Swiss Pass options

[mek0722]

Hello, there will be two of us traveling in late September/October 2023 from the US and we will be traveling each day on public transit for the 27 days we are in Switzerland.  15 days seems to be the most days you can take out a pass for.  What would be our best option?  Thank you,

[RolandP · Accepted solution]

Hello @mek0722 

Nice to hear you want to visit our country. Autumn is a great time here, and the best for hiking excursions. The views, in terms of visibility, from mountain tops will be excellent, much better than in June or during summer.

Kindly note, the tourist ticket is named Swiss Travel Pass (SwissPass is a resident kind of product).

That said, you could, for instance, combine multiple Swiss Travel Passes. That's absolutely fine.

Or, if you aren't into museums that much (since the STP includes the museum pass as well), you could buy the Swiss Half Fare Card and single tickets, including Saver Day Passes. The Swiss Half Fare Card is worth if you spend more than 240 CHF on travel tickets per person.

https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/railpasses/half-fare-travelcard.html

Or, depending on your itinerary, and your bases, there are multiple regional passes available, such as the Tell Pass, the Berner Oberland Regional Pass, the Jungfrau Pass, the Top of Europe Pass, and so on.

Or, there is the 1 month GA card which also offers unrestricted travel on public transportation, and has the same range of validity as the Swiss Travel Pass. It does not include museums, however.

https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/railpasses/ga/ga-1-month.html

As you can see, there ate too many options and offers.

To conclude a personal advice, if you allow: from a planning perspective I suggest you to firstly draft your itinerary and to only decide on tickets as one of the last steps of the entire planning process.

Where to get useful help on planning your trip? The TripAdvisor travel forum Switzerland is moderated by many experienced and local destination experts. Also myswissalps.com is a good web resource to ask questions about travelling in Switzerland. Both platforms can help you draft your itinerary and can answer questions that go beyond public transportation tickets.

Come back here if you need more help concerning public transportation. Here we are the experts for trains, buses, trams, cableways, and mountain railways.

Best regards,
Roland

[nick11]

Hi Roland, I would like to clarify if as a foreigner can we use the "Swiss Half Fare Card" to purchase the Saver Day Passes at the discounted rate? This is because on the SBB app, the option is labeled "Half Fare Travel Card" which makes me think that the discount is solely for passengers with Half Fare TravelCard.

[VlaznimA]

Hello @nick11 

Yes, it's also valid with saver offers.

Have a nice day.

Kind regards, VlaznimA.

[RolandP]

In terms of range of validity, the Half Fare Card and the Swiss Half Fare Card are identical, latter is simply not mentioned.

Owning the SHFC, you are welcome to buy any ticket with 1/2 fare option, including Saver Day Passes.

Safe travels,
Roland

[mek0722]

Thank you very much, this is very helpful!