Question about the Swiss Rail Passes
 

My husband and I are heading to Switzerland in August and I think I have finally decided on the pass which works best for us. The BOB pass since we will be spending most of our time in that area with an additional days in Lucerne and Montreaux.

My question is this, we are living in Ireland and I have been reading that you have to be a US resident to buy the passes from raileurope.com. What form of identification do you need when validating your pass once you arrive in Switzerland? We are US passport holders. However, our airline tickets will be from Ireland? So is the US passport enough to prove US residency?

Hi hippirep-

When I bought a SwissPass before, on validation, they asked for my passport only.

I actually had trouble finding on raileurope's site the BOB pass. You can also try to buy from the following website as well:
http://www.regiopass-berneroberland.ch/

Thanks for the info. I saw the BOB pass on rick steves, I will check out your link as well. Thanks again.

As mentioned all you need is a US Passport. All Swiss Rail cares about is that you are not a Swiss citizen nor a permanent resident of Switzerland. Raileurope may need you to be a US resident for other reasons, i.e, they can only sell to US residents.

I agree you should explore buying the pass directly from Swiss Rail over the internet and having them mail it to you. This should be cheaper than buying it from Raileurope. You could also wait until you arrive to buy the pass as well. You will have no problem finding English-speaking clerks at railway ticket counters.

Hi hippirep-

I looked at Rick Steves' site, for the BOB pass, he actually gives you the same link as I did above. I don't think you can buy it thru raileurope.

Or as Cicerone says, you can also wait till you get to Switzerland to buy the pass.

The Swiss Rail passes are wonderful in the "winter", but I would recommend a rental car for your trip. We had a MB C180K which was inexpensive, great on gas mi, and the K performed well in the Alps. Check out www.AutoEurope.com
M

hippirep,

IMO a rental car is a liability if you will be mostly based in the BO.

The Berner Oberland Pass does not have any residency requirements and can be purchased when you arrive in Switzerland, or ordered by mail from here:
http://www.regiopass-berneroberland.ch/engl/ticket.html

The Swiss Passes are offered to all non-residents and are sold in Switzerland at most large stations. They will ask for your passport (how this proves that you are not a Swiss resident is a mystery to me).

Hope this helps,
Andre

Thanks for all the advice, since we will be staying in Wengen where cars aren't permitted a rental car wouldn't be a feasible option. I will be purchasing our pass directly from the Swiss website.

Thanks for all your advice, these forums have provided so much helpful information in our planning!