Swiss half card or standard tickets for Geneva to Zurich?
#1
Original Poster
Joined: Feb 2023
Posts: 18
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Swiss half card or standard tickets for Geneva to Zurich?
Hi everyone,
I plan on traveling from Geneva to Lauterbrunnen - Gimmelwald-Murren- to Iseltwald to Zurich.
I want to also stop over in Lausanne, Fribourg, Bern, and La Neueville.
Should I get the Swiss half card or Eurail 4 day pass or just simply buy standard tickets?
I want to spend 3 days although it will be rushed.
Thanks in advance.
I plan on traveling from Geneva to Lauterbrunnen - Gimmelwald-Murren- to Iseltwald to Zurich.
I want to also stop over in Lausanne, Fribourg, Bern, and La Neueville.
Should I get the Swiss half card or Eurail 4 day pass or just simply buy standard tickets?
I want to spend 3 days although it will be rushed.
Thanks in advance.
#2

Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 9,515
Likes: 0
You may check:
Swiss Half fare Card
Berrnese Oberland Pass (covers Montreux - Gstaad - Spiez - Interlaken - Lauterbrunnen/Muren/Wengen/Kleine Scheidegg/First, etc.; Berne - Spiez - Iseltwald - Brienz/Brienzer Rothorn - Lucerne and all buese in and boats in BErnese Oberland),
Saver tickets (if you know exactly witch train you will use),
Saver day passes
or a combination of all that.
But first of all you will have to chose your itinerary.
Some proposals:
Geneva - Boat or train - Lausanne - boat or train - Montreux - Golden Pass Express - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat or bus - Iseltwald and back - boat ot train Thun - train- Bern - Fribourg - Murten - boat - La Neuveville - train - Zurich;
Geneva - Boat or train - Lausanne - train - La Neuveville - boat or train Neuchâtel - Murten - train - Fribourg - Bern - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat - Iseltwald - Brienz - train - Lucerne - Zurich;
Geneva - boat or train Lausanne - train - Fribourg - Bern - Biel/Bienne - boat or train - La Neuveville and back - Bern - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat - Iseltwald - Brienz - train - Lucerne - Zurich;
Geneva - Boat or train - Lausanne - train - La Neuveville - Biel/Bienne - Bern - Fribourg - Bern - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat - Iseltwald - Brienz - train - Lucerne - Zurich;
Swiss Half fare Card
Berrnese Oberland Pass (covers Montreux - Gstaad - Spiez - Interlaken - Lauterbrunnen/Muren/Wengen/Kleine Scheidegg/First, etc.; Berne - Spiez - Iseltwald - Brienz/Brienzer Rothorn - Lucerne and all buese in and boats in BErnese Oberland),
Saver tickets (if you know exactly witch train you will use),
Saver day passes
or a combination of all that.
But first of all you will have to chose your itinerary.
Some proposals:
Geneva - Boat or train - Lausanne - boat or train - Montreux - Golden Pass Express - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat or bus - Iseltwald and back - boat ot train Thun - train- Bern - Fribourg - Murten - boat - La Neuveville - train - Zurich;
Geneva - Boat or train - Lausanne - train - La Neuveville - boat or train Neuchâtel - Murten - train - Fribourg - Bern - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat - Iseltwald - Brienz - train - Lucerne - Zurich;
Geneva - boat or train Lausanne - train - Fribourg - Bern - Biel/Bienne - boat or train - La Neuveville and back - Bern - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat - Iseltwald - Brienz - train - Lucerne - Zurich;
Geneva - Boat or train - Lausanne - train - La Neuveville - Biel/Bienne - Bern - Fribourg - Bern - Interlaken - Wengen/Grindelwald etc. - Interlaken - boat - Iseltwald - Brienz - train - Lucerne - Zurich;
#3


Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 21,156
Likes: 83
The Eurail pass is seldom good value.
Unfortunately, the only sure way to know what Swiss pass/card is the best value is to crunch the numbers for your particular itinerary and then make a comparison between the passes.
If your full fare routes add up to more than 240 chf, you may benefit from the half fare card (which is 120 chf for a month).
If your routes are engraved in stone, and you're willing to commit to a specific train on a specific day at a specific time, you may benefit from Super Saver passes (the price shown on SBB defaults to half fare).
If you're looking for more flexibility, a Saver Day Pass may work for you (date specific, but not time or train specific).
You'll find the Swiss Rail site here:
https://www.sbb.ch/en
Unfortunately, the only sure way to know what Swiss pass/card is the best value is to crunch the numbers for your particular itinerary and then make a comparison between the passes.
If your full fare routes add up to more than 240 chf, you may benefit from the half fare card (which is 120 chf for a month).
If your routes are engraved in stone, and you're willing to commit to a specific train on a specific day at a specific time, you may benefit from Super Saver passes (the price shown on SBB defaults to half fare).
If you're looking for more flexibility, a Saver Day Pass may work for you (date specific, but not time or train specific).
You'll find the Swiss Rail site here:
https://www.sbb.ch/en
#4
Joined: Sep 2022
Posts: 300
Likes: 0
If you value convenience and flexibility a travel pass works but you definitely pay for that convenience, sometimes quite dearly. If you are anal and an analytical, you may find you actually enjoy plugging in routes and what-ifs to get the best value and bang for your buck. We are not very good planners and frankly I find the many discounts, advance purchases, half fares and schemes too complex and just getting on and off whatever train, ferry, bus etc. fit our plan so we paid for it even knowing I could get it cheaper. It's your call. If you do opt for a pass don't get the Eurail one.
Last edited by wildiowa; Jun 8th, 2025 at 06:21 AM.
#5
Original Poster
Joined: Feb 2023
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
Wow thanks for all the proposals.
Since my route is Geneva-Lausanne-La Neuveville or Fribourg-Bern-Lauterbrunnen-Wengen-Zurich what would you suggest?
Swiss half fare?
Id like to take the 11AMish train from Geneva to Lauterbrunnen-Wengen with super quick stops at Lausanne and La Neuveville or Fribourg to Iseltwald.
And then around 11AMish from Iseltwald to Lauterbrunnen and finally arriving in Zurich.
Not even sure if this is realistic in 3 or 4 days.
Since my route is Geneva-Lausanne-La Neuveville or Fribourg-Bern-Lauterbrunnen-Wengen-Zurich what would you suggest?
Swiss half fare?
Id like to take the 11AMish train from Geneva to Lauterbrunnen-Wengen with super quick stops at Lausanne and La Neuveville or Fribourg to Iseltwald.
And then around 11AMish from Iseltwald to Lauterbrunnen and finally arriving in Zurich.
Not even sure if this is realistic in 3 or 4 days.
#6
Original Poster
Joined: Feb 2023
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
I've managed to make rough calculations and it appears that my routes add up to around 240CHF, but that's without stops at Lausanne, Fribourg and La Neuveville.
I also plan on traveling onwards to Germany. Specifically Zurich to Wurzburg and then to Frankfurt.
Would it be best to get the Eurail pass then?
Thank you
I also plan on traveling onwards to Germany. Specifically Zurich to Wurzburg and then to Frankfurt.
Would it be best to get the Eurail pass then?
Thank you
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#8
Joined: Sep 2022
Posts: 300
Likes: 0
A three day Swiss pass is 250 CHF or 390 1st class. Not sure how much a Eurail pass would be or how it might fit your route. You must weigh the need to book, find fares, follow rules, choose land or boat or both, where you want to go etc. versus just hopping on or off of whatever train vehicle or vessel whenever you want and flashing your pass. Some trains in the mountains are not covered by the Pass and require a supplemental fare and are quite expensive. A Pass also covers ferries, lifts and buses. If you are just going to burn through many destinations in as little time as possible and jump on and off mainly in Switzerland, plus to a ferry or two, maybe look at a three day pass. If you can afford it 1st class is also better.
#9

Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 9,515
Likes: 0
If you don^t want to go from Wengen intgo the mountains, check super saver daypasses.
A Saver day pass for the random date of September 17th for instance would cost 52 CHF.
With this ticket you could travel like that:
Geneva dp 10.05 - Lausanne ar 10.44, dp 14.17 - Fribourg ar 15.02, dp 17.33 - Iseltwald ar 19.26, dp 21.26 - Wengen ar 22.41
For Wengen - ¨Zurich, a Saver day Pass may be the best solution too
If you travel from Zurich to Wurzburg via Heilbronn, you can use a Baden-Wuerttemberg-Ticket (from Schaffhausen onwards only) for 25 EUR/pax or 32 EUR/2pax
if you don't use ICE or IC trains, may be like this:
Zurich dp 10.05 - Schaffhausen dp 11.00 - Singen dp 11.36 - Stuttgart dp 14.08 - Wuerzburg ar 16.19
THINGS WOULD COMPLETELY CHANGE IF YOU HAD THE IDEA TO GO FROM WENGEN BY MOUNTAIN RAILWAY TO KLEINE SCHEIDEGG OR EVEN TO JUNGFRAUJOCH
A Saver day pass for the random date of September 17th for instance would cost 52 CHF.
With this ticket you could travel like that:
Geneva dp 10.05 - Lausanne ar 10.44, dp 14.17 - Fribourg ar 15.02, dp 17.33 - Iseltwald ar 19.26, dp 21.26 - Wengen ar 22.41
For Wengen - ¨Zurich, a Saver day Pass may be the best solution too
If you travel from Zurich to Wurzburg via Heilbronn, you can use a Baden-Wuerttemberg-Ticket (from Schaffhausen onwards only) for 25 EUR/pax or 32 EUR/2pax
if you don't use ICE or IC trains, may be like this:
Zurich dp 10.05 - Schaffhausen dp 11.00 - Singen dp 11.36 - Stuttgart dp 14.08 - Wuerzburg ar 16.19
THINGS WOULD COMPLETELY CHANGE IF YOU HAD THE IDEA TO GO FROM WENGEN BY MOUNTAIN RAILWAY TO KLEINE SCHEIDEGG OR EVEN TO JUNGFRAUJOCH
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