Swiss Half Fare Card

Swiss Half Fare Card at a glance

What it is	A discount card, not a ticket — you buy every ticket at 50% off
2026 price	CHF 150, valid for one month
Covers	50% off trains, boats, buses, city transport and most mountain railways
Children	Under 6 free; 6–15 free with the Swiss Family Card + a parent’s card
Break-even	Pays for itself after about CHF 300 of full-fare travel in the month
Best for	Slow travelers, few-ride trips, and big-ticket mountains like Jungfraujoch

How the Half Fare Card works

Unlike the Swiss Travel Pass, the Half Fare Card is not a ticket — it is a discount card. You still buy a ticket for every journey (easiest in the SBB app, where you set Half Fare once and every price shown is already halved), but you pay 50% of the fare, every time, for one month. There is nothing to activate and no travel days to count.

Who actually saves with it

• Slow travelers: staying 1–2 weeks in one region with occasional excursions rather than daily train days.
• Mountain collectors: the 50% applies to most mountain railways — often beating the Swiss Travel Pass discount on big-ticket peaks like Jungfraujoch.
• Short-trip, few-rides visitors: in Switzerland 3–4 days with only a couple of train journeys, CHF 150 + half fares can undercut any pass.

The quick math: the card pays for itself once you would have spent about CHF 300 on full-fare tickets in the month. Riding trains nearly every day for a week? The Swiss Travel Pass usually wins — full comparison in our Swiss Travel Pass vs Half Fare Card guide.

Families: kids still travel free

The Swiss Family Card works here too — children aged 6–15 travel free with a parent holding a valid Half Fare Card, and under-6s are always free. For a family doing a handful of travel days in a month, Half Fare Card + free kids is one of the cheapest ways to move a family around Switzerland. Route ideas in our family itinerary guide.

The break-even math, in one line

The card costs CHF 150 and saves you half of every fare, so it pays for itself once you would have spent CHF 300 on full-fare tickets within the month. That is the entire calculation. Everything else is just working out whether your trip reaches CHF 300.

Most people get there faster than they expect, because mountain railways are where the money sits. A single return to a major peak priced at CHF 200 full fare hands back CHF 100 — two thirds of the card recovered in one morning. Two excursions like that and the card has paid for itself before you board a single intercity train.

The trap runs the other way too. A trip built around one long transfer and a lot of walking may never reach CHF 300, and then the CHF 150 is simply money spent.

When the Half Fare Card is the wrong choice

Three situations where we would tell you not to buy it:

• You plan to ride trains on most days. Daily train travel across a week almost always favours the Swiss Travel Pass, which also covers museums and includes some mountain routes outright rather than discounting them.
• Your trip straddles a month boundary. Validity runs one month from the start date you pick, not one month of travel. A trip from 28 September to 8 October is fine on one card; two short trips five weeks apart need two.
• You do not want to buy a ticket every time. This is a real cost, not a small one. Every journey needs a ticket bought before boarding, and boarding without one is a fine. The card is not a ticket and does not protect you.

FAQ – Swiss Half Fare Card

How does the Swiss Half Fare Card work?

You buy the card once (CHF 150, valid one month), then buy each ticket at 50% off — in the SBB app, at machines or counters. Select the Half Fare option when buying and show the card if a conductor asks. It applies to trains, boats, buses, city transport and most mountain railways.

Half Fare Card or Swiss Travel Pass — which saves more?

Count your travel days. Riding trains on most days of a week-long trip usually favors the Swiss Travel Pass, which also adds free museums and included peaks. Traveling on only 2–4 days in a month, staying in one region, or taking mostly short rides usually favors the Half Fare Card. The break-even sits around CHF 300 of full-fare travel in a month.

Does the Half Fare Card cover mountain excursions?

Most mountain railways and cable cars give the full 50% discount with the Half Fare Card — including many routes where the Swiss Travel Pass only gives 25–50%. For Jungfraujoch specifically, the Half Fare Card discount is often the stronger of the two.

Do children travel free with the Half Fare Card?

Yes — children under 6 always travel free, and children aged 6–15 travel free with the free Swiss Family Card when accompanied by a parent holding a valid Half Fare Card.

Is the Half Fare Card a ticket?

No — it is a discount card, not a ticket. You still buy a ticket for every ride, just at half price. If you board without buying a ticket you can be fined, unlike with the Swiss Travel Pass which is itself the ticket.

Know which one fits? Both the Half Fare Card and the Swiss Travel Pass are sold online with instant e-ticket delivery.