Die Bahn Seat Reservations

Just one of the many benefits of a railpass!

You should be able to get a reservation from RailEurope, although it will likely cost you a lot more than the cost over there.

EuroAide will get you the reservations at "over there" prices, but they charge $50 for the service (although they get all the reservations for your trip for that fee).

Sometimes Die Bahn has promotional tickets for as little or less than the cost of a day of the railpass plus reservations.

You should do a careful comparison of the cost of a railpass (including reservations) vs. point-point tickets, including all the low cost promotonal fares and regional passes available. You might not even need a railpass.

You should be able to make your reservation by phoning the DB Call Centre. Dial 011 (US international access code) + 49 (country code for Germany) + 1805 - 996633.

Julie, reservation recommended is different from reservation compulsory. We have never gotten reservations for a train when they were "recommended" and never had trouble finding seats together in 1st class.

Jeff, RailEurope might not be more expensive than any other stateside sites, but they are usually much more expensive than the European national rail companies online sites, like Bahn.de, SNCF, etc. They might be more convenient for someone not experienced with the European sites, but you pay dearly for the convenience.

Seat reservations are always "recommended" but not always necessary. If you're travelling 1st class it is rare not to find a seat. If you're travelling on a Friday or Sunday afternoon/evening or Monday morning I most certainly would do everything possible to get a reservation as the trains can be extremely crowded.