Switzerland · Half Fare Card for visitors 2026Swiss Half Fare Card

How much is the Swiss Half Fare Card – and who can get it?

The card costs CHF 150 and is valid for one month from the date you choose when buying. All prices here are in Swiss francs (CHF); what that is in pounds, euros or dollars depends on the rate on the day you pay. During that month SBB gives you up to 50 % off trains, buses, boats, scenic trains, mountain railways and cable cars, plus local transport in more than 90 Swiss towns, in 2nd and 1st class alike. Swiss Travel System, which sells the passes, is more precise: 50 % on train, bus and boat, “up to 50 %” on most mountain excursions.

• Who can buy it. Only people whose permanent residence is outside Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
• ID. Valid only together with a passport or official identity card, the original – copies or photos do not count.
• What you still do. You still buy every ticket yourself, just at half price. The card is not a ticket.

What the Half Fare Card halves on the mountains

The advertising says “up to 50 %”. On the mountains on this site it really is 50 % everywhere – only the seat reservations on the scenic trains stay at full price.

The two scenic trains show where the half stops: only the ticket is halved. The reservation on the Glacier Express (CHF 54) and the Bernina Express (CHF 44 in peak season) you pay in full. And the card works on other passes too: the Jungfrau Travel Pass costs CHF 165 instead of 210 (three days) with a Half Fare Card, the Adventure Package on First CHF 60 instead of 90.

When the Swiss Half Fare Card is worth it

The sum is simple: the card saves you half, so you need to buy CHF 300 of full-fare travel in a month to get the CHF 150 back. Three typical trips, counting only the mountain railways:

Rule of thumb: One mountain: no card. Jungfraujoch plus a second mountain: Half Fare Card. And every train between Zurich, Interlaken, Zermatt or Lucerne saves another half on top – so the sum above is the cautious one.

Honestly: For a single day at Jungfraujoch the card does not pay, even though it takes CHF 130.60 off the trip: with the card you pay CHF 290.60, without it CHF 271.20. Only the train journey there or a second mountain tips the balance. Do the sum first rather than buying the card “just in case”.

Swiss Half Fare Card or Swiss Travel Pass?

The Swiss Travel Pass costs CHF 254 for three consecutive days in 2nd class and is a ticket in itself: trains, buses and boats are free, so is Rigi. On most mountain railways, though, it gives only the same 50 % as the Half Fare Card – and less at Jungfraujoch: from Interlaken Ost you pay CHF 189.60 with the Swiss Travel Pass and CHF 140.60 with the Half Fare Card.

The Half Fare Card wins if you stay in one place and ride mountains from there. The Swiss Travel Pass wins if you move on every day and cover a lot of rail kilometres. All passes with prices, four trips worked out and the Lucerne Travel Pass are on the Swiss Travel Pass page.

Swiss Half Fare Card or Halbtax travelcard: the difference

People living in Switzerland know the Halbtax (Half Fare Travelcard) as an annual subscription: CHF 190 in the first year for adults aged 25 and over, then CHF 170; young people aged 16 to 24 pay CHF 120, then CHF 100. It runs for a year, renews automatically and sits on the SwissPass card, which comes free with the subscription.

The Swiss Half Fare Card is the holiday version: one month, no subscription, no renewal, only for non-residents, issued as an electronic ticket. At the ticket office the effect is the same – half price.

Children: the Swiss Family Card

Children under 6 always travel free in Switzerland. For your own children aged 6 to 15, SBB adds a free Swiss Family Card per child when you buy – with it they travel free with you, as long as a parent with a valid Half Fare Card is along. Add the children under “add travellers” when buying. Without a parent the Family Card does not apply.

Where to buy the Swiss Half Fare Card

From SBB online or at any staffed ticket office, up to 11 months ahead, in francs and without a mark-up. You can show the card in the SBB Mobile app only if you bought it online while logged in. If you would rather pay in advance in euros, GetYourGuide sells it:

“I want the half-fare card for a month, but paid in euros.”

Switzerland: Swiss Half Fare Card

Swiss Half Fare Card, one month, 1st and 2nd class · ★ 4.6 from 369 reviews

from, per person€159.34

Check availability on GetYourGuide

Honestly: This is the same card SBB sells for CHF 150. Whether the euro price is higher depends on the exchange rate on the day you book – work it out. Also check whether the portal includes the free Swiss Family Card for your children; at SBB you simply add them when buying.