Eurail Global Pass "travel report"?

You didn't indicate which countries you are using the pass. Depending on the country and the train service, many of the trains require a seat reservation that must be paid for and reserved prior to getting on the train. Big penalty if you fail to do so. Italy, for example, requires a seat reservation on all trains except Regionale. Germany is mixed. France is very limited and very expensive for the seat reservation sometimes equal to price of a regular ticket.

Frank is right, and you need to be prepared for all those extra costs - particularly Italy,fast trains in Belgium and the Netherlands, and France.

But that doesn't answer your question.

Yes, you do need to fill in that report, and you need to do it before you board the next train. You know where you are going so it shouldn't be particularly onerous if you do it properly.

The train companies use the reports so that they can claim back the money from the coordinator of Eurailpasses. It is how they get paid.

Some train conductors / train managers / capotreno / ched du bord, etc., will want to see the report with your pass, and likely your passport too, and others may only check your Eurailpass. On still others you may see nobody checking. As mentioned, in several of the countries you have to pay all that extra money for the faster trains, and if you don't have the proof of that when your passes are checked you will likely be removed from the train and made to buy a full priced ticket on the next one or at least fined.

It is your responsibility to comply with the rules for pass holders in each country.

The travel report goes with all Eurail-brand passes and your pass is not valid without it, so you cannot throw it away (as we used to in the olden days). Your start and end point for each day is all they are requesting; you don't have to enter connection points. This is a separate area and separate step from the spot where flexipass travelers fill in their counted travel dates (on the face of the main pass page, so flexipass travelers are doing two steps).

http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/using-your-rail-pass

http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/reservations

{OK, I removed my attempt to put bold on the links.]

Laura's links aren't working right now, but maybe mine will: Using Your Railpass and Do I Need Seat Reservations

EDIT: These links work.

Thanks, you've answered my question. Appreciate your help.

Contrary to what Frank said, reservations are rarely "required" on German trains. The exception I know of is the ICE Sprinter. and they are uncommon. ICE Sprinters go non-stop from big city to big city. For example, there are only two ICE Sprinters daily, one early in the morning, one in the evening, each direction between Frankfurt Hbf and Berlin Hbf.

The price of a full fare ticket (with mandatory reservation) for an ICE Sprinter (134,50€) is 11,50€ more than the price of a "non-Sprinter" ICE (123,00€ without a reservation, which is an extra 4,50€). If you have a rail pass and want to ride the Sprinter, you must purchase a reservation, which includes your assigned seat and a 7,00€ surcharge for that special train. On any other ICE, a seat reservation, with or without a rail pass, is optional.

The ICE sprinter between Frankfurt and Berlin makes the trip in 3h42m, almost half an hour faster than the fastest direct ICE, which makes about 6 stops in between cities.

I had a Swiss conductor lecture me on the importance of filling out that travel report area, with every train noted so that monies can be divvied up at the end of the year. Every conductor will treat your pass differently, some just glance at it, some will make a little punch mark, and some will scrutinize it like a legal document.

Also, you are supposed to return your entire pass to Eurail when you're done (they pay the postage) so they can see what you wrote, otherwise it's wasted effort. But by doing so you will get a small gift from them that is returned along with your pass. I got a cool little flash drive. Make a copy of your pass before you send it off, just in case, and redact personal info like your passport number (that is not anyone's business).