We are scheduled for the RS trip to Belgium/Netherlands and are wondering about train tickets.
Specifically, are trains so common in Belgium that we can literally get one to take us from Brussels to Ghent at anytime...even the day of...or should we purchase tickets ahead of time? Any info would be great! Thanks
We bought our tickets from Brussels to Ghent the morning we wanted to go. We were there the end of June.
Trains in Belgium are mass transit. Tickets can't sell out, you can't make a seat reservation and you don't get any benefit by buying these in advance.
So just buy your ticket the day of travel, just to avoid loosing money if plans would change (via website, app, machines or counter).
Train planning here https://www.belgiantrain.be/en/
Thank you!!!!
This spring we took the train from the Brussels airport to Ghent the evening we arrived from Catania and purchased tickets on-site. There are ticket machines but there was also a very helpful, English-fluent staff person who helped us with the tickets and even printed out the very specific instructions (e.g., how many stops, which platform to find for the second train) since we had to change trains and were pretty tired.
Perhaps I should have added one more thing. In Belgium, for the local trains (not the international ones), your ticket is valid the whole day long. So you don't buy a ticket for a specific time, but for a specific date.
You can take every train, that specific day, between the departure and the arrival station (including possible train changes) (=no concerns in case of delays).
