzerland. But it has been a bit overwhelming. So, I wanted to clear few things, and would love suggestions from you all.
Me and my wife have 9 days, of which we was thinking of spending 5 in Paris, and 4 in Switzerland. We were thinking of spending 2 days in Interlaken, and 2 day in Lucerne. After which we'll take a train directly to Zurich airport to come back home.
My questions were following:
- Does this make sense?
- How can I go from Paris to Interlaken? I know there is a TGV train that goes from PARIS - BASEL - Interlaken. Is that a good idea? should I drive instead? should I take overnight train? Should I just buy a France - Switzerland pass and can I even use that for this trip? Is it better to buy a seperate ticket for this trip and buy a seperate one when we get to Switzerland?
- Once I'm in Switzerland, should I drive or get a Swiss Flex Pass? And how is this pass different from France - Swiss pass here : http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/pa..._saverpass.htm
- I have a 10:00 am flight from Zurich, can I leave from lucerne on the same day? Or should I come to zurich the night before?
- Also, while i'm in BO area, what do you guys recommend we should do?
I know that's lot of question (reflects my confusion)...But any help is really appreciated...I'm especially confused with the rail system and how these passes really work.
Thanks! Happy travelling!
>bhavin
I love what you all have to say about Paris and Switzerland. But it has been a bit overwhelming. So, I wanted to clear few things, and would love suggestions from you all.
Me and my wife have 9 days, of which we was thinking of spending 5 in Paris, and 4 in Switzerland. We were thinking of spending 2 days in Interlaken, and 2 day in Lucerne. After which we'll take a train directly to Zurich airport to come back home.
My questions were following:
- Does this make sense?
- How can I go from Paris to Interlaken? I know there is a TGV train that goes from PARIS - BASEL - Interlaken. Is that a good idea? should I drive instead? should I take overnight train? Should I just buy a France - Switzerland pass and can I even use that for this trip? Is it better to buy a seperate ticket for this trip and buy a seperate one when we get to Switzerland?
- Once I'm in Switzerland, should I drive or get a Swiss Flex Pass? And how is this pass different from France - Swiss pass here : http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/pa..._saverpass.htm
- I have a 10:00 am flight from Zurich, can I leave from lucerne on the same day? Or should I come to zurich the night before?
- Also, while i'm in BO area, what do you guys recommend we should do?
I know that's lot of question (reflects my confusion)...But any help is really appreciated...I'm especially confused with the rail system and how these passes really work.
Thanks! Happy travelling!
>bhavin
Jul 13th, 2006, 01:51 PM
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>- Does this make sense?
Yes, but it IS a bit of stress. Still, possible. In the Berner Oberland you should stay not in Interlaken but in one of the mountain villages, unless night life is of paramount importance.
>- How can I go from Paris to Interlaken? I know there is a TGV train that goes from PARIS - BASEL - Interlaken.
No, there is no TGVs on this route. You can take a TGV to Bern and change to Interlaken there. There are also conventional trains to Basel but they take much longer.
>Is that a good idea?
Why not?
>should I drive instead?
If you prefer to spend 7-8 hours on the way instead of 4-5. Plus, a car is useless in the Berner Oberland.
>should I take overnight train?
You can do that - to Basel, and then take a train from there to Interlaken.
>Should I just buy a France - Switzerland pass and can I even use that for this trip?
You can, but a pass hardly makes sese for one trip.
>Is it better to buy a seperate ticket for this trip and buy a seperate one when we get to Switzerland?
You mean one from Paris to Interlaken and then isingle tickets within Switzerland? Might make sense. Buy a Half-fare card for 99 Fr - it gives you 50% discount on all train/bus/ship/cable car rides in Switzerland. Also on the Swiss part of the Paris to Interlaken trip, if you have it early enough.
>- Once I'm in Switzerland, should I drive or get a Swiss Flex Pass?
Neither - see above.
>And how is this pass different from France - Swiss pass here : http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/pa..._saverpass.htm
It is different in that the France-Swiss pass is only valid for the main rail lines and not for all the small (but very expensive) mountain train lines. And in that you pay quite a sum for one single trip within France which costs a fraction of the price difference.
>- I have a 10:00 am flight from Zurich, can I leave from lucerne on the same day? Or should I come to zurich the night before?
You can go straight from Lucerne, but you should get up VERY early. Unless you are flying to the USA, many airlines offer "Rail&Fly" program, with which you can already check in in the rail station. Not available for the flights into US though you have to be at the airport >2 h before departure.
>- Also, while i'm in BO area, what do you guys recommend we should do?
Jungfraujoch. Brienzer See boat cruise. Schilthorn cable car. I don't know - what do you like?
Yes, but it IS a bit of stress. Still, possible. In the Berner Oberland you should stay not in Interlaken but in one of the mountain villages, unless night life is of paramount importance.
>- How can I go from Paris to Interlaken? I know there is a TGV train that goes from PARIS - BASEL - Interlaken.
No, there is no TGVs on this route. You can take a TGV to Bern and change to Interlaken there. There are also conventional trains to Basel but they take much longer.
>Is that a good idea?
Why not?
>should I drive instead?
If you prefer to spend 7-8 hours on the way instead of 4-5. Plus, a car is useless in the Berner Oberland.
>should I take overnight train?
You can do that - to Basel, and then take a train from there to Interlaken.
>Should I just buy a France - Switzerland pass and can I even use that for this trip?
You can, but a pass hardly makes sese for one trip.
>Is it better to buy a seperate ticket for this trip and buy a seperate one when we get to Switzerland?
You mean one from Paris to Interlaken and then isingle tickets within Switzerland? Might make sense. Buy a Half-fare card for 99 Fr - it gives you 50% discount on all train/bus/ship/cable car rides in Switzerland. Also on the Swiss part of the Paris to Interlaken trip, if you have it early enough.
>- Once I'm in Switzerland, should I drive or get a Swiss Flex Pass?
Neither - see above.
>And how is this pass different from France - Swiss pass here : http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/pa..._saverpass.htm
It is different in that the France-Swiss pass is only valid for the main rail lines and not for all the small (but very expensive) mountain train lines. And in that you pay quite a sum for one single trip within France which costs a fraction of the price difference.
>- I have a 10:00 am flight from Zurich, can I leave from lucerne on the same day? Or should I come to zurich the night before?
You can go straight from Lucerne, but you should get up VERY early. Unless you are flying to the USA, many airlines offer "Rail&Fly" program, with which you can already check in in the rail station. Not available for the flights into US though you have to be at the airport >2 h before departure.
>- Also, while i'm in BO area, what do you guys recommend we should do?
Jungfraujoch. Brienzer See boat cruise. Schilthorn cable car. I don't know - what do you like?
Jul 13th, 2006, 07:57 PM
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hi altamiro,
thanks alot! this makes lot of things clearer.
can we buy train tickets (in this case, from paris to interlaken) from here in US? what sites do you recommend for buying train tickets and/or passes?
Also, how long does it take to go from Interlaken to mountain villages? And by moutain villages, i'm assuming you meant: Grindelwald, Wengen, Mürren etc...Which one do you recommend?
Me and my wife are more interested in just enjoying the scenary, may be some hiking...also, I wanted to see if I can do paragliding....Will definitely like to go up the Jungfraujoch..Can we buy tickets in advance for that? from US?
Thanks fore everything...this really helps...
thanks alot! this makes lot of things clearer.
can we buy train tickets (in this case, from paris to interlaken) from here in US? what sites do you recommend for buying train tickets and/or passes?
Also, how long does it take to go from Interlaken to mountain villages? And by moutain villages, i'm assuming you meant: Grindelwald, Wengen, Mürren etc...Which one do you recommend?
Me and my wife are more interested in just enjoying the scenary, may be some hiking...also, I wanted to see if I can do paragliding....Will definitely like to go up the Jungfraujoch..Can we buy tickets in advance for that? from US?
Thanks fore everything...this really helps...
Jul 14th, 2006, 04:55 AM
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Gosh, perhaps I can give my opinion on this ( As if I have never given my opinion before)
My favorite place to stay is Grindlewald. Why? Well, Grindlewald is close to where many tremendously excellent walking trips begin.
Plus there seems to be slightly more night life than some of the other mountain villages such as Murren and Grindlewald.
Just my opinion here and I certainly am not bad mouthing Murren or Wengen. Both are tremendous areas to stay.
"Dawning is the day, misty meadows, you will find your way. Wake up in the morning and leave this crazy life behind you. Listen we're trying to find you"
Dawning is the day by The Moody Blues
My favorite place to stay is Grindlewald. Why? Well, Grindlewald is close to where many tremendously excellent walking trips begin.
Plus there seems to be slightly more night life than some of the other mountain villages such as Murren and Grindlewald.
Just my opinion here and I certainly am not bad mouthing Murren or Wengen. Both are tremendous areas to stay.
"Dawning is the day, misty meadows, you will find your way. Wake up in the morning and leave this crazy life behind you. Listen we're trying to find you"
Dawning is the day by The Moody Blues
Jul 14th, 2006, 05:15 AM
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Hi bhavin30,
Here's a link to Interlaken Tourism's page that gives links to five paragliding outfits:
http://www.interlakentourism.ch/inde...id=310&L=3
About buying tickets -- yes, you can buy them in the US, but why would you want to? You'll be in Paris for five days, so just buy your ticket to Switzerland one day when you're going by a train station or travel agency.
But if you really want to buy your tickets in advance, you can try doing it by e-mailing the Swiss Rail officials at www.rail.ch, or through Raileurope (you'll probably pay more for the tickets) or through BETS.
You can get rail schedules at www.rail.ch to see the schedules between Interlaken and the mountain villages. It'll also give you the schedule from Luzern to the Zurich airport, which will take about an hour.
Have fun!
s
Here's a link to Interlaken Tourism's page that gives links to five paragliding outfits:
http://www.interlakentourism.ch/inde...id=310&L=3
About buying tickets -- yes, you can buy them in the US, but why would you want to? You'll be in Paris for five days, so just buy your ticket to Switzerland one day when you're going by a train station or travel agency.
But if you really want to buy your tickets in advance, you can try doing it by e-mailing the Swiss Rail officials at www.rail.ch, or through Raileurope (you'll probably pay more for the tickets) or through BETS.
You can get rail schedules at www.rail.ch to see the schedules between Interlaken and the mountain villages. It'll also give you the schedule from Luzern to the Zurich airport, which will take about an hour.
Have fun!
s
Jul 14th, 2006, 06:47 AM
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Actually the only stretch where buying tickets in advance makes sense is Paris to Switzerland. There are some very nice advance discounts - you can get from Paris to Bern for as little as 20 Euro. Lyria is a joint-venture of the SNCF and SBB responsible for the TGVs from France to Switzerland: www.lyria.biz - you can get tickets there as well. For the rest of your journey I really fail to see what use buying ticket in advance will give you. It would be like purchasing tickets for the bus in your city in advance. All tickets can be bought within few minutes from the ticket machines.
>Also, how long does it take to go from Interlaken to mountain villages? And by moutain villages, i'm assuming you meant: Grindelwald, Wengen, Mürren etc...Which one do you recommend?
It is about 20 min to Lauterbrunnen and another 30 min to Wengen, or abut 40 min from Interlaken to Grindelwald. Mürren is a bit less well connected, as you need to take a post bus from Lauterbrunne to Stechelberg and a cable car from there. I prefer Wengen actually, as it is traffic-free and has an excellent view to teh Jungfrau, but Grindelwald (although crowded) is a better base for hiking. There is a cog railway line from Grindelwald over the Kleine Scheidegg pass to Wengen, and from Kleine Scheidegg you get another cog train to Jungfraujoch. But Grindelwald can get very crowded in summer. All the coach companies within 300 km radius offer day trips to Grindelwald. The result - you can imagine.
There are actually areas in Switzerland of comparable beauty and much less crowded, but Berner Oberland has a better PR
I'm always pushing the Aletsch area, but it depends...
>Also, how long does it take to go from Interlaken to mountain villages? And by moutain villages, i'm assuming you meant: Grindelwald, Wengen, Mürren etc...Which one do you recommend?
It is about 20 min to Lauterbrunnen and another 30 min to Wengen, or abut 40 min from Interlaken to Grindelwald. Mürren is a bit less well connected, as you need to take a post bus from Lauterbrunne to Stechelberg and a cable car from there. I prefer Wengen actually, as it is traffic-free and has an excellent view to teh Jungfrau, but Grindelwald (although crowded) is a better base for hiking. There is a cog railway line from Grindelwald over the Kleine Scheidegg pass to Wengen, and from Kleine Scheidegg you get another cog train to Jungfraujoch. But Grindelwald can get very crowded in summer. All the coach companies within 300 km radius offer day trips to Grindelwald. The result - you can imagine.
There are actually areas in Switzerland of comparable beauty and much less crowded, but Berner Oberland has a better PR
I'm always pushing the Aletsch area, but it depends...
Jul 14th, 2006, 10:40 AM
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thanks guys!! really appreciate it...
altamiro: where did you see Swiss Half-fare card for 99 Fr? I have been seeing it for 150fr
Also, if I want to change my itenerary from 2 days BO and 2 days Lucerne to 3 days BO and 1 day Lucerene will that be ok? is luceren 'coverable' in one day? given that we won't get to go on mt titlis etc that are around Lucerne...
just curious..
altamiro: where did you see Swiss Half-fare card for 99 Fr? I have been seeing it for 150fr
Also, if I want to change my itenerary from 2 days BO and 2 days Lucerne to 3 days BO and 1 day Lucerene will that be ok? is luceren 'coverable' in one day? given that we won't get to go on mt titlis etc that are around Lucerne...
just curious..
Jul 14th, 2006, 11:33 AM
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France-Switzerland pass has same benefits as Eurailpass - Swiss Pass has many more benefits than Eurail - valid in full up to Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, Murren - Eurail only gives 25% off these trains (from Interlaken)
Swiss pass also good on postal buses. Along with the Half-Fare card consider the Swiss Flexipass - 3 days in a month and then for the rest of the month you get 50% off everything - trams, buses, gondolas, Jungfrau - same as half-fare card but you get three free travel days with 100% coverage. Like altamiro says you can get great fares, if act far enough in advance, on the Lyria trains to Geneva, Lausanne or Bern and then start the half-fare card or Swiss Pass. Pass could be better depending on what you do on the 100% covered travel days - half-fare better if you don't do much. Half-fare cards buy in Switzerland; Swiss Passes are sold in Switzerland but significantly cheaper in US for some reason (www.sbb.ch for Swiss ticket prices and Swiss Pass prices and half-fare, which i believe is SF99 or about $85 per person). In US i always recommend BETS (www.budgeteuropetravel.com) for their Swiss rail expertise - ask on their web site for their excellent free European Planning & Rail guide that has a great chapter on Swiss train travel. www.ricksteves.com also has good Swiss rail info. Half-fare card could be your best bet but don't neglect Swiss Flexipass Saver for 3 days out of a month. New this year Swiss Pass is also a museum card - honored at over 400 Swiss Museums but only on days of 100% covered travel - but can save bucks if doing the Paul Klee Museum in Bern or Ballenberg Open-Air Museum on Lake Brienz (that would be one day when the 100% coverage day would be handy - say if staying in Wengen - train down to Interlaken, hop boat at Ost station to Brienz, postal bus to Ballenberg Open-Air Museum and back - could also do the Aare Gorge (you have to pay to walk thru the gorge, again covered by the pass) - the boat ride is tremendous - this is one day when a Swiss Pass at 100% plus free museum might factor into being better than half-fare card.
Swiss pass also good on postal buses. Along with the Half-Fare card consider the Swiss Flexipass - 3 days in a month and then for the rest of the month you get 50% off everything - trams, buses, gondolas, Jungfrau - same as half-fare card but you get three free travel days with 100% coverage. Like altamiro says you can get great fares, if act far enough in advance, on the Lyria trains to Geneva, Lausanne or Bern and then start the half-fare card or Swiss Pass. Pass could be better depending on what you do on the 100% covered travel days - half-fare better if you don't do much. Half-fare cards buy in Switzerland; Swiss Passes are sold in Switzerland but significantly cheaper in US for some reason (www.sbb.ch for Swiss ticket prices and Swiss Pass prices and half-fare, which i believe is SF99 or about $85 per person). In US i always recommend BETS (www.budgeteuropetravel.com) for their Swiss rail expertise - ask on their web site for their excellent free European Planning & Rail guide that has a great chapter on Swiss train travel. www.ricksteves.com also has good Swiss rail info. Half-fare card could be your best bet but don't neglect Swiss Flexipass Saver for 3 days out of a month. New this year Swiss Pass is also a museum card - honored at over 400 Swiss Museums but only on days of 100% covered travel - but can save bucks if doing the Paul Klee Museum in Bern or Ballenberg Open-Air Museum on Lake Brienz (that would be one day when the 100% coverage day would be handy - say if staying in Wengen - train down to Interlaken, hop boat at Ost station to Brienz, postal bus to Ballenberg Open-Air Museum and back - could also do the Aare Gorge (you have to pay to walk thru the gorge, again covered by the pass) - the boat ride is tremendous - this is one day when a Swiss Pass at 100% plus free museum might factor into being better than half-fare card.
Jul 17th, 2006, 02:29 AM
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>altamiro: where did you see Swiss Half-fare card for 99 Fr? I have been seeing it for 150fr
99 Fr is one month version, if you plan to return soon (hope you do) you can buy one for 150 Fr which is valid for a year...
99 Fr is one month version, if you plan to return soon (hope you do) you can buy one for 150 Fr which is valid for a year...
