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Sequoia National Park & Kings Canyon National Park, California

Old Pasadena and Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Garden, California 

Aix-en-Provence France

Avignon and Provence Villages France

 

 WONDERFUL SWISS HOLIDAY Golden Pass Train (Montreux - Interlaken - Lucerne) and Chocolate Train 

 

Lugano Switzerland

Zermatt Switzerland

Zurich Switzerland

Lucerne Switzerland

Montreux & Chocolate Train Switzerland

 

Cape Town & 10 Other Posts on Southern Africa at bottom

 Nashville Tennessee & 2 Other Posts at bottom

Idyllwild, California 

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Wayne & Pat Dunlap
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We have visited 106 countries and 48 U.S. states in our lifetime.

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Airfare deals - How to Be the One on the Plane Who Paid the Lowest Price

Airfare deals - How to Be the One on the Plane Who Paid the Lowest Price

Note: we are not paid directly by any of these resources and use them to find travel bargains just like you would.

• For good airfare deals, we use Google Flights (Google.com/flights) and Skyscanner.com.

Many of the large online travel booking sites have been bought and owned by the same companies so the prices they yield are almost the same. The Frommers travel organization did a study of all the major airfare booking websites and Google Flights (Google.com/flights) and Skyscanner consistently reported good airfare deals.

• For International airfare deals: Airtrek.com books a substantial number of flights and they do deals with airlines for volume deals. We have been using AirTreks for years now. After searching fares and coming up with goods deals, we then called AirTreks and they always had as good or better rates.

• Be flexible – Dates, Times, & Airports - It is amazing that just changing your flight timing a day or so, different hour, or even to a nearby airport will yield great airfare deals. Again, Skyscanner offers a "Whole Month" option where you can see cost of flights on days around the day you are interested in and an "Everywhere" option to evaluate possible savings to nearby airports.

• On the average, flying on these days offer the best airfare deals: Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday.

• Again, on the average, these are the best days to purchase for airfare deals: Saturday through Tuesday afternoon. Click here to learn more.

• Booking ahead can yield good airfare deals – 8 weeks Domestic (average 19% savings) and 24 weeks International (average 27% savings). If you are flexible in your travel plans, waiting to book the last minute can also yield airfare deals if you can risk not finding a flight or possible higher prices.

• Basic Fares - The major airlines need to compete with the budget airlines and are offering lower service 'Basic Fares'. They can be good airfare deals but be sure to read the details. Sometimes they are non-cancelable and regularly have fees such as luggage, seat selection, and possibly other fees. But if that is OK, go for it - we do.

• Airfare alerts are a good way to find airfare deals. You can go to the following websites and enter in your flight plans and when good fares come up, they will notify you - Yapta.com, Skyscanner.com.

• Airfare deals in Europe: Many booking websites do not include flights from budget airlines. You can use Flycheapo.com when searching flights in Europe to locate the budget airlines that service your needs and then you can go to their websites to book your flights.

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Click here to see many more free travel tips and bargain-finding strategies to travel for half the cost for all levels of travel.

WONDERFUL SWISS HOLIDAY Golden Pass Train (Montreux - Interlaken - Lucerne) and Chocolate Train

WONDERFUL SWISS HOLIDAY Golden Pass Train (Montreux - Interlaken - Lucerne) and Chocolate Train (6/4 -13/2024)

Golden Pass Train - Switzerland

This could be one of your favorite trips - it was for us. The famous Golden Pass train ride takes you through unforgettable breath-taking landscapes traveling through some of the most stunning scenery in beautiful Switzerland (see photo). You can stop along the way to have wonderful visits at some of the best cities in Switzerland (Geneva, Montreux, Interlaken, Lucerne, and Zurich) - see below for a wonderful Swiss vacation itinerary.

Beautiful Swiss Countryside

The Golden Pass panoramic train cars feature large windows that stretch up to the ceiling. Seats are very comfortable, both in first and second class. The total trip without stopping is 5.5 hours. Reserving seats is required. Although not as special as the Golden Pass, the regular Swiss trains are great running along the same route and require no seat reservation.

Breakfast - Golden Pass Train

The Golden Pass food service is excellent prepared fresh on the train. Travelers on the Golden Pass train can pre-order local and international dishes and enjoy it during the journey. Options range from drinks, breakfast (see photo), snacks, and local cheese/meat plates served at your seat where you have a table.

Beautiful Swiss Lake and Village

The Golden Pass train travels between French-speaking Montreux and German-speaking Lucerne. It is operated by two different train companies - MOB between Montreux - Interlaken and Zentralbahn between Interlaken - Lucerne. 

Lavaux Vineyard Terraces - Swiss Riviera

From Montreux, the scenic route runs along the shores of Lake Geneva, past the terraced vineyards of Lavaux (see photo) and many impressive castles to the peaks of the Gstaad region and the Simmental Valley. You can travel this route either on the modern panoramic train or on the recreated Golden Pass Belle Epoque train with upholstered seats that operates year round.

Quaint Swiss Villages Along Lakes

Between Interlaken - Lucerne, you will take the Luzern-Interlaken Express. You will enjoy beautiful scenery (see photo), including many picturesque lakes such as the Lake Sarner, Lake Lungern, Lake Brienz, and Lake Geneva. The trains are comfortable. Most offer large panoramic windows and some have catering.

Zurich's Beautiful Old Town

The following is a wonderful 2-week Swiss holiday going either way taking the Golden Pass panoramic trains when convenient. If you plan stops along the way (and you should), the regular Swiss trains are great, have more flexible schedules, and run along the same route. 

Lucerne's Wonderful Old Town

If you have less time you can eliminate a stop. Geneva and Zurich have excellent flight schedules available. Click on these links to see great things to do, where to stay and eat, and special attractions that we enjoyed in these amazing cities…

Geneva - 2 nights
Montreux & Chocolate Train - 3 nights
Interlaken - 3 nights
Lucerne - 3 nights
Zurich - 3 nights
Note: we visited Geneva and Interlaken on previous trips before we started this Travel Blog.

Golden Pass Prestige Train

Here is the information about booking the Golden Pass and Chocolate trains that should help you save a LOT of time... and frustration! These special trains do book out early, especially during the busy season, so try starting 93 days ahead and every day after. I found starting a couple of days before that sometimes worked. Don’t worry if you miss the panoramic trains because regular Swiss trains are great and will have seats available.

The Golden Pass is run by two separate train companies...

The Montreux-Interlaken Ost Golden Pass train can be booked on the MOB website. Both sides of the train are very nice. The best views are on the left side of the train when traveling Interlaken-Montreux and right side if traveling Montreux-Interlaken).

The Interlaken Ost-Luzern Golden Pass train between Interlaken Ost and Lucerne can be booked directly via the Zentralbahn.

Here you can find more information about the Golden Pass train. Here is a good website to learn to best way to book the famous Swiss panoramic trains rides. Also, the Swiss train website is wonderful for researching and booking regular Switzerland trains well as the panoramic trains.

Pretty Village of Gruyeres & Castle

From Montreux, we enjoyed the MOB Swiss Chocolate Train (Train du Chocolat) even though most the trip is on a bus (only 45 minutes is by train). This 7-hour excursion takes you through beautiful Swiss countryside to experience how Swiss chocolate and Gruyere cheese are made with lots of sampling. Then you are taken to the beautiful traffic-free medieval village of Gruyères, the cheese capital of Switzerland. You are given 2 hours to explore this quaint village, have lunch, and visit the castle.

Chocolate Train (Train du Chocolat)

You board the Chocolate Train at the Montreux train station on the 1915 Golden Pass Bell Epoque train where you are taken back in time to the plush velvety seats and ornate bar cars. While watching incredible views along Lake Geneva you get into the chocolate mood being served hot chocolate, chocolate, and pastries. Click on this link for more information about the Chocolate Train: (Montreux & Chocolate Train). The Chocolate train out of Montreux can be booked on this MOB website (note: don't worry about the "Montreux, gare" destination because it is round trip back to Montreux).

Map of Switzerland Panoramic Trains

Interesting fact: Switzerland has long been known for its fine chocolate and cheese. The Swiss chocolate industry produced over 200,000 tons of chocolate worth $1.7 billion in 2018. It mostly goes to Switzerland, Germany, UK, France, and Canada. The Swiss chocolate brands make up around 40% of the world’s global chocolate production. Alpine milk sets Swiss chocolate apart. It is sourced from high-altitude farms in the Swiss mountains. Due to it being denser and less aerated, alpine milk gives Swiss chocolate a rich fragrance and an extremely milky texture. I liked Läderach Chocolate with stores in many Swiss cities.

Lovely Swiss Lakeside Villages - Golden Pass

Note: You may have some trouble using your credit cards. This may be caused by increased fraud alerts. If you have troubles, call your credit card company and 1) put in your travel dates, 2) ask for 3-D security clearance, 3) maybe a higher fraud alert, and 4) what they suggest to fix the problem. I found the fraud alert department to be much more knowledgeable than the regular contact number folks who didn't solve the problem.

We had a wonderful time on our Swiss adventure on the Golden Pass panoramic trains visiting some of the best cities in Switzerland!

Please see other great place in Switzerland, Click on these links... 

Zurich Switzerland

Lucerne Switzerland 

Lugano Switzerland

Zermatt Switzerland 

Montreux & Chocolate Train Switzerland 

St. Moritz Switzerland

Brig Switzerland 

Chur Switzerland

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Travel for half the cost for all levels of travel from budget to luxury and 100's of other unique travel tips! From a former Economic professor, experienced traveler (106 countries), award-winning travel photojournalist/blogger, featured speaker at large travel shows, host of the travel TV show Plan Your Escape® TV aired on the CW network, and travel columnist for the Huffington Post, and experienced traveler (106 countries), our popular 5-star customer rated groundbreaking and comprehensive how-to world travel book Plan Your Escape, Secrets of Traveling the World for Less Than the Cost of Living at Home reveals secrets how you can travel and see more for half the cost for all trips from weekend getaways to longer vacations and trips, experience more adventure and romance, safely realize your travel dreams with comprehensive planning tools and checklists, travel the world for less than $100/day for a couple, and much more!
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