SBB CFF FFS

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SBB (Swiss Federal Railways) - (Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses CFF, Ferrovie federali svizzere FFS) is the national railway company of Switzerland. It operates most of the Swiss rail network and is known for its punctuality and reliability.

Summary

  • SBB accepts FIP Coupons and FIP 50 Tickets
  • Reservation requirement and surcharges for international Eurocity trains from the Italian border and TGV trains from the French border

Validity of FIP Tickets

FIP Coupon: ✅FIP Coupon for relatives: ⛔FIP 50 Ticket: ✅

FIP Coupons and FIP 50 Tickets are valid without restriction on SBB connections. For cross-border journeys, either a continuous FIP 50 Ticket or FIP Coupons for both countries are required.

Overview SBB Network

Train Categories and Reservations

Intercity-Express (ICE)

Description:High-speed trains from Germany to Basel and sometimes further to Zurich, Bern, or Interlaken. Due to delays in Germany, these trains sometimes terminate unexpectedly in Basel and are replaced by substitute trains within Switzerland.Reservation possible: yesReservation required: no

Train à Grande Vitesse (TGV) ⚠️

Description:High-speed trains from France to Zurich via Basel.Reservations are mandatory outside Switzerland and for cross-border journeys.Reservation possible: yesReservation required: ⚠️ only for cross-border journeys

Eurocity (EC) / Eurocity-Express (ECE) ⚠️

Description:International trains to Germany and Italy.

⚠️ Trains to Italy require a surcharge and reservation from the Italian border. It is cheaper to travel to Italy by changing trains in Chiasso (See Travel to Italy). The surcharge can be purchased at the SBB ticket counter or on the train.Surcharge/Reservation:1st class: €132nd class: €11Reservation possible: yesReservation required: ⚠️ only for the Italian section

Intercity (IC)

Description:Fast national trains stopping only in major cities and transfer stations.Reservation possible: yesReservation required: no

Nightjet (NJ) / EuroNight (EN) ⚠️

Description:Nightjet night trains of ÖBB and EuroNight night trains of ČD, MÁV, and HŽ, operated by SBB in Switzerland. These run to Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig, Prague, Budapest, Ljubljana, and Zagreb, among others.These trains sometimes also operate as Intercity, Eurocity, or regional trains, in which case no reservation is required for seat cars.Reservation possible: yesReservation required: ⚠️ yes (not in seat cars when operating as Intercity, Eurocity, or regional trains)

InterRegio (IR) / RegionalExpress (RE)

Description:National trains stopping in larger cities.Reservation possible: yesReservation required: no

Regio (R) / S-Bahn (S)

Description:Trains stopping at all stations. In metropolitan areas also called S-Bahn.Reservation possible: no

Ticket and Reservation Purchase

Online

SBB Website
Reservation ✅
FIP 50 Tickets ✅
Reservation Costs
1st Class: 5 CHF
2nd Class: 5 CHF

FIP 50 Tickets

On the SBB website, FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased with the “50% Halbtax” discount, provided they are not a saver ticket, saver day pass, or a special ticket.1 This option is actually intended for passengers with a Halbtax subscription (SBB discount card), but is also accepted as a straightforward solution for FIP 50 Tickets. The Halbtax price is usually preselected by default on the SBB website.

Important Information

In urban areas, a ticket with Halbtax discount may also include transport operated by companies that do not accept FIP (e.g., trams or buses). These sections cannot be used with FIP, and the purchased ticket is not valid there without a Halbtax subscription.

Reservations

Individual national reservations can be purchased online at SBB. To do so, search for the connection using the regular journey planner. Then select the desired connection (“Choose ticket”) and you can then select the additional option “Seat reservation only”.

Sources

  1. SBB Community ↩︎

To Booking WebsiteAdditional Information
DB Website
Reservation ✅
FIP 50 Tickets ⛔
Reservation Costs
1st Class: €6.90
2nd Class: €5.50

Reservations

The reservation price is calculated per journey. This means that for connections with transfers, you only need to pay once for multiple trains.

Seat reservations can be purchased via the Deutsche Bahn website. To do so, select the “Book seat only” option in the search.

To Booking WebsiteAdditional Information
DB Website FIP (DB Employees)
Cross-border FIP 50 Tickets between Germany and Switzerland, with ticket portion only for the Swiss section. For Deutsche Bahn employees only.
Reservation ✅
FIP 50 Tickets ✅
Reservation Costs
1st Class: €6,90
2nd Class: €5,50
Through FIP 50 Tickets, continuous journeys on the ECE Frankfurt - Milan route can be booked up to Milan.

FIP 50 Tickets

Deutsche Bahn employees can purchase FIP 50 Tickets online for journeys from Germany to neighboring countries. These tickets are available in the DB Reisemarkt > Bahnangebote > Ausland > FIP-Angebot. The FIP 50 ticket is only valid for the foreign section of the route. This is especially important for DB employees, as FIP 50 Tickets are not valid in your own home country. Therefore, an additional ticket is required for the domestic section within Germany up to the border point.

Booking is only possible via the link in the DB Reisemarkt. Discounts do not need to be selected; they are applied automatically.

FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased for the following countries:

  • Poland
  • Austria
  • Italyonly Brenner route with Austria and ECE Frankfurt - Milan
  • Czech Republic
  • Switzerland
  • Luxembourg
  • Denmark
  • Netherlands
  • Belgium
  • France

Reservations

The reservation price is calculated per journey. This means that for connections with transfers, you only need to pay once for multiple trains.

Seat reservations can be purchased via the Deutsche Bahn website. To do so, select the “Book seat only” option in the search.

Additional Information
DB Website FIP (International)
Cross-border FIP 50 Tickets between Germany and Switzerland for the entire route (not valid in the issuing country of the FIP Card)
Reservation ✅
FIP 50 Tickets ✅
Reservation Costs
1st Class: €6,90
2nd Class: €5,50
Through FIP 50 Tickets, continuous journeys on the ECE Frankfurt - Milan route can be booked up to Milan.

FIP 50 Tickets

Online FIP 50 Tickets for journeys within Germany and neighboring countries can be booked via Deutsche Bahn. The tickets must include at least one section within Germany. The FIP 50 ticket is issued for the entire route. The ticket is not valid in the country where the FIP Card was issued; an additional ticket is required there.

Booking is only possible via the link. Discounts do not need to be selected—they are applied automatically.

FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased for the following countries, as long as a section in Germany is included:

  • Austria
  • Belgium
  • Czech Republic
  • Denmark
  • France
  • Germany
  • Italyonly Brenner route with Austria and ECE Frankfurt - Milan
  • Luxembourg
  • Netherlands
  • Poland
  • Switzerland

Reservations

The reservation price is charged per journey. For connections with transfers, you only pay once for multiple trains.

Seat reservations can be purchased via the Deutsche Bahn website. To do so, select the “Seat reservation only” option in the search.

To Booking WebsiteAdditional Information

By Phone

ÖBB Telephone
Nightjet booking
Reservation ✅
Reservation Costs
1st Class: €3.50
2nd Class: €3.50

ÖBB offers a booking hotline for tickets and reservations:

+43 (0) 5 1717

A credit card and email address are required for booking. ÖBB does not charge any additional fees for the booking process.

FIP 50 Tickets

FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased for travel within Austria and many European countries.

Tickets are cheaper if purchased in advance (1 day before travel or 15 days before travel).

Reservations

The reservation price is charged per train. For journeys with multiple trains, it may be cheaper to book via the (Deutsche Bahn).

However, seat reservations made with ÖBB can be cancelled:

  • 180 days to 15 days before departure: 100% refund of the reservation price
  • 14 days to 1 day before departure: 50% refund of the reservation price
Additional Information

On Site

SBB Ticket Office
Reservation ✅
FIP 50 Tickets ✅
Reservation Costs
1st Class: 5 CHF
2nd Class: 5 CHF

FIP 50 Tickets

FIP 50 Tickets for travel within Switzerland and to many European countries can be purchased at SBB ticket offices.

Reservations

Reservations can be made for Switzerland as well as for most trains throughout Europe.

Additional Information
SBB Ticket Machine
FIP 50 Tickets ✅

FIP 50 Tickets

At SBB ticket machines, FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased with the “50% Halbtax” discount, provided it is not a saver ticket, saver day pass, or a special ticket.1 This option is actually intended for passengers with a Halbtax subscription (SBB discount card), but is also accepted as a straightforward solution for FIP 50 Tickets. The Halbtax price is usually preselected at the machine.

Important Information

In urban areas, a ticket with Halbtax discount may also include transport operated by companies that do not accept FIP (e.g., trams or buses). These sections cannot be used with FIP, and the purchased ticket is not valid there without a Halbtax subscription.

Sources

  1. SBB Community ↩︎

Additional Information
DB Ticket Office
Reservation ✅
FIP 50 Tickets ✅
Reservation Costs
1st Class: €6.90
2nd Class: €5.50

Deutsche Bahn ticket offices are called DB Reisezentrum and are located in many larger stations throughout Germany.

FIP 50 Tickets

At DB ticket offices, FIP 50 Tickets can be purchased for journeys within Germany and to many European countries.

It is also possible to issue FIP 50 Tickets where only the section outside Germany is charged, and an additional ticket is required for the German section. This is especially important for DB employees, as FIP 50 Tickets are not valid in their home country.

Reservations

The reservation price is calculated per journey. This means that for connections with transfers, you only need to pay once for multiple trains.

Reservations can be made not only for Germany but also for a large number of trains throughout Europe.

Additional Information

On the Train

FIP Tickets cannot be purchased on the train. A penalty fee is charged for passengers without tickets. The only exception is the surcharge for cross-border long-distance trains to Italy.

Discounts

Children travel free on regular journeys (not special trips) up to and including 6 years of age. Children up to and including 15 years receive a 50% discount on the adult fare. From the age of 16, the regular adult fare applies.

Special Tariff Conditions

Buses and Rail Replacement Services

FIP Tickets are not valid on SBB-operated bus lines unless they are rail replacement services.

Mutual Recognition of SBB and BLS Coupons

The Swiss railway companies SBB and BLS have an agreement for mutual recognition of FIP Coupons. International FIP Coupons of SBB are fully accepted on the entire BLS rail network. 1

However, SBB Coupons are not valid on BLS ships on Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, nor on BLS buses, which mainly operate in the Emmental region. 1

Cross-border Trains (Italy, France)

For cross-border EC trains to Italy and TGV trains to France, a surcharge is required outside Switzerland in addition to the FIP Coupon. The surcharge can be purchased at ticket counters (in Switzerland, France, or Italy). On EC trains to Italy, it can also be purchased on board or at a reduced price via Deutsche Bahn. See Travel to Italy

Recommendations

Personal Tip

The FIP Coupon is especially worthwhile for SBB CFF FFS, as you can travel a dense rail network with few special conditions. Since reservations are uncommon on national connections in Switzerland, traveling is very relaxed. 1st class is also highly recommended, as the comfort is noticeably higher, especially in Giruno trains.

Sources

  1. DB Reisemarkt ↩︎ ↩︎