The most common question I’ve been asked since my family returned from our trip to Europe: Is Switzerland crazy expensive to visit? Sure, the views look great, but is visiting Switzerland realistic for most people?
I’m going to be real with you. Switzerland is not cheap. Certainly, many other countries in Europe are cheaper to visit (Spain, Portugal, Montenegro…). However, I don’t think the cost of visiting Switzerland is TOO crazy. Plus, it depends on what you do there. Let’s look at a few travel-related spending categories in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland.
Lodging in Switzerland
The main towns where people stay in Bernese Oberland include Grindelwald, Interlaken, Lauterbrunen, Wengen and Murren. All of those towns have hotels and apartment rentals in a wide variety of price ranges. In fact, even looking on vrbo.com for summer rates, I found decently-rated apartments for a family of five starting at ~$100/night. While we splurged for a bigger apartment with a view, I don’t consider lodging in Switzerland to be a budget-buster. (Note: We used hotel points to stay at Hyatt and IHG hotels near the airports in Geneva and Zurich before flying back home).
Swiss Trains
Ok, here’s where it starts to get a little pricey. Trains in Switzerland are significantly more expensive than the rest of Europe. Why? The tracks in the mountains need a lot of maintenance. I always noticed crews outside working on the rails. But, there must be more reasons, because even a train trip on flat land in Switzerland costs a bundle. For example, we took a train from Paris into Basel (right over the border of Switzerland). The price for my group of 6 to go from Basel to our apartment in Wengen would have cost around $300. And from Wenger to the airport in Switzerland? $350. That’s a bit steep.
This is where the Swiss Travel Pass comes in handy. These cover most trains, buses and boats. We purchased 6-day passes for 4 people, and my daughter and I purchased 15-day passes (since we stayed longer). The passes are not cheap by any means. But, when we added up the cost of individual train trips, the pass was definitely the way to go.
Here is the cost breakdown:
Adult pass for 6 days: 359 CHF (roughly the same in USD)
Adult pass for 15 days: $429
Youth pass (age 16-24): $254
Kids 15 and under: FREE! (They are issued a Swiss Family pass for no extra cost)
Note: In 2021, the Swiss Travel Pass went on sale for 25% off twice (July and Nov/Dec). I’m not sure if that sale will happen again.
So for my group of 6, we paid for 4 people with 2 kids free, and the total cost was $1296. Yes, that’s a big chunk of change However, most of our “entertainment” in Switzerland was taking a train or gondola somewhere. The passes also included free entrance to museums. My daughter and I used our passes to get into two castles and a St. Bernard museum.
Two of the major peaks (Schilltorn and Jungfraujoch) are not included in the Swiss Rail Pass. However, with our Swiss Travel Passes we got 50% off Schilthorn (plus our kids were free with our passes) and 25% off Jungfraujoch (kids free with pass). To save money, skip Jungfrauujoch and only visit Schilthorn. (I will review both of these in a future post).
Part of the charm of visiting this part of Switzerland is traveling on the trains. They are quiet and efficient, and they take you to the dreamiest places. I recommend budgeting for Swiss Travel Passes.
I did meet another American family who didn’t buy train passes. They stayed in Murren and didn’t venture to other parts of the region. There is still plenty to see in Murren, lots of hikes and views, and that strategy saved them money for sure. We also saw many people hiking between the towns instead of taking trains. Trails are well marked.
Food
This part of Switzerland has many restaurants that overlook mountains, cliffs, waterfalls, etc. They have delicious food like cheese fondue, steak and ice cream. And yes, they are quite expensive.
Most entrees cost between $30-$40. My family went out to lunch every day in Switzerland at these gorgeous restaurants, and the bill was usually around $200 for six people. However, there is no tipping in Switzerland, which does save some money.
A pot of cheese fondue was a bit cheaper, usually around $25 a person. Rosti dishes also tended to be less expensive.
To save money on food, my family ate out just once a day, for lunch. We shopped at the local grocery store for breakfast and dinners. The store in Wengen had a lot of ready-made sandwiches for around $5.
After some of my family members went home and it was just my daughter and I in Switzerland, I’m not ashamed to admit that we skipped the fancy restaurants and ate at McDonald’s a few times. Yes, I said it. We certainly tasted a lot of local food, and I didn’t feel deprived by eating some American fast food.
Overall Thoughts
Yes, Switzerland is expensive. However, visiting Switzerland doesn’t have to break the bank. Consider staying just a few days to get a taste of the region instead of staying a full week or more. Budget ahead for rail passes, and come up with a plan to control your food expenses. Switzerland is worth the visit, I promise!
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Author: Nancy
Nancy lives near Dallas, Texas, with her husband and three kids. Her favorite vacations include the beach, cruising and everything Disney.
Adam says
I always recommend that people going to Switzerland for more than a few days consider the Half Fare Card (120 CHF for 1 month). Most Swiss people get the annual version of the card, so you are effectivley getting the price most locals pay. It applies to almost all of the trains, lake steamers, funiculars, cable cars, etc. It basically pays for itself with a single round trip to Jungfraujoch.
Nancy says
@Adam Yes, that’s a good one, too.
Tammie says
Good tips!
I love Switzerland! It’s magical 🙂
Christian says
Did you try rosti pizza? It’s a crazy yummy carb bomb.
Nancy says
@Christian I didn’t! Sounds interesting.
Craig says
Hi, Nancy. Why did you decide against renting a car?
Nancy says
@Craig Good question! Most of the places we were visiting in Switzerland were not accessible by car. We stayed in a car-free village on top of a mountain, and many of the places we visited were only accessible by mountain train and/or gondola.
projectx says
From what I understand, the train and public transportation system is incredibly robust. It doesn’t sound like a car is necessary, and as Nancy alluded to some mountain towns don’t allow them at all.
patrick says
For all things Switzerland try this WEB side. A ton of info is provided and they are REALLY good at answering any and all questions regarding traveling, staying, lodging, etc. They were very helpful when I was planning my trip to Switzerland.
https://www.myswissalps.com/
projectx says
Great tip, thank you!
Nancy says
@Patrick Yes! I used this website as well.
Debit says
Switzerland and Norway definitely are two places to budget with a hawk eye BEFORE you go.
Nancy says
@Debit for sure!
Nancy says
I forgot to mention in the post that we used our Swiss Travel Passes on a paddlewheel boat on Lake Geneva. The boat goes to various towns along the lake. I wish we had time to explore more of that area.
Aleks says
Good info about train passes. I like travel on trains, some places they are very efficient and nice, some places you’ll loose a lot of valuable vacation time using them. To compare, Japan Rail Pass cost around $260 that included some bullet trains and a a network of local trains – used it well, but planning was needed to figure out Japanese rail system (complicated).
On the other occasion in Peru, I opted for 10-hour bus trip instead of 12-16 hour train ride (with possible delays) to save time and had a better experience by visiting few really cool places/towns on the way. The train won’t allowed that.
I wish the US have an efficient train system, bit it’s far from there, and hi-speed routes are still in discussion. Most trucks are owned by cargo-moving companies. And most Americans are forgotten how to travel on trains for 2 generations.
Nancy says
@Aleks I wish we had a better rail system here, too. Supposedly a high speed train is in the works between Dallas and Houston, but I don’t believe construction has even started. I thought the train system in Switzerland was fairly easy to navigate.
projectx says
That would never work here. Because… ‘MERICA! 😉
projectx says
Great info on the rail pass. Even better kids under 15 are free… that will save us a bundle!
Nancy says
Thank goodness kids were free! I’m also thankful that two of our “kids” got the reduced fair for 24 and under.