Trip to Switzerland October half term

[Orquid]

Hi

We are going to Switzerland in October half term and wondering if we should buy the train passes; we have rented a car but want to do some trains rides, boat, cable car, etc. Not sure how many days to buy it for?

Oldest DD is 16 so no free anymore? Will we have to provide proof of age? Or can we get away with a free ticket?

Any other advice would be appreciated. Going self catering and staying near lake Luzern, but not exactly in main town.

Or shall we cancel the car and do everything by public transport?

We had a car but were driving from Geneva to Grindelwald and didn't fancy lugging lots of luggage on the train. Are you flying into Zurich? The public transport in Switzerland is honestly second-to-none but we were glad to have the convenience of our own transport (be aware they are not fans of cars in Switzerland and the rules are very strict, we were hit with a €380 fine for doing 32mph in a 30mph zone!).

From Lucerne to Meiringen via Hasliberg is very pretty, especially if there is some snow. Meiringen is where Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty finished up and there is a SH Museum and you can go on a rack railway up to the Reichenbach Falls and walk back down to the town.
You can get the train to Interlaken and take the mountain railway up to the Jungfraujoch via Lauterbrunnen and Wengen, or on the VBahn cable cars via Grindelwald, or go to the Schilthorn from Lauterbrunnen (train, bus then cable car, or railway then cable car.)
Ballenberg Open Air Museum is open until 29th October and makes a great day out. https://ballenberg.ch/en/plan-your-visit/opening-hours/

Depends on your itinerary but generally you do not need a car as public transport is extensive if costly. Some of the mountain passes may close for winter if there is snowfall. You will need id for the children's tickets. By the end of October many lifts will close or run a limited service so do check beforehand.

Use the public transport, if you can. Even in self-catering, your "city tax" may entitle you to free access to buses and trams - it is the best value thing in Switzerland, which is generally very expensive for people from the UK. And, yes, the trains are very reliable and prompt.

Thank you everyone. Trying to decide whether we buy the 8 days pass and cancel the car as we do want to do some of the trains rides

Check which railways are covered as not all mountain railways and cable cars will be.

your DD will very likely be asked for ID and you will get a fine if you have the wrong ticket for her. I wouldn’t risk it.