How the Swiss Family Card works
The Swiss Family Card is the bit that makes family travel in Switzerland cheap rather than eye-watering. It's not an extra product you buy, it's a free card that comes with both the Swiss Travel Pass and the Half Fare Card, one per child, and there's no limit on how many children a parent can bring along.
The catch is that it doesn't turn up by itself. You have to ask for it while you're buying your own pass, and you have to confirm that a parent will be travelling with the child. Get that wrong and you'll be sold a Youth pass instead, which costs real money and does a different job.
Swiss Travel Pass age bands: who's free and who pays
| Age | What they need | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Under 6 | Nothing | Free, always |
| 6 to 15 | Swiss Family Card, with a parent holding a pass | Free |
| 6 to 15 without a parent's pass | Own reduced pass | 50% of the adult price |
| 16 to 25 | Swiss Travel Pass Youth | 30% off the adult price |
| 26 and up | Adult pass | Full price, see what a pass costs |
If a child 6 to 15 is travelling without you for a day, there's also the Day Pass for Children at CHF 19 in second class and CHF 33 in first.
How to add the Family Card at booking
- Start buying your own Swiss Travel Pass as normal, and don't check out yet.
- Add each child as a passenger in the same booking, with their real date of birth.
- On the railway's own site, look for the checkbox confirming the child will be accompanied by a parent at all times. Tick it.
- Check that each child under 16 shows as a Swiss Family Card, not as a Youth pass.
- On a reseller, pick the option with "with Swiss Family Card" in its name, that's the same thing, worded differently.
- Pay, then head to activating your pass so everything's ready before your first train.
What to do if you missed the Family Card at checkout
Don't panic. The card is free and you can pick it up at any point of sale in Switzerland. The one hard rule is that you need it in hand before you board the first train, not after a conductor has already found a child travelling without a ticket.
Who counts as an accompanying adult?
This is where families get caught out. The railway's own rule is parent only. A grandparent, an aunt, an uncle or a close family friend doesn't qualify, even though some resellers loosely say "parent or grandparent" on their product pages. If the railway is checking, the railway's rule wins.
| Who's travelling with the child | What the child needs |
|---|---|
| A parent holding a Swiss Travel Pass or Half Fare Card | Swiss Family Card, free |
| A grandparent, aunt, uncle or friend | Their own reduced pass at 50%, or the adult buys a Children's Co-Travelcard |
The Children's Co-Travelcard for grandparents and other adults
The way round the parent-only rule is the Children's Co-Travelcard, which used to be called the Grandchildren Card. It's CHF 30 for a full year and it lets any adult carry children free on their own ticket, so one card covers a whole trip's worth of days out.
The snag is that it's sold only at a staffed counter inside Switzerland. You can't buy it from home and have it waiting, so treat it as a first-morning errand at your arrival station rather than something to tick off before you fly.
Where the Family Card doesn't apply: what a child pays
A few mountain railways and attractions price children separately. These are the fares a child 6 to 15 pays where the Family Card doesn't cover them, mostly when no parent is holding a pass:
| Where | Child 6 to 15 (CHF) | Adult (CHF) |
|---|---|---|
| Stanserhorn | 20.50 | 82 |
| Brienzer Rothorn | 28.50 | 96 |
| Mittelallalin | 39.50 | 79 |
| Monte San Salvatore (6 to 16) | 14 | 32 |
| Chillon Castle (under 6 free) | 7 | 15 |
Seat reservations for kids on the scenic trains
Reservations are the one place where your child's age stops helping you. Children 6 to 15 pay the adult rate for seat reservations: CHF 24 on the Gotthard Panorama Express and CHF 20 on the GoldenPass Express. Under 6 is free only if the child doesn't need a seat of their own, if you want them in a seat, you're paying for it.
Regional passes and children: the rules change
If you're topping up with a regional pass, don't assume the Family Card carries over. It usually doesn't.
| Pass | Child 6 to 15 |
|---|---|
| Berner Oberland Pass | Own pass, CHF 30 |
| Lucerne Travel Pass | Own pass, CHF 30 |
| Lake Geneva–Alps Pass | Free on the Junior Travelcard, alongside a parent holding the pass |
Mountains that earn a family day
Travelling with a pram or a baby: which routes work
For the Jungfraujoch, take the Grindelwald and Eiger Express route. It's the faster one and it's the pram and wheelchair one, so you're not choosing between speed and practicality. Eggishorn is also fine for prams and wheelchairs.
Glacier 3000 is the exception: children under 15 months aren't permitted because of the altitude, and it isn't recommended in pregnancy either. If you're heading on towards a neighbouring country afterwards, check how border crossings work with your pass.