Swiss Travel Pass, everything you need to travel through Switzerland
If you are planning a trip to Switzerland, you will be interested in getting well informed about the Swiss Travel Pass. This transport pass is a wonderful option for those who want to fully enjoy this incredible alpine country without having to worry about how to get there, where to park, or how to pay for parking.
But what is the Swiss Travel Pass, how does it work, how much does it cost, is it worth it?
What is the Swiss Travel Pass?
The Swiss Travel Pass is an integrated transport card offered by Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), the main railway company in Switzerland. It is only available for tourists, not for residents in Switzerland. Without a doubt, it is the best ally to move around Heidi’s country without worries and being able to contemplate its impressive landscapes all the time.
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What does the Swiss Travel Pass include?
When buying the Swiss Travel Pass you will have unlimited access to trains, buses, trams and boats of the Swiss public transport network. You will be able to take all those means of transport without having to book anything and as many times as you need during the days that the modality of Swiss Travel Pass you have chosen lasts.
Yes, you read that right, it also includes boats. You can do, for example, cruises by boat from Interlaken on the lakes of Thun and Brienz. From Lucerne across Lake Lucerne, from Geneva across Lake Geneva, also across the lake of Zurich, without paying anything extra.
But wait, I will continue to tell you about more advantages of the Swiss Travel Pass that will make you realize it is indeed worth it.
This tourist transport card also offers you free entry to more than 500 museums and exhibitions throughout the country (check here the museums included in the Swiss Travel Pass) For example, with the Swiss Travel Pass you can enter for free to the castles of Chillon, Gruyères or Thun and museums as famous as the Olympic Museum in Lausanne. Perhaps, at first, you travel to Switzerland thinking only about making the most of its nature, but on rainy days (which are not rare, there is a reason why everything is so green) you will be grateful to have indoor plans completely for free.
It also includes three unique experiences completely for free such as conquering Mount Rigi by cogwheel train after a cruise on Lake Lucerne, reaching the summit of Stanserhorn in a futuristic open-top cable car and go up to Stoos on the world’s steepest funicular.
As if that weren’t enough, the Swiss Travel Pass also includes the most famous panoramic trains in Switzerland: Glacier Express, Bernina Express, Golden Pass, the Gotthard Panorama Express and the Luzern – Interlaken Express. In the case of the first two, the most famous ones, a seat reservation is required in advance, which costs about 35 francs.
Anyway, keep in mind that this is to get on panoramic trains with large windows, but remember that you can do exactly the same journey on normal trains, without needing to pay that extra, since they go on the same tracks, although the windows are smaller.
On other panoramic trains, the payment of an extra fee to reserve a seat is not a mandatory requirement, only recommended in high season. For example, this summer I decided to improvise and do a section of the Golden Pass without a reservation and I had no problems.
Another benefit of the Swiss Travel Pass is that it gives you up to a 50% discount on cable cars, funiculars, and cogwheel trains. This represents a huge saving during the trip to Switzerland because you will need to get on many of them to visit many iconic places in this destination.
Usually, to benefit from this discount you have to buy the ticket directly at the ticket office. There are some that you can buy online in advance, such as tickets for Jungfrau (Top of the Rock), First, Harder Kulm and Schynige Platte, but always remember to check the Swiss Travel Pass box so that the discount is applied.
Once again, this is not essential and I recommend that you do not buy tickets for mountain peaks like these in advance because the weather might not be good later and it might not be worth going up if the fog covers everything, for example. This summer in August I went up to First by getting the ticket at that same moment at the ticket office without any problem. While it’s true that the Jungfrau can have more demand and that’s why some people reserve earlier if you want to ensure going up at a specific time.
I am summarizing here everything included in the Swiss Travel Pass:
- Unlimited use of trains, buses, trams, and boats on the Swiss public transport network.
- Three mountain excursions: train to Rigi, cable car Stanserhorn and funicular Stoos.
- Panoramic trains: Glacier Express, Bernina Express (for these two, it is necessary to reserve a seat in advance at an extra cost of about 35 francs), Golden Pass, Gotthard Panorama Express and Luzern – Interlaken Express.
- Free access to 500 museums and places of interest such as castles, for example.
- Discounts of up to 50% on cable cars, funiculars, and cogwheel trains.
- The children under 16 travel for free as long as they are accompanied by at least one of their parents thanks to the Swiss Family Card.
If you’re wondering where to purchase this transport pass, you should know that you must do so through official providers. Here you can buy it in a quick and easy way, as well as saving you some euros on the exchange rate:
Swiss Travel Pass 2025 prices and options
In 2025, the Swiss Travel Pass is available in several versions to adapt to the needs of different travelers. Take a look to see which one is most worth it for you based on what each one offers and discover how much the Swiss Travel Pass costs in 2025 depending on the days, your age, and whether you travel in first or second class.
Swiss Travel Pass
The standard option is the Swiss Travel Pass which offers unlimited travel during a consecutive number of days. You can choose a pass for 3, 4, 6, 8 and 15 consecutive days.
As you will see, prices vary depending on whether you choose to travel by train through Switzerland in first or second class.
Here are the updated Swiss Travel Pass prices valid until December 2025:
- 3 days in second class: €258. / In first class: €410
- 4 days in second class: €312 / In first class: €496
- 6 days in second class: €400 / In first class: €636
- 8 days in second class: €442 / In first class: €703
- 15 days in second class: €484 / In first class: €764
Swiss Travel Pass Flex
The Swiss Travel Pass Flex offers the possibility to choose the days you are going to use the Swiss Travel Pass within a one-month period without needing them to be consecutive days.
You can buy the Swiss Travel Pass Flex to use it for 3, 4, 6, 8 or 15 non-consecutive days within a month. Although this option is slightly more expensive, it is great for those planning a trip to Switzerland of more than 15 days. If you plan your route well to combine the most expensive journeys and cable cars on specific days, you can save a lot of money.
Once you receive the confirmation email for the purchase of the Swiss Travel Pass Flex, you will have to activate on this official website the days you want to use it in advance.
Swiss Travel Pass Flex 2025 prices are slightly higher:
- 3 days in second class FLEX: €294 / In first class FLEX: €470
- 4 days in second class FLEX: 357€ / In first class FLEX: 569€
- 6 days in second class FLEX: 427€ / In first class FLEX: 680€
- 8 days in second class FLEX: 463€ / In first class FLEX: 736€
- 15 days in second class FLEX: 506€ / In first class FLEX: 798€
Swiss Travel Pass Youth
This is a discounted version of the normal or Flex Swiss Travel Pass for young people between 16 and 25 years old. It offers the same benefits as the regular pass, but with a 30% discount on the prices you just saw.
Swiss Family Card
This is a free option that can be added when purchasing the Swiss Travel Pass or also the Swiss Half Fare Card. It allows children between 6 and 16 years old to travel for free if accompanied by at least one adult with one of these two passes. Simply, you will have to remember to add the child when buying the parents’ pass. You will receive an electronic ticket with the Swiss Family Card.
If you forget, it doesn’t matter because you can request the Swiss Family Card upon arrival in Switzerland at the ticket offices at any train station. I did it on one of my trips at Sion station without any problem and they gave me a printed ticket. Keep it safe throughout the trip in case the conductor asks for it and to present it at the ticket offices for cable cars and mountain trains to get the 50% discount
Children under 6 years old do not pay anything on Swiss trains, nor do they have to get a ticket, as long as they are accompanied by an adult.
From the age of six, if you do not have the Swiss Travel Pass, another option is to get them the Junior TravelCard which allows children between 6 and 16 years old to travel for free on public transport in Switzerland by paying only 30 Swiss francs per year.
Swiss Half Fare Card
If you are thinking about renting a car to travel by road in Switzerland, this option will interest you for combining car journeys with trains. By purchasing the Swiss Half Card you get a 50% discount on trains, buses, boats, and public transport for one month. In addition, it also includes a reduction on mountain excursions for cable cars, some funiculars, and trains that can reach up to 50%. In the case of the ascent to the Jungfrau, the discount is higher than with the Swiss Travel Pass.
However, you must take into account some differences between the Swiss Travel Pass and the Swiss Half Fare Card. The main one is that with this half-fare pass you do not have free entry to museums, nor to places of interest such as castles, the Maison Cailler chocolate factory, or the Maison Gruyeres cheese museum. Nor do they give you a discount.
For 2025, the price of the Swiss Half Card for one month is 127‐ If you are traveling with children, remember to include the Swiss Family Card option so they can travel for free without paying.
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Cmo funciona el Swiss Travel Pass
Using this personal and non-transferable tourist transport card is very simple. Once you decide to buy the Swiss Travel Pass, you will receive an email with a pdf to download containing your personalized QR code, you do not need to carry anything printed on paper.
With this QR you can now get on trains, buses, and boats without the need to buy additional tickets, or go through ticket offices, nor to reserve a seat (with the exception of the Glacier Express and Bernina Express panoramic trains). Just hop on and show the Swiss Travel Pass on your mobile to the inspectors when they request it. Remember to have your ID or passport handy just in case, although in the four times I have traveled with the Swiss Travel Pass they have never asked me for it.
When buying it, it will ask you to indicate the start date; this way, it will be automatically activated on that day. In case you have bought the Flex version, you will have to activate it one day before on this website. But don’t worry, you will receive instructions on how to do it correctly.
Is the Swiss Travel Pass worth buying?
The answer is: it depends. To know whether it’s worth buying this card, you first need to have a clear idea of the route you want to take through Switzerland. Generally speaking, if you’re visiting more than one area and going up two or three mountains, it’s most likely worth it to buy the Swiss Travel Pass because the prices for individual train journeys are very high. To give you an idea, a second-class train journey from Geneva airport to Lucerne already costs 52 francs.
Although at first the price of the Swiss Travel Pass might seem expensive, keep in mind that it already includes the transfer from the airport, all the public transport you’ll use to get around at your destination, boat excursions, travel on panoramic trains, and you will save a lot of money when taking cable cars, funiculars, and cogwheel trains that you’ll surely want to use, as they are necessary to reach many of the most beautiful corners of Switzerland like the Jungfrau, Mount Pilatus, First in Grindelwald, or lakes like Oeschinen or Blausee.
And if you’re going to Switzerland with kids, you have free plans included in the Swiss Travel Pass to enjoy with them, such as having fun at the Ballenberg museum, eating as much chocolate as possible at Maison Cailler, becoming knights and princesses at Chillon Castle, learning how cheese is made at Maison Cailler, or playing non-stop in the children’s area on the Thun and Brienz boats.
If your alternative is to move by vehicle, keep in mind that car rental prices in Switzerland are very high, as is gasoline, and you must also add the price of the vignette, an annual tax that you must buy for about 40 CHF and place on the windshield to travel on the country’s roads (you can now also buy it online). Gasoline is also very expensive and parking, besides being complicated, also increases the cost of the trip.
Also, keep in mind that to go up to many of the mountain locations there are simply no roads, so you will have no choice but to park the car and take a train, funicular, or cable car paying 100%.
If you have doubts, the only thing you can do is calculate to find out the price you would pay buying tickets separately compared to what the Swiss Travel Pass costs you. You can see the updated 2025 prices on SBB, the official Swiss rail transport website. but make sure you get the full fare because, sometimes by default, it gives you the reduced fare that you would only have with the Swiss Half Fare Card; you can change it in the filters.
My experience on the four trips through Switzerland with the Swiss Travel Pass was very good. Not only because of the financial savings it entails, but also for the comfort and peace of mind provided by being able to enjoy the landscapes so brutal in Switzerland without having to worry about driving. In this country, if you blink you might miss a hidden waterfall, a snowy peak, or any other incredible spot.
Also, if you are traveling with children, for example, they can move freely through the carriage making the journeys much more bearable. And there are trains that have a children’s zone with a slide and play area.
And if it rains, which is quite likely, you will have free plans included as an alternative by being able to enter museums or take a boat for a small cruise (be careful as some also have a children’s area even with a supervisor).
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