Train travel from Italy to Switzerland
 

Any information would be greatly appreciated. I am trying to plan/book train travel from Florence to either Zermatt (preferably) or St. Moritz. What would the best website be to book on?

you could try the Italian ones: www.trenitalia.com or lefgrecce.it

the Swiss site might be easier: www.sbb.ch

sorry that should be www.lefrecce.it

The Zermatt routing will be via Brig where a private line takes you to Zermatt. It will connect via Milano.

We booked Milan to Brig on www.sbb.ch and then bought the tickets for Brig-Zermatt right on the train. And by the way on the return Brig-Milan trip we had seat reservations that dupicated someone else's. The conductor said he had never seen that.

So I will pay full price for the Florence to Zermatt ticket even though I will have a Swill Pass?

SWISS PASS** that is.

So I will pay full price for the Florence to Zermatt ticket even though I will have a Swill Pass?>

No you will need to pay only for the Italian portion - Florence to the border station, Domodossola I believe - the Swiss Pass kicks in from there. Use the sites Dukey1 mentions to get a discounted Italian portion ticket.

For lots of great info on European trains in general and those in Italy and Switzerland in specific I always spotlight these IMO fab sites - www.ricksteves.com; www.seat61.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com.

Swiss passes are only good in Switzerland. Florence to Zermatt will be a long trip.

Top tip, BREAK THE JOURNEY DOWN,

Florence to Milan from €9 at www.trenitalia.com.

Milan to Brig from €19 with a smart fare www.fsitaliane.it

Brig to Zermatt buy at Brig, fixed price no reservation necessary.

If you have a Swiss pass you only need to buy a ticket with reservation from Milan to the border at Domodossola, although I bet this will be the same or only a bit less than the €19, and Brig to Zermatt doesn't justify an expensive Swiss pass day in itself.

Brig to Zermatt doesn't justify an expensive Swiss pass day in itself.>

depends if OP has a consecutive-day pass or not where they will be taking more expensive trips - and if they have a Swiss Flexipass then they will certainly or probably want to use the pass for Domodossola to Zermatt because with a flexipass in between your unlimited travel days you get 50% off everything that moves in Switzerland almost - such as 50% off on those expensive mountain trains and aerial gondolas in the Matterhorn area - if you do not use your Swiss Pass for the first day you would not get those discounts. So strongly reconsider Man in Seat 61's advice about not using the first day if you have a Flexipass - but I guess if you are not doing as most do in Zermatt - take the trains and gondolas to Matterhorn then perhaps he would be correct and maybe not if you have a consecutive-day pass that comports to your overall time in Switzerland.

The rules and benefits of the Swiss Flexipass are a bit hard to understand at first glance and thus many folks do not IME understand how a Swiss Flexipass works - very different from any other flexipass:

Usually a 3-day Swiss Flexipass is the best option by far for the average traveler who buys a flexipass (better than a 4-, 5-, etc day flexipass simply because of the 50% off you get on practically everything that moves in Switzerland in between the first and last unlimited day on your pass - three days of course with a 3-day flexipass.

and after the final day of unlimited travel is used the pass expires - zilch even though it could be used over a one-month period. So you have to use a day on the pass first before the 50% off on everything you get on days between 100% covered days and you have to keep one unlimited travel day left to get any benefits.

In between the first and last unlimited travel day used you then go to the ticket window of any train station, lake boat, postal bus, aerial gondola, mountain train and show your pass and you get to buy a ticket for 50% discount (only exception I know is in the Jungfrau Region where from Grindelwald and Wengen up to the Jungfraujoch station it is only 25% off).

So a very important point when deciding to use your unlimited travel days - it can make a huge difference in saving money.

Besides flexipasses you have consecutive-day passes and these per day are cheaper but unless traveling constantly the flexipasses will often be the best deal - and consecutive-day passes only come in 4- 8- 15- and month-long periods so they may not comport to the actual time you may need to travel in Switzerland but if they do they may be the most economical deal (and still get 50% off pricey gondolas to mountain tops that are not 100% covered by either pass).

<i>Train travel from Italy to Switzerland
Posted by: susant100 on Jan 1, 13 at 8:17pm Posted in: Europe Tagged: Italy , Switzerland
Any information would be greatly appreciated. I am trying to plan/book train travel from Florence to either Zermatt (preferably) or St. Moritz. What would the best website be to book on?</i>

I wouldn't book on any web site, unless you have done this before and have confidence in the process. I suggest getting schedules from http://tinyurl.com/7r9hnxf and then visiting http://www.budgeteuropetravel.com/ for further information. Then call the BETS number and speak with Linda or Byron for expert advice and to order tickets and reservations. For further information on the rails of Europe see http://tinyurl.com/eym5b.

If it's a rail pass I buy from BETS. If it is a ticket or reservation I buy at a rail station in Europe to save money.

>>>If it is a ticket or reservation I buy at a rail station in Europe to save money.<<<

Most discount tickets require advance purchase. If you wait until you are in the country to purchase a ticket, the discounts can be sold out.

I wouldn't book on any web site, unless you have done this before and have confidence in the process.>

Well spaarne gave the reason the average novice may not want to do this - trenitalia.com for example has been legendary for frustrating folks as many many posts here have said - transactions don't seem to go thru and there is no word, etc. Now pros like you have no problem but novices often do have lots of problems. www.renfe.com the Spanish Railways system has had many similar complaints - some however seem flawless like www.bahn.de or the British www.nationalrail.co.uk.

But getting those online discounts is not always the snap many make it out to be and again I base this on scores of posts from frustrated novice users trying to book those.

I am just going to play it safe and purchase the 8 day Swiss Pass here before we leave. Thank you all for your advice.