Hi everyone! My girlfriend and I have a trip planned to Paris & Amsterdam in early March. We plan to start in Paris take a train to Amsterdam. Does anyone have experience making this trip? When will schedules be available and tickets ready to purchase?
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Schedules (timetables) and ticket buying are available now.
As often stated on this site, the most user-friendly site for schedules (timetables) for most of Europe is the DB (German railways) site www.bahn.de
There is one train every 2 hours, journey time under 3½ hours.
But this site only sells tickets for trips within, to or from Germany. To book tickets Paris to Amsterdam you need to go to the company that actually runs the trains: https://www.thalys.com/
This is currently showing prices from €29 for March 2015.
Posted by
New Paltz, NY
9110 posts
@listonajackson
Direct service between the two cities is via the high-speed Thalys train service. It's a modern, quick and comfortable journey. You can purchase tickets 90 days in advance, it uses airline style pricing so the sooner you book the cheaper it will be; the savings are significant:
Don't bother with www.bahn.de, schedules and tickets can be found at http://www.thalys.com.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
Yes, now is the time to get the best fares, since seats are limited at each price point. If the Thalys site gives you any trouble, then http://ricksteves.raileurope.com/us/rail/point_to_point/triprequest.htm currently has tickets from $47 per person.
Posted by
Chicago
8551 posts
Thalys tickets go on sale 3 most before the travel date (not 90 days) They are as much as 4 times as expensive if you wait until the last minute. The Thalys site is sometimes a bit balky with US cards -- make sure to let your credit card company know you will be making an international ticket purchase before trying to book. We always prevail, but it sometimes takes a few tries and switching computers. You can print the tickets at home.