Jungfraujoch summer ticket-only purchase with STP

Grits

Hi, I am helping a guest out and would appreciate some guidance on how to buy a ticket-only (no seat reservation) for Grindelwald Terminal to Jungfraujoch (and back).

We have a Swiss Travel Pass and just now booked seat reservations for a Jungfraujoch visit from Grindelwald Terminal to Jungfraujoch for later this month. We’d like to buy the actual ticket closer to date when we see the weather forecast. I am trying to see how I can buy the ticket when it’s time. When I go online to sbb.ch, it only gives options for half-fare or full-fare. When I’m on the jungfraurailways website, it looks like the tickets are only sold with the seat reservation; I don’t see a place I can buy just the ticket. And when I’m on the sbb site, I see “regular offer” is 0 cost, which I know cannot be right. There’s “alternative offer” of point to point ticket that is 111chf for the roundtrip. And there’s a note “For the following routes, which require reservations, there are unfortunately no seats available: Eigergletscher - Jungfraujoch.” Does the 111chf/adult with STP 1st class and 0chf/child with family card from Grindelwald Terminal to Jungfraujoch round trip seem right? Should I be buying the tickets then this way on the SBB app… or am I missing a way to do it online through sbb.ch or the jungfraurailways site.

Many thanks for the guidance!

RolandP

Hello Grits

Welcome to the SBB community.

Very simple: they can purchase the ticket an any train station ticket office in Switzerland, even SBB conductors on SBB trains can sell the ticket. There is no need to prepurchase the ticket since you hold the seat reservation already.

The STP grants 25% off only, which cannot be handled by the SBB webshop. Jungfraujoch.ch does probably not offer it during the time where a seat reservation is mandatory, to force visitors to purchase the ticket plus a seat reservation.

Note: if the guest will stay most of their time in the Jungfrau area, the Swiss Travel Pass is not the most favorable ticket offer.

Kind regards,
Roland

Grits

RolandP Thank you very much! Ah, SBB website doesn’t handle the STP discount; that helps explain that puzzle for me.

I have a follow-up question for you - my guest is a little concerned that with the family, they could run a bit late to catch the train to Grindelwald Terminal and so may not have time to stop and buy the ticket from the ticket office in Grindelwald. Obviously, the goal is to leave plenty of time but in case not, is it possible to buy it from the SBB app (using “GA travelcard 1st class” and Junior travelcard for the adult and child respectively as the “travelcard for Switzerland” in passenger/co-passenger settings since you can buy it while on the go?

I appreciate you mentioning that the inspectors can even sell the tickets on the train. But I’m concerned that I read that if you don’t have a valid ticket on the trains, the inspectors fine you for that (?).

And thanks for your note about the travel pass. They will not be spending most of their time in the Jungfrau region while in Switzerland. It’s just Jungfraujoch is on their bucket list so they are staying a couple days in Grindelwald to go there.

Many thanks!!

Krist

Just buy the ticket at the station when you are here. You have the reservation. You can wait with buying the ticket will you have seen the weather. And you will non know what the weather is going to be like until the day itself.
So just wake up in the morning. Decide if you are going to make this trip or not, and if you do, go to the station and buy the ticket.

Grits

Krist Thank you! Have you ever known the tickets to “sell out”? We know things are different because now there are seat reservations required. Does that make it so it’s unlikely Eiger Express would sell out? (This is a bucket list activity for my guest so just trying to make sure waiting for day-of is not an issue with capacity.) Thanks!

Krist

Grits Thank you! Have you ever known the tickets to “sell out”?

Tickets never sell out. Tickets are merely a receipt that you have given the railway a certain amount of money…
The seat reservations are now required because there is a maximum of 5000 people that can visit the Jungfraujoch on any day. In the past it did not happen often that this limit was reached, but nowadays the limit is indeed hit more regularly.
Since you have a reservation you have nothing to worry about. You can just buy the ticket here.
Oh, and even though reservations are not mandatory I notice that on most days there are still plenty available as well. If you were to go to the station right now with the intention to go up today you would still get reservations for most departures.

I’ve also been on the eiger express a few times recently, and there were never big crowds. It is only during the winter skiing season that there are sometimes queues there.

So don’t overthink this.

Grits

Krist Thank you for your insights!