Eurail Passes are famous as a way to save money while exploring Europe, but they are also confusing and often misunderstood. They are still an amazing money-saving tool for certain types of travelers, and not a wise idea for most others. Before Europe introduced dynamic rail pricing (like airfares, where the price varies depending on when you buy it), a Eurail Pass was an easy way to save money since all tickets had fixed prices that were generally fairly expensive. These days most travelers can save far more money just by buying their train tickets at least a few weeks in advance.
That said, Eurail Passes are still great for longer trips and especially for people who like to make plans as they go. Dynamic rail pricing made advanced tickets much cheaper, but it also made last-minute tickets MUCH more expensive. Below we will discuss Eurail Passes and whether they are a good idea for your trip or not.
Disclosure: This is a reader-supported website and some of the links are affiliate links where a small commission is paid to help keep this site going.
Note: This article was written in 2012 and has been continuously updated since then, so all information is current as of April, 2024.
Eurail 2024 changes: New countries and a mobile version
This actually changed in 2019 and 2020, but it’s still a big deal and not many people were shopping for Eurail passes in the last couple of years. Eurail Passes now include England, Scotland, Wales, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Macedonia.
Aside from that it’s just the normal fact that they have updated the timetables as of December 2023 and have a few promotions going on, but those usually don’t happen over the busy summer season.
Eurail passes are now available in a mobile version
Until very recently, Eurail Passes were only available in paper form and they were quite confusing at first. You’d get a pass with a series of empty boxes on it and you’d need to enter your trip before you’d use your pass each day and then have the first conductor verify it. If you lost your ticket (and this was not uncommon), it was a whole ordeal to attempt to get a replacement.
Again in 2024 Eurail offers a fully mobile version that is delivered instantly to your mobile device with no delivery fee. And if you somehow lose your phone, you can resume using your Pass on your replacement with no extra headache. This is MUCH more convenient in every way and as long as you can keep track of your phone you’ll always have your train pass handy.
If your trip will be 2 weeks or less, a Eurail Pass probably won't be worth it
About half of the questions I get in the lengthy comment thread of this article are from people planning a trip of 3 or 4 stops in two weeks or less. The good news for those travelers is that they can get fairly cheap train tickets in advance online if they have their dates planned, and a Eurail Pass won’t help at all.
Eurail Passes are ideal for travelers on longer trips, and especially those who don’t want to plan all of their destinations and dates far in advance. If you have your itinerary pretty much planned out and you don’t require much flexibility, you’ll be far better off just locking in your dates and buying your train tickets as early as you can. Again, they can be surprisingly cheap if you buy 2 to 4 months out.
If you are age 27 or younger, a Eurail Pass is probably worth it
Those 28 years old or over must buy the 1st Class version of any Eurail Pass, which is 50% more expensive, and the added comfort isn’t a big deal to most people. But travelers age 12 to 27 can buy the 2nd Class versions at the lowest prices, and the seats are comfortable enough for virtually everyone.
With this in mind, if you are lucky enough to still be 27 or younger, you should seriously think about getting a Eurail Global Pass Youth, partly because the sense of freedom instantly gets more expensive at age 28. The age cutoff was 25 until recently, so this change is a great deal for anyone who will be 26 or 27 at the start of their trip.
You aren’t guaranteed to save money by buying a Youth Eurail Pass, but chances are good that you WILL save money and you’ll definitely save a lot of hassle as well. Especially now that Eurail Passes come in a mobile form, it’s even that much more convenient to just hop aboard any train that is about to leave the station and not worry about buying or even having a ticket. Especially for young people, it can be really fun and exhilarating to literally just walk into a train station with your backpack and look at the departure board and then decide where to go at that moment.
If you are age 60 or over, a Eurail Pass could also be great value
Another fairly recent change is that anyone who is 60 years or older at the start of the use of a Eurail Pass now gets 10% off the normal adult fare. That new discount is going to make this a great value for many travelers who might have been on the fence about buying a full-price pass before.
>>>Check prices on Eurail Passes
If you are planning on traveling in 1st Class anyway, a Eurail Pass is probably worth it
Most 2nd Class trains provide similar comfort and legroom to Business Class airline seats, or at least close enough, so for most people it’s not worth the added expense for 1st Class. However, if you are rich or elderly or fear contact with strangers, a 1st Class Eurail Pass is probably worth it no matter what.
Not only do you get much more comfort and legroom in 1st Class, with only 3 seats across instead of 4, but there is another advantage to 1st Class on European trains. Since it’s mostly business travelers and wealthy people traveling in 1st Class, the carriages are almost always mostly empty except in the mornings and late afternoons between large cities. In 2nd Class the only available seats might be two seats in an 8-seat cabin with all the other seats taken up by a loud family or a group of rowdy friends. In 1st Class you are all but guaranteed a peaceful ride, and usually plenty of empty seats from which to choose.
A hidden Eurail Pass benefit: Making extra stops on travel days for free
A one-way ticket between Paris and Amsterdam in 2nd Class on the high-speed Thalys service takes 3 hours 19 minutes, and costs €47 if you buy way in advance up to €188 if you buy at the last minute. A Eurail Pass can be helpful on this route for almost anyone because you often have to book two months in advance to get a fare under €90 or so. Even better though is the fact that the train stops in Brussels and Antwerp along the way, and both of those are really interesting cities that are perfect for a stop of 2 to 4 hours.
Brussels in particular is one I recommend a short stop in because the small historic center around what they called the Grand Place is amazing and gorgeous, while the rest of the city is rather boring by European standards. With a Eurail Pass you can jump off the train in Brussels and explore the city center for a few hours (luggage storage is cheap and easy) and maybe have lunch, and then hop on a later train to complete your journey to Amsterdam. There are opportunities like this on many if not most trips between larger cities, and if you buy the point-to-point tickets you have to stay on the train you booked.
Another example is the high-speed train between Barcelona and Madrid, which takes about 2.5 to 3 hours in each direction. There are some interesting cities in between, but in this case you could take a morning train from Barcelona to Madrid and then check into your accommodation, and then hop on another train from Madrid to Toledo, which takes about 30 minutes and costs €14 each way. Toledo is a historic and fascinating town, but it’s also pretty small and you can explore the main sights in an afternoon. With a Flexi Eurail Pass where you buy a certain number of travel days, you can save more money by adding on these sorts of nearby stops on travel days.
If you'll be touring major cities within ONE country, a single-country pass might be perfect, and Second Class passes are available for all ages
Until 2019 you could buy a Eurail “Select” or “Regional” Pass, which would allow you to buy a cheaper pass that only covered between two and five specific countries. As of April 2024, those have been eliminated and also lowered the prices of the Global Passes by around 20%.
Single-country passes are still available and they MIGHT be good value for you, but it depends on which country and how much traveling you’ll be doing. If you plan on going all over a larger country such as Germany, France, or Spain, and especially if you like to make plans as you go, a Single-country pass for one of those might be your best deal. On the other hand, smaller countries (such as the Netherlands) or countries where train tickets are already fairly cheap (such as Italy) might be harder to get value out of. Long story short, for single-country passes you really need to check fares of the places you plan on going and see how they add up compared to the pass.
>>>Check prices for Single Country Passes
Eurostar (between London and Paris or Brussels or Amsterdam) tickets are now included for Eurail Pass holders for a €30 reservation fee
The European rail system is confusing at first, so it’s worth pointing out that the Eurostar trains between London and Paris or Brussels are a totally different system and the prices are more like air tickets. In other words, they start out cheap 6 months in advance and prices go up as the travel date approaches. Since you can now use your Eurail Pass within Great Britain, it’s now the best way to get around England and Scotland by train.
Our recent tests show that Eurostar fares one-way from London to Paris can be as low as €49 if you book about 3 months out, or as expensive as €214 for the same seat if you wait until the day of travel to buy. Round-trip/return tickets can be even cheaper if there is a promotion running.
>>>Check Eurostar prices
If you are on a really low budget, a Eurail Pass isn't a good idea
Here’s the thing. As we’ll discuss below, there are many potential benefits to Eurail Passes, and they will often save you money, but they do cost a lot and they only really save you money when traveling in the more expensive countries.
So let’s say you have a flight to Rome and then US$2,000 to last you a month after you arrive. Buying a Eurail Pass before you go would help you see a lot in that month, but you’d practically need to sleep in parks for your funds to last the whole time. You’d be better off moving slowly in the southern countries, or just in Italy itself, as a way to have the best holiday on your budget. You might also be tempted to use a Eurail Pass mostly on night trains so you can save the cost of a hotel or hostel, but those aren’t ideal for most of us.
The cheapest way to get around Europe by rail is to buy all train tickets online at least a couple months in advance. The fares are low, but they are non-refundable and non-changeable. See how far in advance you should buy train tickets to get those attractive fares.
If more than a little of your travel will be in eastern Europe, a Eurail Pass isn't a good idea
While eastern Europe (Poland, Czechia, Hungary, Ukraine, Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia etc), is where you’ll find almost all of the continent’s best travel bargains, its rail infrastructure continues to lag way behind. A few years ago many of the countries in that area were added to the Eurail Zone (except for Bulgaria for some reason), but even then the trains are still very slow. Worse still, in some areas the trains are much slower than buses, so you really have to research each leg individually.
The good news is that the trains operating in this region, and the buses that operate alongside and/or where trains aren’t running, are quite cheap. So if any significant part of your trip will be into this region, a rail pass doesn’t make sense.
Basic types of Eurail Passes
Long gone are the days of the simple options, replaced by specialized passes that are meant to appeal to different styles. It should be pretty easy to figure out which is best for you, and then keep going down the page to decide if it’s worth it at all.
Eurail Global Pass – 4,5, or 7 days within 1 month or 10 days within 2 months
Until recently the minimum number of travel days with 10 days within 2 months, but now you can buy as few as 4 days within 1 month for about €200 to €250 (for first class). This can actually be an interesting strategy if you are planning many shorter and cheaper trips (like within Italy or Eastern Europe), and also 4 or 5 longer trips such as Berlin to Amsterdam. This way you can buy only 4 or 5 travel days and only use them for your most expensive travel days, and just pay as you go or buy cheap advance tickets for your other journeys.
Eurail Global Pass – 15 to 90 consecutive days
This variation allows for unlimited travel on the system for between 15 and 90 total days. They are really only a good idea for people who are certain they are going to travel very often, with much of it being in the north of Europe. The problem with them is that if you really try to get your money’s worth, you will probably ruin your trip by spending too much time on trains in general. On the other hand, if you will be in Europe for 2 or 3 months and plan on traveling around a lot, you can get a LOT of use out of a longer pass. The 3-month pass is around €900 so it’s literally about €10 per day. Imagine going back and forth between Berlin and Munich or Barcelona and Madrid for €10 per day!
One Country Pass
Obviously these are for travel within one country only. Again, they can be great deals if you plan on extensively moving around one particular country.
Where to buy your Eurail Pass
Eurail Passes are cheapest and easiest to buy online, primarily from two main sources which offer all the same products at the exact same prices:
This is a reliable company based in the Netherlands but with fulfillment offices in the US and Ireland. Price of Travel is a partner with this company, and if you use the links of this site we earn a small commission to help keep this site online. Eurail.com is usually cheaper than RailEurope (discussed below) by the way.
They were founded in the 1930s and are based in New York, but owned primarily by the French and Swiss rail companies. They offer free shipping (2 to 3 business days) on all orders of US$399 or more, although now that a mobile version is available, this is meaningless. Price of Travel is a partner with this company, and if you use the links of this site we earn a small commission to help keep this site online.
Reservations on European trains for rail pass holders
For most of the fastest trains between major cities you’ll need to reserve a seat even with a rail pass. It can usually be done just before you leave and the cost is usually around €5. Here’s a full list of which European trains require reservations and which don’t.
Reservations are required on all intercity (longer distance) trains in or involving France, Spain, Switzerland, and Italy. For most trains in Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Belgium, and most of eastern Europe, you can usually find trains that don’t require seat reservations. Often, if you don’t leave until after 9:30am or so, you can ride on any train with no seat reservation, but you have to research each leg to be sure.
How to determine which trains require seat reservations, and also get schedules
You can click on the link just above this section for a list of countries and their seat-reservation policies, but in some cases it’s actually a bit more complicated than that. For example, you can generally ride without a seat reservation on fast ICE (Inter City Express) trains in Germany if you depart after 09:30 in the morning. They do this to free up seats for business travelers who pay full fare, and they don’t mind filling up seats with rail pass holders on trains leaving a bit later.
The best way to be sure about this is to download the RailEurope smartphone app (iPhone and Android). It’s a free app and you can download it and use it even if you buy from Eurail.com or don’t buy a rail pass at all. Amazingly enough, it has the entire European rail schedule built into it so you don’t even need to be online to use it. You just enter a departure city and destination city and it will show you all of the trains and connections going between the two. When you click on a specific train or combination of trains it will show you whether a seat reservation is needed for that particular departure. I’ve used this app literally hundreds or perhaps thousands of times to do my own research and help people find answers, and I’ve noticed that it’s accurate at least 99% of the time. Once in a blue moon you’ll enter two cities and it will show, say, a 20-hour journey when you are pretty sure it should be under 10 hours. Usually it’s actually correct, but I’ve seen a couple times where it missed something.
Night trains in Europe are making a comeback
I’ve been traveling around Europe since the 1980s and I’ve been updating this article since 2012 and one thing that was certain was the night trains (or sleeper trains) were going out of fashion. The main reasons were that high-speed trains grew in coverage so routes that used to take 10 or 12 hours could now be done in 4 or 5 hours, at least in countries like Germany, France, Spain, and Italy. As a result, almost everyone preferred to even depart at 6 PM if they could get to their destination city at 10 PM instead of the next morning.
Fast forward to 2024 and night trains are not only expanding service, but they are very trendy. Some of it is nostalgia for the older way of getting around, but most of it is for environmental purposes combined with European hatred for the “low cost airline” experience with RyanAir and Easy Jet etc.
Personally I’m still not a fan of night trains because I find it difficult to sleep on them since they often get decoupled at interim stations in the middle of the night and then coupled onto other trains coming from other places, and I can’t sleep through any of that. But still, they are worth looking into and they are fun to try at least once.
A bit of warning that they tend not to be cheap and even if you have a Eurail Pass you’ll almost certainly want to book a sleeping cabin with a bunk or couchette, and that will come at an extra fee. On the other hand, if you are the sort of person who can sleep sitting upright in a normal seat, then that won’t cost any extra on most overnight trains.
Factors to consider when thinking about any Eurail Pass
Assuming you know which Eurail Saver Pass option is the best one for your type of trip by now, we’ll go over the main factors that should help you decide whether it’s the best idea for you.
Eurail Passes are best for standard ‘medium length’ journeys
In almost all of Europe, the major cities tend to be between 4 and 8 hours apart by train, and these journeys are perfect for Eurail Passes. For example, from Vienna to Munich it takes about 5 hours on the train, and it’s scenic and relaxing. Flying between those cities would take about the same amount of time once you factor in airport transportation and security lines, and it’s far less pleasant.
However, if you are determined to travel between Rome and Paris, it’s about a 14-hour journey that will almost certainly be overnight. In this case, a cheap plane ticket is probably better, although taking shorter hops on the train is even better, so spend a day or two in Milan or Lyon on the way instead.
And of course, if you prefer to stop in various small towns between the big ones, then a Eurail Pass won’t pay off, except for the traditional kind for unlimited travel in a given period.
Eurail Passes are better value in northern Europe, France, and Spain, and poor value in Italy
Once you do a bit of research you’ll quickly learn that train tickets (and almost everything else) are much more expensive in Germany, Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland than they are in Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. With this in mind, the regional passes can make sense if you are spending time in the south, but the Global Passes almost certainly won’t. Train tickets in Spain used to be fairly cheap, but in recent years they’ve added new high-speed trains between the major cities, and these are quite expensive.
Unlike most other countries, Italy really subsidizes its train tickets so they are quite reasonable even on travel day, and very cheap if you buy a month or more in advance. For example, you can go between Rome and Florence for around €49 if you buy on travel day, and as little as €19 if you buy well in advance. In most other countries, fares are double or triple that much for similar rides.
So consider your planned itinerary. If more than half of it is in the Mediterranean countries then look into a Regional Pass or just buy tickets as you go, because they tend to be pretty cheap. But if you are planning on spending at least half your time in Paris and places to the north of it, then a Eurail Pass is probably a money saver because those tickets are expensive.
Trains are almost always better than planes
Flying sucks, even in Europe
Until you’ve experienced the joy of traveling around Europe by train you might be tempted to “maximize” your time by flying low-cost airlines between each city. This would be a mistake. In order to get truly cheap airfares you have to purchase long in advance, buying non-refundable tickets. You might also have to commit to flights in the very early morning or in the late evening, because cheap tickets on convenient flights sell out quickly.
And again, most European airports are around an hour outside of the city. They are often on the main train lines, which helps, but still you have to deal with the madness of security and also try to get there at least two hours early. From one city center to any other city center it’s about 5 hours minimum, even if they are close, and those are pretty miserable hours.
Train travel is a positive experience
While it’s true that you do have to reserve a seat on many long-distance trains these days, you can usually do it just before it leaves, or the night before to be safe. And with many trains you can literally just hop on board as it’s pulling out of the station.
Not only are all the seats comfortable on trains, but you also have an interesting view most of the time. Better still, trains deposit you in the heart of every city, which is usually the neighborhood with the cheapest hotels and food. It’s a wonderful feeling to step off a relaxing train ride, buy a hot dog or sandwich at a local shop, and then be in your hotel room only about 10 minutes later.
Eurail Passes are better than train tickets alone
As someone who enjoys the process of crunching numbers and looking for value, I have to also mention that I’d buy a Eurail Pass even if it seemed like it would cost a bit more than the individual tickets. With a pass you get an extra element of freedom that is worth a lot more than you might expect until you’ve used one.
If you fly, you absolutely have to lock in your exact schedule weeks or months in advance, and if you buy train tickets individually you will be spending hours in queues and then waiting around. You can buy European train tickets in advance, though the convenience comes along with an extra fee. But with a Eurail Pass, on most routes you can just hop on any train you feel like.
Let’s say you are heading from Amsterdam to Hamburg tomorrow morning. The 09:00 train you planned for might seem a bit ambitious after a long night out, so you can instead opt for the 10:00 or 11:00 train. As long as you walk into Centraal Station 10 or so minutes before departure, you are on. If you are flying you can’t change your ticket, and if you are buying train tickets as you go you have to be in line at the international desk at the train station at least 30 minutes early, and even then you might miss it if they are busy.
Freedom and getting to feel like a big shot
Bill Gates doesn’t worry about the cost of plane tickets or train tickets. He just goes where he wants, when he wants. When you have a Eurail Pass, you get a taste of this yourself, and even if you don’t end up doing any new spontaneous legs within your trip, it’s a great feeling.
Let’s say you are staying at a hostel in Brussels, and two groups of new friends suggest that you go along with them to their next stops. One group is going to Bruges, which is a short and cheap journey, so you can join them by buying individual tickets (unless you have the unlimited pass, making it free). Then you restart your trip from Bruges, on to your next destination. The other group is headed to Berlin on a night train, which is long and expensive, but with a Eurail Pass you don’t even have to think about the cost. On you go, just like a rich person.
Buying a Eurail Pass is great for those who might run out of money
We all know people who keep meticulous track of every penny they spend, and who are always putting money away for a rainy day. And we all know people who can take a US$100 “entertainment fund” and burn through almost all of it in just a few hours. For the first type of person, a Eurail Pass can help you keep track of expenses, but it’s really the second type of person these are best for.
It’s sad to hear about people who have big plans to see their dream destinations, but they run out of money for transportation halfway into the trip, so they have to just stay put until they fly home. It happens. Locking in your major transportation costs before you leave home, and probably saving money in the process, is a wise move for anyone who isn’t as disciplined as they’d like with their money.
>>>Check prices on Eurail Passes
Bottom line: If you want to keep travel costs down, your choices will usually be a Eurail Pass or buying tickets at least a month or more early
In the last few years, almost every long-distance train ride in Europe has switched to a pricing system similar to low-cost airlines. In other words, tickets go on sale 2 to 6 months ahead of time at very low prices, and they keep getting more expensive as the train fills up and the date approaches. For most trips where a rail pass is possible, this is how things stack up:
Cheapest possible way: Buy advanced (non-refundable, non-changeable) train tickets at least 30 days in advance
Next cheapest way: Buy a Eurail Pass and make seat reservations as you go, usually only a day or less in advance.
Most expensive way: Buy train tickets as you go, or less than a week in advance.
Thinking about it this way should make the choice a bit easier. If you are the type who likes to plan each day and travel segment long before you even leave home, then buy tickets online for the best prices. This can be the best strategy for most shorter trips (10 days or less) because you simply don’t have enough time to change many things as you go anyway.
Buying a Eurail Pass won’t be quite as cheap, but you are buying a LOT of flexibility with the extra money. If you dream of making up your plans as you go, or even making up your plans just a few days in advance, this is almost always your best bet.
But if you wait too long, and just show up looking to buy train tickets as you go, they are going to cost a fortune. As recently as only a few years ago all seats would be the same price on many rail systems, so you could always just wing it. When each country computerized its rail systems so they can sell advanced tickets cheaper, they also had to keep track of seat reservations, so the whole pricing structure had changed to favor advanced ticket buyers and rail pass holders over those who’d prefer to just hop on any train as it is leaving the station.
Have a rail pass or itinerary question of your own?
It wasn’t planned but scores of people began asking me rail pass and itinerary questions at the bottom of this article and a few others. I’m happy to keep answering them and now I’m trying to organize them better as well so they are easier for other people to find.
If you have a question about specific types of European rail passes, please ask it in the comments below.
But if you have a question more about a European itinerary or other non-rail-pass questions, please click over to the European itineraries Q & A article and ask in the comments of that one.
Hey Roger. Thanks for providing so much useful information and especially for answering individual questions. Me and two of my friends are planning to travel for about 3 weeks in July and were not sure if we should buy a pass or not and which one. Our tentative plan is to start in Amsterdam and then head to Berlin, Prague, maybe Vienna, Budapest and then a beach in Croatia. We hope to spend 3 or 4 days in each place, depending if we stop in Vienna or not. We know we can buy a saver pass but were not sure if we should do a 5 country pass which would require us to stop in Austria so it’s bordering countries and prob buy a flight from Amsterdam to Berlin or get a regional pass that doesn’t include the Netherlands or Croatia. I read that you said Eastern Europe is not the best with Eurail but I thought since were going to major capitals that it still might be worth it. Also were thinking of Split, Croatia as our final destination and I know there’s a 15 hour overnight train from Budapest to split but I don’t know if it’s part of the Eurail network or if we will be able to find an airport close by. Thanks for any advice or suggestions you have!
Perri,
Always glad to hear that this stuff helps. If you are only planning on those 5 or 6 cities, meaning only 4 or 5 journeys between them, then I don’t think a rail pass would be good value. The ones that include only 5 travel days have quite a high price for each day, and I think you can do better in other ways.
Just to clarify though, you don’t have to stop in each country in a 5-country rail pass, you just need to include any countries that you are traveling within, and they have to be bordering for that same reason. So you could buy a 5-country pass and only stay in one country if you wanted, and you can ride the train all the way through Austria if you went from Prague to Budapest (as long as all 3 countries are on your pass).
Still though, here’s what I’d recommend. From Amsterdam to Berlin the train takes a bit over 6 hours and can be done for as little as €44 if you buy early enough (probably a month or more). So the train takes about the same amount of time as flying, once you add in all the security and transport time on both ends, and it’s also at least a bit cheaper than flying. The train will obviously be much more pleasant, although to be honest the landscape between those cities is pretty boring (flat).
From Berlin to Prague it takes about 4.5 hours and train tickets are €39 if you buy in advance. Prague to Budapest takes about 9 hours and starts at €42.
From Budapest into Croatia, the trains are even cheaper, but quality and reliability drops. You could try that brutal 15-hour overnight train (which WOULD be part of a Eurail Pass, although you’d also have to pay for a seat or bunk reservation), or you might split (pun intended) it up by doing a day train to Zagreb and then another train or bus to Split. Zagreb isn’t all that interesting to be honest, but it still might be worth an evening and morning as a stop. The buses in the former Yugoslavia area tend to be better and cheaper than trains, so research that angle as well.
So in your case, since you are mostly going through areas where inexpensive train tickets are available, especially to those who book well in advance, I don’t think a rail pass would be wise. From Berlin all the way down to Split, the trains are relatively cheap even if you don’t buy way in advance.
Looks like a great trip to many of my favorite cities in Europe, so I’m sure it’ll be a blast. Let me know if you have other questions. -Roger
Hi Roger,
My friend and I will be traveling to Germany and Switzerland in May 2014.
I’m trying to figure out which pass would be the best for us.
Itinerary:
Apr 30 – May 02 : Germany – from Frankfurt to Rothenburg ob der Tauber
May 02 – May 05 : Germany – from Rothenburg to Munich
(Day trip from Munich to Fussen)
May 05 – May 07 : from Munich to Switzerland – Lucerne
May 07 – May 10 : Switzerland – from Lucerne to Grindelwald
(Day trip from Grindelwald to Jungfraujoch and Murren)
May 10 – May 11 : Switzerland – from Grindelwald to Basel
May 11 – May 13 : from Basel to Germany – Rudesheim
May 13 – May 16 : Germany – from Rudesheim to Frankfurt
(Day trip from Frankfurt to Heidelberg)
Based on the itinerary, we would like to seek your advice on the following:
1. Would a 10 days Eurail Germany and Switzerland Select Pass be more worth it or would it make more sense to buy a 10 days German Rail Twin Pass and 3 days Swiss Flexi Saver Pass? Or any other suitable alternatives?
2. Is train seat reservation required for German Rail Pass and Swiss Flexi Saver Pass? Any additional charges? Will train seat reservation be a problem in May?
3. What are the differences between Eurail Germany and Switzerland Select Pass vs. single Country Pass?
Any tips and suggestions are welcome.
I am looking forward to hear from you. Thank you!
Cheryl,
I think the German Rail Twin Pass is probably your best value, partly because it allows you the cheaper 2nd Class option. But I don’t think the Swiss Flexi Saver Pass would be good value because the price per trip seems like it might be even higher than if you buy as you go. You aren’t really covering much ground in Switzerland. I’d recommend checking the prices of the individual tickets within Switzerland if you buy a week or so in advance on the Swiss Rail site: http://www.sbb.ch/en/home.html. To me it looks like you might spend much less if you can at least reserve those tickets a week in advance.
Here’s a link that shows which European trains require seat reservations. Basically, you’ll need reservations on many of those trips, but not all of them, and they’ll cost €4 or €5 each. You shouldn’t have a problem reserving a seat on any of these trains in May, at least as long as you don’t wait until a few minutes before it pulls out of the station. These routes usually have a train leaving every hour, so usually the worst case scenario is that the most convenient one is sold out so you have to book on one an hour later. For this reason, I prefer to go to the station the day before I want to leave so I can make a reservation and know exactly when to leave my hotel so I can make it on time but don’t have to go so early in case there is a long queue.
I think the differences between the passes are only in the terms, as in, the Germany pass is only good for one month while the Germany-Switzerland one can be used within 2 months. As far as I know, there are no differences in how you can use the passes as long as they are valid.
Your trip looks really well thought out and interesting. It’s hard to know just how much time you are intending to spend in Frankfurt, and I’ll recommend keeping it to a minimum. Frankfurt, as you might already know, is a banking and business city with a few interesting sights, but it’s far more famous for its airport than its attractions, and the rest of Germany has a lot to offer. -Roger
Hey Roger,
Thanks for your prompt response and helpful tips!
Hello.
I am currently planning a 5-week trip for me and my mother during April and May to the countries of France, Austria and Germany with maybe a day or two in Switzerland and Amsterdam. I am having trouble deciding whether a rail pass for 15 days once we start moving around a lot more in Switzerland, Austria and Germany is worth it and would appreciate any advice you might have…
This is what the itinerary looks like right now:
Arrive in Paris
Spend 6 days in Paris
Train from Paris to Tours, Spend a day in Tours
Rent a Car for 6 days and explore the Loire Valley
Take a Train from Tours to Lyon, Lyon to Geneva, Geneva to Zurich, Zurich to Innsbruck, Austria…all within the same 48 hours or so…
Spend 4/5/6 days in Innsbruck, Austria
(may or may not do additional traveling in Switzerland and Austria…or maybe stop in Switzerland for a day or two…)
Spend 7 days going up the Romantic Road in Germany via hopping on and off the Romantic Road Coach
Take a Train from Frankfurt to Cologne
Spend 2 days in Cologne & Dusseldorf
Take a Train or Coach from Cologne to Amsterdam
Spend 3 days in Amsterdam
Take a Megabus Coach back to Paris
Depart from Paris
The global pass (15 days) with the additional two days promotion would cover most of the trip after leaving Tours….but at 946 euros I am not sure if it is worth it… Though we like the idea that the pass might offer us more flexibility…
Anyways, any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Becki
Becki,
This one is a bit tricky if you are considering a continuous 15(+2) day Global Pass, and I’m assuming that the €946 is for both of your traveling together in 1st Class. That’s really not a bad deal for the number of train trips that you are considering in that period, and that you want to stay flexible as you go. Also, traveling in 1st Class is pretty great in general.
You have two other options, the first one of which would be to book all of those train trips at least a week or more in advance to get decent fares, and even then you might find that you’d have to go at inconvenient times of day because the better times are so expensive. You might want to go on the France rail website (http://en.voyages-sncf.com/en/) and check the fares of some of your trips for leaving tomorrow or next week or a few weeks from now. The prices you see now will be close to what you’d see while on your trip, so you’d know how much the rail pass would actually be worth and how far in advance you’d have to buy in order to get a good fare at a convenient departure time.
The other option would be to wait until April 1, at which time you’ll be able to buy a 4-country Select Pass for France, Austria, Germany, and Benelux (or Switzerland). They are discontinuing the current 3-country and 5-country version at the end of March, but now France will again be eligible for the 4-country version. You’ll have to decide whether you’ll likely be taking otherwise expensive rides within Switzerland, or you could use it on your way from Cologne to Amsterdam and from Amsterdam to Paris (unless you’ve bought the Megabus tickets already). The Eurail Select Pass comes with up to 15 travel days within 2 months, although the 10-day version would probably suit you better. That way you could use it on your 10 most expensive legs of your entire trip, and pay as you go for the shorter and cheaper ones.
Again, the 4-country version that includes France won’t be available until April 1, but the details about that are on the page so it’s not a secret.
So my advice is to check some of those train prices on legs you are planning for, and based on that you’ll know how far in advance you’d have to book and buy them in order to get cheap tickets. And if you really do put a premium on being able to change plans as you go (as many of us do), then either of those rail pass options could be better. There’s no obvious choice on a trip like this, unfortunately.
Feel free to follow up if you like. -Roger
Hey Roger,
I was wondering if I could use your good advice. I’m going to Italy for a month from the last week of June to the last week of July. This is my approximate itinerary:
-Arrive in Florence mid-afternoon
-3 nights in Florence
-Bus to Siena, 4 nights in Siena, with two day trips to Volterra and San Gimignano, where I’ll bus there.
-take a train to la Spezia, hike Cinque Terre for 3 days (two nights), spend the last night back in la Spezia
-early morning train (or night train??)to Venice, where I’ll stay for two nights
-early morning train to either Sorano or Pitigliano. Base myself in one of those places for 3 nights, and take a day trip to Civita di bagnoregio. I’ll spend that night somewhere (not sure where) which has a direct train to Rome.
-Early train to Rome, 4 nights there
-Early train to Molise, 3 nights there spent hiking and relaxing
-early train to Naples, stop for a couple of hours for pizza, then continue on to Salerno. Base myself in Salerno for 4 nights, with day trips to Mount Vesuvius, Paestum, Pompeii, and Herculaneum.
-2 nights on the amalfi coast: one day to hike, one day for a festival with late night fireworks
-Leave for Rome the next day, which is the day before I leave Italy, (should I take an early morning train and stay in a hostel/bnb the last night, or take an overnight train to Rome from Salerno? My flight home leaves around 3pm the last day).
What do you think of my itinerary? Do I have variety in the towns I’ve chosen, and are there too many locations-would you allot more or less time to certain places? The beginning and end of my trip aren’t flexible, but I want the amount of days I spend in places like the Sorano to be changeable in case I want to stay somewhere longer, go somewhere that’s not on my itinerary, or leave sooner.
-Would you recommend the Eurorail pass for Italy, or buying tickets the day before or day of, or even taking flights or buses? (I’m under 25)
Thanks,
Emma
Emma,
I think your itinerary looks great for a really in-depth exploration of Italy. It appears that you are allowing enough time in each city to get a proper appreciation of each one, and it looks like each stop is carefully chosen.
That train from La Spezia to Venice is only about 4.5 hours so you’ll want to do it during the day. Night trains are only worth considering if you are going much longer distances.
I tend not to be a huge fan of the one-country Italy Eurail Pass because it’s kind of expensive until you get to about 8 to 10 travel days. For 6 or fewer travel days, the price per travel day isn’t much of a bargain unless you are covering half the country with each trip, and few people do that when visiting Italy.
And as you say, buses are often a good option, and are usually cheaper than trains. My guess is that you can do most of your trips by bus for maybe €20 or less, even on short notice. They’ll be slower than the trains, but the trains in Italy aren’t all that fast, so it’ll often be like 3 hours by train and 4 hours by bus. If you can save €20 by taking the bus for that extra hour, it’s probably worth it.
So I think your choices are either to get an Italy rail pass for 8 or more rides, and at that point they are pretty cheap (in 2nd Class for someone under 26). Or you could take a mix of buses and trains, and try to book each one at least a few days, if not a week or more in advance. If you buy those train tickets online in advance they can be pretty cheap, but if you try to buy them on the travel day, then they’ll cost more than the rail pass for sure. -Roger
Hi Roger,
Just like every single other person has mentioned, this forum is amazing and thank you so much for your detailed insights.
My husband and I (both over 26) are planning a 10 week trip to Europe from the end of August to beginning of November. I’m trying to work out which rail pass would be best for us. I’m thinking the 10 or 15 in 2 months but would be great to hear your thoughts.
We want to stay reasonably flexible and are not that keen to book much travel/accommodation ahead of time. We are on a moderate budget, ie looking to stay in cheaper hotels, b & bs and happy to stay in hostels with a private room. My first question is do you think it’s risky at that time of year not to have made accommodation reservations far in advance?
Next is our rough itinerary to ask your opinion on the rail pass.
From Perth, Australia:
Fly to London
5-7 days in London, possible day or side trips to Bath, Salisbury
Fly to Amsterdam – 3 days
Train(?) to Paris via Brussels – stop for a couple of hours to look around?
Paris 3-4 days
Train to Madrid
Madrid 2 days
Train to Lisbon
Lisbon 2 days
Train to south coast – possibly Algarve?
From here via somewhere across to Morocco, a couple of destinations for 5/6 nights
Fly from Morocco to Berlin OR Frankfurt (thoughts on which city is best for approx 3 days?)
Travel to Munich for Oktoberfest (will be around 20-21 September)
Munich 3 days?
Munich to Switzerland – interested only in the apps area for some spectacular scenery and a bit of hiking
Switzerland destination 3 days
From Switzerland train to Italy – looking to spend around 2 weeks in Italy including the following stays:
Venice – 2 nights
Florence – 3 nights
Cinque Terre – 2 nights
Rome – 3 nights
Somewhere a bit south of Rome – cant for the life of me think of the name – 2 nights
Then we would fly from Italy (I assume would be most economical to fly ex Rome?) to Athens
From Athens spending 5-7 nights on 1 or 2 of the islands to relax and recoup at the end of our trip!
Back to Athens for 2 or 3 days
Depart from Athens
Your thoughts would be so greatly appreciated! Is this itinerary totally mad?
Thanks so much,
El 🙂
El,
Thank you for the kind words, and it’s my pleasure to try to help.
This itinerary looks really good and quite well researched. You’ve got quite a few train rides that would be very expensive if bought on the travel day, so I think the 10 or 15 Days in 2 Month Global Pass could work out really well if you’d rather stay flexible. This is a classic example of an itinerary that would be cheapest if you bought all your exact train tickets at least 2 or 3 weeks in advance, but of course that takes all the potential spontaneity out of it. On a shorter trip, maybe 2 or 3 weeks, it might be worth it to book everything in advance, but since you have 10 weeks to play with it would be a shame to lock it all in so early.
Of course the rail pass means you’ll be traveling in 1st Class on those longer and more expensive journeys, but with 2 people traveling together it’s not much more expensive than 2nd Class, and it’s really wonderful to be “forced” into traveling 1st Class to also save money and be more flexible.
As for finding hotels, you’ll have no problem doing that as you go, starting around the second week of September. London is packed in August, so you’ll want to book that hotel well in advance. I recently updated my list of recommended London hotels (and hostels) with good locations and good rates, so you might have a look when you are ready to book. You’ll probably want to book early for Amsterdam as well, but after that you should do okay booking as you go.
Personally, on a trip like this I prefer to sort things out at least a couple days in advance. As in, once I decide I want to go to the next city 2 days from now, I’ll go to the train station to reserve my seat so I know exactly when I’ll be traveling, and once I do that I like to book my hotel in that next city so I know where to go when I get off the train. In Europe, it can be risky to just get off a train and try to judge hotels or hostels by the sign and front of the building.
Here are some other notes on your itinerary:
If you want to visit Bath from London you might think about staying in Bristol (home of Banksy, Wallace, and Gromit), which is a very short train ride from Bath, and also much cheaper than London or Bath for hotels and such.
It’s more enjoyable to go from London to Amsterdam on the Eurostar train than flying. You can book the whole thing at once, which will include the Eurostar from London to Brussels and then a fast train from Brussels directly into Amsterdam’s Centraal Station. Book the Eurostar as far in advance as possible for the best fare, and you’ll be glad you did it by train.
Especially if you are doing the rail pass, a stop for a few hours in Brussels on your way from Amsterdam to Paris would be wonderful. You’ll need to pay just a bit more for a seat reservation from Amsterdam to Brussels and another from Brussels to Paris, but it’s still 1 “travel day” and a great use of a rail pass.
To go from Paris to Madrid by train would mean taking the new high-speed service from Paris to Barcelona, and then changing for another high-speed train to Madrid. That would be a long day, and it would be a shame to not at least spend a night or two in Barcelona, which is a wonderful city that is very different from Madrid.
Madrid in 2 days would be a quick visit, although it would be 2.5 days since the only train to Lisbon is a night train.
Lisbon is a lovely place and great value, and so is the Algarve, especially since you’ll be there when it’s still great weather yet most of the crowds are gone. Go from there to Tarifa, Spain (and spend one night because it’s a great little town) for the ferry to Morocco.
If you want to fly from Morocco to Germany, you’ll probably want to do it from Casablanca Airport (but don’t stay in the city) to Berlin. Frankfurt is expensive, and not really even a tourist city, while Berlin is cheaper and one of Europe’s most interesting spots.
As you probably know, hotels and hostels literally triple their rates during Oktoberfest, and you really should even book those at least a couple weeks in advance or you’ll pay a high price AND get a lousy place. It’s truly a sight to see once in your life, but I really think 2 days of it would be enough. The Oktoberfest grounds consist of a temporary amusement park that also has about 10 huge “beer tents” inside, and the seats are mostly reserved in advance, although you can queue up and eventually get in. Munich is a nice city otherwise, but it’s debatable whether it’s worth paying that much to see the other sights.
From Munich you might also consider a couple days in Salzburg, which is a wonderful, scenic, and fun town. Your next stop (with or without Salzburg) should be Lucerne, which is one of the two tourist centers (along with Interlaken) to visit the Swiss Alps.
Your Italy plan looks good, including the trip down to Naples/Pompeii for a day or two. The train tickets within Italy are relatively cheap compared to the tickets earlier in your trip, especially if you buy them online at least a few days in advance. In other words, you’ll probably want to have used up your rail pass travel days by the time you arrive in Italy, although if you have 1 or 2 travel days left they will still be nice because you can travel 1st Class at a moment’s notice without worrying about high fares for that.
And yes, you’ll want to fly from Rome to Athens, which will be pretty cheap if you book a bit early. Athens and the Greek Islands really are worth visiting, but keep in mind that by early November it will be quite cool already, and most of the islands will be in full off-season mode. In other words, there are fewer ferries in the cold months, and most hotels are already closed. But on the bigger islands there are things to see and do all year.
I don’t think your itinerary looks mad at all. Feel free to follow up if you have more questions. -Roger
Hi Roger,
Thank you so much for that. I sent my message at 11pm last night and woke to your awesome response.
Wonderful to hear that for the most part we’ll be fine to book things just a few days in advance, that’s exactly what we’d like to do. Will definitely take on board your thoughts on Oktoberfest, I had thought 3 days might have been a bit much when really our trip is bout experiencing cultural differences (and food!!) and not so much a heap of drunken tourists. But since we’re there at the time it would be a shame to miss it.
Thanks for the tip about using the Eurostar from London to Amsterdam that looks like the go!
Just one question about your suggestion to go from the Algarve region (I assume somewhere close to Faro as its on the fast train network), how would we get from there to Tarifa, Spain?
We will also take on board your comments about Barcelona and Salzburg, we would love to cram in more places but just don’t want to be too rushed. I think the next step is to nut out the itinerary with even more detail including when and how long each transit will take as in my timing I’ve basically allowed a whole day for each change in location to be on the safe side.
Anyway I can’t thank you enough but I also can’t promise that this will be my last question to you!!
Best regards,
El
El,
From the Algarve (Faro is the largest city) to Tarifa, the easiest way is to take the train to Seville (which won’t be too expensive) and then a bus from there to Tarifa, which will also be cheap. While you are at it, it’s probably worth spending one night in Seville, as it’s an interesting city on its own.
No worries if you have more questions, just ask away and I’ll try to help. -Roger
Hi Roger,
I need your help again! You helped me enormously a few months ago but since then our work commitments have meant that we’ve had to change our dates and now my itinerary is all over the shop. I can’t seem to work out a good route to take to fit all the places in that we’re originally on the list to include 2 nights in Munich for Oktoberfest. If I tell you our destinations can you give me your suggestion?
Fly into London, arriving on Tuesday 16th September
5 nights accom booked in London
London to Amsterdam via the Eurostar with a few hours stopover in Brussels
Now it starts to get tricky!
From here we’d like to see and stay in the following places/regions for 3-4 days each
Munich (2 nights only for Oktoberfest – that’s enough!)
Salzburg
Lucerne/Swiss Alps
Paris
Other French region? Unsure where? Just to see somewhere out of the city
Barcelona
Madrid
Lisbon
Algarve region
Tarifa
Ferry to Morrocco
Morrocco for 5-7 nights
Fly to Rome
Italy for 2ish weeks
Fly to Athens
Greek islands for 5-7 nights
Athens for a couple of nights
Depart Athens on 24 November to return to Australia
It’s really the first part that I’m struggling with because its difficult for me to understand the train routes and how far things are out of the way. Once we’re in Paris it seems reasonably straightforward.
Do you have any suggestions to fill out time from Amsterdam to Paris including those stops?
Thanks so much once again,
El
El,
Your itinerary looks fantastic. The route looks very logical and I think the distances between each stop are mostly ideal.
From Amsterdam to Munich there is a train that takes only 7 hours and 21 minutes, so you could go directly. But I agree that it would be better to make at least one stop in between, partly because it would be a shame to just pass through so many interesting places at high speed. If you went a bit out of the way you could visit Berlin, which would be a highlight, although it would take 6 hours to get there and another 6 hours to get to Munich. More directly, you could stop in Cologne, which is 2.5 hours from Amsterdam and 4.5 hours from Munich. Cologne’s cathedral is one of the most impressive in the world, and the city center is really nice.
Another option would be to stop in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, which is also 7 hours from Amsterdam and 3 hours from Munich. It’s a lovely little medieval town, unlike anything else you’ll see.
As for France, there are many great options between Paris and Barcelona, though I’m less familiar with many of them because I haven’t spent much time there since a couple visits in my youth. It’s a bit out of the way, but Nice is the best stop along the Riviera, partly because it’s very close to Cannes and Monaco for day trips. Otherwise, Bordeaux could be a great choice for some wine tourism, and there are many other good options.
It all seems very under control to me, so perhaps I’m not understanding the challenge. Hopefully this helps, and feel free to ask again if I didn’t cover what you had hoped. -Roger
Thanks for that Roger. We didn’t know where to go in Spain so we just chose Barcelona. We wanted to do England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales but we thought there wouldn’t be time to see them on top of everything else. We are really interested in architecture, especially castles and haunted places hence why we want to travel to Prague and over the English channel. I didn’t know where to go in Germany but I do have a friend that lives in Bochum there but wasn’t sure if there would be enough time to go there too. I want to do Salzburg because of the Sound of music tour and Milan for the artwork etc. I was only going to do a day trip to Pisa from Florence because I heard that there wasn’t really much to do there. I think we are staying in Italy for about 4-5 days. We were thinking of doing a day trip to Pompeii and back to Rome on some tour bus just so we can see the ruins. Amsterdam wasn’t even going to be a part of our trip but the architecture there is cool. I heard the reservations were $30 AUD but you mentioned it’s 5 euros which makes $7.70. Which is even better. I guess that’s not to bad and if we get a global eurail saver pass for the 1 month and extra 5 days I guess it could be worth it. Wanted to get a Eurostar but didn’t know if we had the time to do over there. I’m open to any suggestions.
After I figure out transport there is accommodation and day tours. There is so much to plan for. When I did NZ we did Contiki so everything was done for me but we thought doing it on our own was best so we didn’t get rushed around and have to go to places we don’t want to go to. It’s scary doing it on your own though. Oh and we are both in our 30’s so we can’t get the youth pass so that sux.
Kylie,
All of that makes sense about the cities on your list. I love Salzburg and you will too, it’s just a little unusual for someone to go there and not Vienna.
Here’s a list of trains in Europe that require seat reservations for pass holders. You’ll see that they are different prices in each place, but most average around €5, including in 1st Class.
If you do get the rail pass, you might not want to lock in too much accommodation in advance unless you are sure of where you’ll be when. In April and May it’s not too difficult to find a good place to stay at a reasonable price only a day or two before you arrive, so don’t feel pressured to pick hotels too far in advance. Once you are on the road your opinion might change when it comes to location and services you want, and how much you are willing to pay. Pretty much all hotel rooms in Europe are going to be quite small compared to those in Australia.
Your current plan is already quite full so I agree that it would be better to save Britain and Ireland for another trip. Those can get pretty expensive as well, especially London.
This all sounds very overwhelming at this point, and that’s natural. But you’ll discover that it’s all pretty easy once you are underway, and you’ll meet loads of people everywhere you go who are doing similar trips to yours. Asking them about hotels and sights and tours in that city or other cities you’ll be going to will not only be helpful, but also very reassuring.
Speaking of day tours and activities, my advice is to NOT book those online in advance. They almost never actually sell out, and weirdly enough, you usually get a better price in person than online. Just as in Oz, you’ll find that every hotel has a rack of all the brochures of tours and things to do, and often they’ll have a little discount coupon on them. The only things you’d want to book in advance would be to see the Last Supper in Milan or the Uffuzi Gallery in Florence. Otherwise, just decide and book as you go.
I’ll be happy to help with any other questions you might have. -Roger
This is awesome feedback Roger. I’m so glad I found this website.
Is there a pass for Metro stations all over the countries? Or should I just get one each time we come to the train station? Would you take a night train or fly and sleep in a hotel instead? Are the night trains and fast trains part of this global pass? Do I reserve these heaps early and can you just have an open reservation where you don’t know the actual date you will catch these trains? I was thinking of getting a night train from Salzburg with a change over at Venice and then arrive in Prague. Or I can just fly to Prague. I was going to take the fast train to Paris from Amsterdam too.
Are the trains easy to understand over there? You can just turn up buy your reservation and find the train you want on tv screen timetables and hop on? It’s so weird having to pay for reservations and a train ticket. It’s so much easier over here. You just buy your ticket and find the train on the screens you want and then go to that platform and hop on.
I heard the staff on the train can take your passport and won’t give it back until your stop. That’s a bit scary if you seen that movie where they scanned these girls passports and sent them to buyers and they got kidnapped and auctioned off. Although I don’t think that would happen on the trains though. Even the movie Hostel has put me off Hostels.
Do you have any accommodation recommendations for Athens? I see there has been a lot of bed bug cases. I did notice that all feedback on hotels they say the rooms are small. You can get small rooms over here if you get a pub room though. I just want a comfy bed after my long flight from Australia.
It’s so good to have someone to talk to that knows what he’s talking about and doesn’t try and sell you anything.
Still not sure if a 1 month pass is worth it or not if we are flying the long distances and training it around the shorter distances. How long does it take to get through airports to, is something to also consider and baggage weight.
I was thinking of doing Vienna but wasn’t sure about it. I thought I needed to cut out Munich, Berlin, Madrid and Nice because of time restraints. Plus I don’t know much about them. I was also looking at Sicily Taormina to go see Mt Etna etc
Thanks for letting me bug you with all these questions. I just want to be prepared and all other websites aren’t clear on details. I need details.
I’m sure I’ll have more questions later as everything seems so complicated. Oh and thanks for answering so fast and so detailed.
Thanks Roger
Kylie
Hi Roger,
I am sooo glad to have found this website! I need some advice. My friend (she lives in england) and I (living in Canada) will travel to Europe Augsut 1st, of this year for 22 days.
We wanted to cover:
London – Amsterdam (2 nights) – Munich (1 nights) – Berlin (2 nights) – Prague (2 nights) – Austrian Tyrol (1 day) – Vienna (2 nights) – Venice (2 nights) – Florence (2 nights) – Rome (2 nights. Want to see Vatican city.) – Lucerne (2 nights. I wanted to see the Swiss Alps. Any suggestions of where to start? Is it called Jungfrau?) – Paris (2-3 nights) – back to London.
I know its a lot for just 22 days. Should we cut this trip short? Would the Global pass be a good idea for this trip? I am not sure what to do as this will be my first Europe trip and I would like to cover as much as I can. We are 25 and 24 years old I am guessing we would be good to go with the discount. I would love to get your advice. Also, are any of the cities I mentioned just good for a stopover? I am open to changes if you have any suggestions to see Europe in a better way. Please let me know if I should skip some cities not worth seeing. I am very interested to know the history of the cities. and I love old buildings and such. And I would love to taste some authentic street food.
Sorry if this is all confusing. 🙁
Thanks so much! I am looking forward to hear back from you.
Tazk,
Your question isn’t confusing, but still I’m glad you are open to some changes. Every city on your list is worthwhile for a visit. The problem is that you have way too many stops planned for a 3-week trip. Most of your stops are around 5 hours apart by train, give or take a little. Let’s say you check out of your hotel or hostel at 9am to make a 10am train. It arrives at 3pm in the new city, and you check into your new hotel or hostel by 4pm, and you are already a bit worn out after the trip. You’d only have enough time for a little walk before dinner, so you’d have almost no sightseeing time on that day. Train travel itself is entertaining, but on your current plan you’d be spending 10 or 11 of your 22 days this way.
What I’d recommend is to cut your list about in half, and save the other half for your next trip. For example, you could do London – Amsterdam – Berlin – Prague – Munich – Paris – London, and even that would be busy for 3 weeks. Or you could do London – Paris – Vienna – Venice – Florence – Rome – then fly back to London and that would also be quick, but at least you are in each place long enough to get a sense of it. I typically recommend at least 3 nights in most of the cities on your list, because they are mostly large and packed with fascinating sights. Venice is compact enough to see in about 24 hours (and it’s so crowded and expensive that you won’t want to linger, although it’s amazing for a short visit).
So please give some more thought to a shorter list of cities that are more geographically bunched together, and you’ll have a much more fulfilling trip. I’ll be happy to help you again once you’ve paired it down some, and we’ll figure out the best way to get between them.
And you’ll love the food in most of Europe, but just to prepare you, there isn’t much “street food” at all. In the north it’s mostly hot dogs and sausages, with herring in some places as well. In the south they don’t eat much on the street at all, except for crepes in France and a few other things that you still don’t see too often. -Roger
Hi, I’m from Australia and am leaving Syd to Greece on 27th April. We then want to visit Rome, Pompeii, Florence, Pisa, Milan, Barcelona, Salzburg, Venice, Prague, Amsterdam and Paris. We are leaving from Paris and were thinking about getting trains and planes. A Plane from Greece to either Barcelona then back to Rome by plane or Fly to Greece to Rome then train to Rome, down to Pompeii, back to Rome, up to Florence and across to Pisa an maybe fly to Barcelona from there instead and fly to Milan then train to Salzburg and then train to Venice and Prague. Then fly to Amsterdam and train to Paris from there. We have 5 weeks and 3 days there and 4 days travel to Australia and back.
My questions are? Do we fly from Greece or Florence to Barcelona? Do we get a global 1 month pass with the bonus of 5 days for the current special? or do we just wing it and get a train etc on the day or the day before?
Kylie,
You’ve got an interesting mix of cities in your proposed itinerary, at least from a geographical standpoint, so this one is a bit tricky. That Global 1-month continuous pass could be perfect for you because many of the train trips would be very expensive if bought as you go. Barcelona in particular is a tough one because it’s quite far from all the others, and it’s a bit odd that you are skipping Madrid on a visit to Spain with this much time on your hands.
If this is your final list of cities and you aren’t open to a couple of possible changes, I think it makes most sense to fly from Greece to Rome and do all of your Italy stops one after another, rather than saving Venice for later. So Greece to Italy, and then a flight to Barcelona (which should be cheap if you book well in advance). Then fly from Barcelona to Amsterdam, and take the train from Amsterdam to Prague to Salzburg to Paris. But again, even though that is probably the cheapest and most efficient way to string all these cities together, it means bypassing cities like Berlin and Munich along the way.
As for the rail pass or not, there are two possible ways of doing this. One is that Global Rail Pass, which gives you the most flexibility because you’ll only need to make seat reservations for around €5 per train, which you can usually get the day of the trip or the day before. The individual tickets would be very expensive if you bought them as you go, so locking in the trips on the rail pass means that you only care if there are a few seats left, which there usually will be, especially if you are going in 1st Class.
The other reasonably priced option would be to lock in all of your train rides at least 2 or 3 weeks in advance, and buy the tickets online (through the official rail website of each country). The train fares in Europe behave like airfares these days, in that they tend to be pretty cheap early, and they get more and more expensive as the day approaches.
By the way, you should probably just plan to spend an afternoon in Pisa as a day-trip from Florence. The small area with the Leaning Tower and cathedral takes only a couple hours to see, and there isn’t much else worthwhile there. If you are open to other possible suggestions to streamline it a bit, let me know. -Roger
Hi Roger
Thanks for the info. As I plan to do only Switzerland/Italy/France (Paris), i think the 4 nation select pass would be ideal and has come at the right time!!!!.
I would like to know the following:
– will there be a big difference in the cost between a slect pass and a Global pass
– will we get the choice of selecting the class of travel- in a Global pass we compulsorily are allotted a first class pass
– while i will manage the other trains, can you help in selecting a train- Basel- Rome (via Pisa)
Sorry forgot to add that 23rd April to 26th April are the days fixed for Rome. On our return we will be halting at Milan.
Jay,
The 4-country Select Pass is is about 15% cheaper than a Global Pass with the same number of days, and unfortunately, they are still 1st Class only for those of us over 25. They currently offer a 3-country, 4-country, and 5-country version that you can see and buy right now. The only things that are changing are that France will be added (it was the only exclusion before), and the 3-country and 5-country versions will be no longer offered. The Regional and single country passes are available in 2nd Class for older people, but they are only a bit cheaper than the 1st Class ones so for many people it’s not worth it.
As for Basel to Rome, it looks like there is one train leaving Basel (every day, including April 23) at 8:07 and arriving in Rome at 15:55 (changing twice), and another leaving at 12:31 and arriving at 20:00 (changing only once). I believe Switzerland doesn’t sell tickets more than 30 days in advance, so the schedule might not appear everywhere. -Roger
Hi Roger,
I stumbled across this site about 6 months ago with the price index guides, very helpful thank you. I am now trying to figure out rail passes and it looks like you are the man in the know :). My husband and I are over 26 and are first time backpacking Europe over 13 weeks. March 30-June 24. We are trying to remain flexible so as to stay and enjoy if we are happy someplace or move on if we are not. We fly in and out (from Brisbane, QLD, Australia) of Paris and the rough plan is: visiting main city sights and then venturing out a bit on day trips out of town over approx a week per country, some being half a week. (Or moving on from one city to the next towards the next country)
Starting Paris: France,
Spain,
Portugal,
Italy,
Croatia,
Greece/Greek Islands, (short visits to Turkey, Hungary and Slovenia have been considered?????these are not high priorities though and will happily be left for another trip as I think this would make it far too busy?)
Austria/Switzerland,
Belguim/Netherlands,
Germany,
Sweden,
UK, finishing London back to Paris. I know we need a different pass/tickets for UK and Eurostar, we mostly likely would have one week max in UK if we even get there.
So the question Roger is, is the Global 3 month 1st class saver pass the way to go for us with those destinations and the length of our trip. I am reading that buying last minute point to point tickets does NOT seem to be the way to go now especially for flexible unlocked itineries.. Thank you kindly for this website and WELL DONE!!!
Rachel M,
I’m especially happy to hear that you found the price indexes useful as well as the eurail stuff, so thanks for mentioning it.
The fact that you are leaving in only a few weeks does make this a bit tricky, but based on how purposely vague your itinerary is, I get the feeling that you want to stay as flexible as possible. If trying to travel as cheaply as possible was the highest priority, you could do it cheaper without a rail pass. But it would mean locking in almost all of your train rides at least a week in advance, which can take a lot of the fun out of a long trip like this.
Arguments against a rail pass: Train service is spotty in Croatia, and nonexistent in Greece (and Turkey) at the moment. Trains within Italy and Portugal are fairly cheap, even just a few days in advance. That’s about it actually. Most of your itinerary is in expensive areas for trains.
I rarely recommend the continuous rail passes, except for the 3-month version on a trip like yours. For a trip of only a month, a continuous pass ends up being fairly expensive on a per day basis, which encourages people to spend every other day on a train in order to get value out of the thing. But the 3-month version ends up being cheap enough for each valid day that even 2 trips per week will make it good value. And if you plan on doing day trips and side trips to nearby towns by train, then a continuous pass is even better.
So just as you suggest, not only does the rail pass give you much more flexibility, it also means you get to ride in 1st Class, which is pretty great on an otherwise-crowded train. If you can afford the pass, and it sounds like you can, I really think you’d have a great time with it. As I’ve written elsewhere, I’ve used these passes for unlimited travel a few times, and the feeling that you can just waltz into a train station and go anywhere for the price of a €5 seat reservation is phenomenal. Otherwise you’d have the choice of planning everything at least a week in advance, or paying a fortune to go on trains with little notice. I’m getting excited just thinking about your trip and all that freedom. My own next trip is September and I’m counting the days.
By the way, Budapest is very worthwhile if you are nearby, but Slovenia probably isn’t. And Turkey is one of my favorite places in the world (after living there for a year), but it would make a pretty awkward add-on to this trip. You’d have to fly in, and it really takes a couple weeks or more to get a feel for the place because it’s so big. Istanbul on its own is quite different from the rest of the country, and I actually find it a bit overrated. But plan to go to Cappadocia, Antalya, Kas, and Ephesus on a future trip and you’ll love it (and how cheap it all is). -Roger
Roger, thank you sooooo much for your extremely speedy and once again informative reply. We are attempting to be sensible budget travellers but this is not our top priority, being as flexible as possible is and yes we can afford the pass. Just wanted some advice as to whether this was in fact the best option for us and our 3 month backpacking nomadic journey and yes I am so excited for it too especially as it is the first time. Thanks for the tips on our maybe places I appreciate it. I hope your trip in September is wonderful, you certainly deserve it after all the hard work you put in to this site… If you do not work for yourself then tell the boss you deserve a pay rise 🙂 Thanks once again, greatly appreciated, Rachel