This article is written after my trip to Switzerland in partnership with Travel Switzerland who supplied me with my Swiss Travel Pass. However this article was not a contractual requirement and all opinions on this are my own.
In January, we returned from our magical honeymoon in Switzerland and it was everything we could have dreamed of and more.
We took a hot air balloon flight over the Swiss Alps, we saw the famous Matterhorn, we rode on the stunning GoldenPass Belle Epoque train and we were lucky enough to take the 8-hour journey on the Glacier Express. Not to mention winter hiking in Gstaad, exploring Geneva and Zurich, fondue in the mountains and so much more.
We managed to pack all of this into our 10 day Switzerland itinerary thanks to our Swiss Travel Pass which gave us unlimited rail, bus, tram and boat travel throughout the country.
But is the Swiss Travel Pass worth it? Of course it's a lot of money to spend on one pass, but how much are train tickets in Switzerland? Is it worth it for you and your trip?
If you're in a hurry, the short answer in our case is that it was absolutely worth it and it saved us just over £600 over the 10 days of travel.
So in this post I'm going to break down what the pass can be used for, whether it's the right choice for your trip and how to make the most of the Swiss Travel Pass.
Gornergrat
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What is the Swiss Travel Pass?
The Swiss Travel Pass works like an unlimited travel card giving you access to the extensive rail network in Switzerland as well as the public transport in over 90 cities and towns across the country. This means trams in Zurich and Geneva are included for example, as are the buses in these cities and smaller places like Montreux, Gstaad, Interlaken and more.
The amazing part is that as well as including all rail travel in Switzerland, the Swiss Travel Pass includes the panoramic trains and boat services: The Glacier Express, the MOB GoldenPass, Bernina Express and famous boat rides including Lake Lucerne, Interlaken, Montreux and more. It even gets you free entry to museums and discounted entry and tickets to attractions such as Glacier Paradise and discounts on mountain railways like the Gornergrat Railway and gondolas like the cable cars in ski resorts.
All you need for these special panoramic trains is your reservation which is mandatory to secure your seat. For example on the Glacier Express in 1st or Standard Class this would be 49 CHF. On the GoldenPass MOB Belle Epoque and GoldenPass Panoramic trains, the reservation fee is just 10 CHF.
Bear in mind that the Glacier Express ticket for standard class would be 272 CHF plus the 49 CHF reservation usually, so already you're making a good chunk of your money back if you buy the Swiss Travel Pass.
Which leads me to my next point...
The Glacier Express
How much does the Swiss Travel Pass cost?
The pass is available as a 3, 4, 6, 8 or 15 day pass so you can buy a pass to suit the length of your trip. So how much is a Swiss Travel Pass?
The cost of the Swiss Travel Pass currently are as follows in Swiss Francs:
Swiss Travel Pass 3 days
1st class: 389
2nd class: 244
Swiss Travel Pass 4 days
1st class: 469
2nd class: 295
Swiss Travel Pass 6 days
1st class: 602
2nd class: 379
Swiss Travel Pass 8 days
1st class: 665
2nd class: 419
Swiss Travel Pass 15 days
1st class: 723
2nd class: 459
The Swiss Travel Pass is active from your first day of use and can only be used for the number of days starting from your first day.
Chateau Doex Station
There is also the Swiss Travel Pass Flex which is slightly more expensive but allows you to redeem train travel on non-consecutive days. For example, if you are in Switzerland for 2 weeks but only need the pass for 4 days of train travel which are several days apart, then rather than having to buy the 15 day Swiss Travel Pass, the 4 days in 1 month Flex pass will allow you to just travel on the 4 days you need.
The cost of the Swiss Travel Pass Flex Pass are as follows in Swiss Francs:
Swiss Travel Pass Flex 3 days in 1 month
1st class: 445
2nd class: 279
Swiss Travel Pass Flex 4 days in 1 month
1st class: 539
2nd class: 339
Swiss Travel Pass Flex 6 days in 1 month
1st class: 644
2nd class: 405
Swiss Travel Pass Flex 8 days in 1 month
1st class: 697
2nd class: 439
Swiss Travel Pass Flex 15 days in 1 month
1st class: 755
2nd class: 479
Who can get the Swiss Travel Pass?
The Swiss Travel Pass is available to all non-Swiss residents and it is for this reason that you must carry your passport or ID at all times when using your pass as ticket inspectors are supposed to check your ID to confirm you are a visitor and not a resident.
However in our 10 days in Switzerland taking 16 trains, we were always asked to show our Swiss Travel Pass ticket but were only asked to show our ID twice.
Where can you buy the Swiss Travel Pass?
The best place to buy the Swiss Travel Pass is directly at the source: The Swiss Travel Pass website.
Gronergrat Train
SBB Train
How does Swiss Travel Pass work?
Once you purchase your pass online, you simply need to download and store the digital PDF of the pass on your phone.
Once in Switzerland, you’ll be asked by ticket inspectors on trains and public transport to show your pass. They will simply scan the QR code on the pass.
For services that require a reservation too, such as the Glacier Express, you will also need to show the ticket inspector your reservation.
Belle Epoque Train
Do you need to print off your Swiss Travel Pass to use it?
No, the pass is designed to be used as a digital pass so you can show the ticket on your phone and the ticket inspectors scan the QR code on your device.
But make sure you download a copy to your device and don't rely on access to emails or on the cloud - internet signal can be patchy in the mountains!
I personally chose to print off copies of our pass too, just for peace of mind in case my device ran out of battery or the file was lost in some way.
Swiss Travel Pass: is it worth it?
I highly recommend working out your route and the activities you intend to do so you can work out if the pass is worth it for you and your trip.
Obviously if you only intend to take a couple of train journeys in Switzerland or if you're only planning to do the Glacier Express then your Swiss Travel Pass is probably not worth it.
But let me show you exactly what we did in 10 days and the amount of money it saved us:
We used the 1st class Swiss Travel Pass which cost 743 CHF for a 15 day pass, this is our full breakdown of costs we paid:
1st class Swiss Pass Price = 723 francs
+ Belle Epoque reservation = 10
+ Glacier Express reservation = 49
+ Gstaad gondola @ 50% discount = 18
+ Sunnegga @ 50% discount = 11.50
+ Gornergrat @ 50% discount = 50
+ Glacier Paradise @ 50% discount = 45
TOTAL= 896.50
Now if we had paid full price for all those things, plus all 16 train tickets we used for the public transport trains we took, plus the Glacier Express and Belle Epoque tickets then that total would look a bit different! Here's everything we used our pass for and what the full price would have been without the Swiss Travel Pass:
Our trips 1st class full price:
Geneva airport to Geneva = 5.40
Geneva public transport = 5.40
Geneva to Montreux = 55
Montreux to Chateau d'oex GoldenPass ticket = 36.20
GoldenPass Belle Epoque reservation = 10
Chateau D’oex to Gstaad = 16
Chateau d'oex to Gstaad reservation = 10
Gstaad gondola = 36
Gstaad to Chateau d'oex = 16
Chateau D’oex to Zermatt 4 trains = 181
Sunnegga railway lift RT = 23
Gornergrat railway RT = 96
Glacier Paradise ticket = 95
Glacier Express 1st class ticket = 272
Glacier Express reservation = 49
St Moritz to Pontresina = 2.90
Pontresina to Zurich 3 trains = 136
x2 days of Zurich trams = 18.40
Zurich Museum = 13
Zurich to Lucerne = 46
Zurich to Zurich airport = 11.60
TOTAL =1,156.60 if we paid full price
This is the price per person, so we saved 260 each, meaning we saved 540 CHF overall on our transport for our honeymoon - that extra money is all needed when you're in a pricey country like Switzerland!
Helena on the Bella Epoque
And if you'd prefer to travel in 2nd class, the savings are proportionally similar. We would usually travel in 2nd class but since it was our honeymoon, 1st was an extra treat. But here's what the same journeys would have cost if we had done them all in 2nd class:
Our trips 2nd class full price:
Geneva airport to Geneva = 3
Geneva to Montreux = 32
Montreux to Chateau d'oex GPX ticket = 21.20
GPX reservation = 10
Chateau D’oex to Gstaad = 9.40
reservation = 10
Gstaad gondola = 36
Gstaad to Chateau d'oex = 9.40
Chateau D’oex to Zermatt 4 trains = 106
Sunnegga railway lift RT = 23
Gornergrat railway RT = 96
Glacier Paradise ticket = 95
Glacier Express ticket = 159
Glacier Express reservation = 49
Pontresina to Zurich 3 trains = 80
x2 days of Zurich trams = 18.40
Zurich Museum = 13
Zurich to Lucerne = 27
Zurich to Zurich airport = 7
TOTAL = 804.40 if we paid full price
Bear in mind that the 15 day Swiss Travel Pass for 2nd class is only 459 CHF. So again, even in 2nd class we would have saved 345 CHF.
This is a lot of numbers and very specific to our trip but I just want to emphasise the point that it's really helpful when deciding whether to get the Swiss Travel Pass, to work out what you plan to do in Switzerland and what the prices will be - this will help you to determine if the pass is worth it for you.
To find out the prices of the regular public transport trains in Switzerland, I highly recommend downloading the free SBB mobile app which is probably one of the best train mobile apps I've ever used. I downloaded it ahead of our trip and was easily able to input all our train journeys to see the prices for each.
Another one of the big benefits of the Swiss Travel Pass is having all your tickets in one place. The pass is an all-in-one unlimited travel card, so there’s no need for lots of pieces of paper or different documents on your phone for every ticket and every journey on your trip. Having one ticket for everything was SO easy.
Top tips for using the Swiss Travel Pass:
These are some of my tips for using the Swiss Travel Pass, both to help you plan ahead for your trip and also to help you while you're there.
You do not need to make reservations to use the regular public transport trains in Switzerland, you can simply turn up on the platform for your required train and board either 1st or 2nd class depending on your pass. Just be aware that most locals travel/commute in 2nd class so if you're travelling at a busy time then seats may be limited
Reservations are only required for panoramic trains such as the Glacier Express and GoldenPass. I recommend buying these ahead of time to secure your seat, particularly for the Glacier Express where tickets are released 93 days in advance and do sell out quickly (we booked only 5 weeks before and our original day was fully booked already, we had to reschedule some hotel plans and get our reservation for the following day)
Carry your passport or ID with you when using your Swiss Travel Pass. This is a condition of using the pass
Use the SBB Mobile app to plan your train travel. It's such a great train app, it's very efficient and up-to-date, fully available in English and even has information including carriage formation and services on board.
Whenever you do an activity in Switzerland, check at the counter if they accept the Swiss Travel Pass. I had no clue it included a lot of the cable cars at ski resorts too and it was only when we got to Gstaad cable car for hiking in the mountains and the lady at the counter asked if we had the pass, we then got 50% off the ticket! And cable cars/gondolas aren't cheap!
Switzerland Ski Lift
Summary: Should you get the Swiss Travel Pass?
So, is the Swiss Travel Pass worth it?
In the case of our trip, the travel pass was absolutely worth the money and our activities during our Switzerland itinerary earned the price of the pass back, and then some with what is included in the Swiss Travel Pass.
If you are planning a busy itinerary with lots of movement using Switzerland's extensive train network, then it is likely that the Swiss Travel Pass will be worth it for you and the benefits of the Swiss Travel Pass will make your trip much smoother and easier.
But do the maths, check the prices and I promise you, it's the trip of a lifetime!
