I’m backpacking Europe for a month (12 countries in my itinerary) and was wondering what would be cheaper- a Eurail pass or traveling via FlixBus?
Also- has anyone heard of the Wise card (https://wise.com/)? Should I get this? Hungary and Croatia will be on my itinerary, and their currency is not Euro. I have credit cards without foreign transaction fees, but was recommended Wise by a friend.
It's not possible to answer your railpass-vs.-bus question without a better idea of where you're hoping to go. However, trains don't go everywhere, and they sometimes require a circuitous route that makes them less convenient than a bus, so it's quite possible that a mixture of trains and buses would be optimum for you (more likely if you're not just hopping from capital to capital). In most cases, buying individual train tickets (especially if you buy them well in advance) is cheaper than a pass, but your itinerary is not typical (2.5 days per country!), so your trip may be a different story.
One thing to keep in mind is that in some countries, express trains require seat reservations. Those are an extra expense for folks with Eurail passes. The express trains can be much, much faster than buses (and regular trains), which could be a key factor with a very condensed schedule like yours.
Please fill in some details so we can provide good advice:
It's probably best for you to do your own number crunching. Sit down with the itinerary and dates and check the options:
https://www.eurail.com/en Same with FlixBus planning https://www.flixbus.com/bus
Your friend is probably referring to a Wise card that is attached to a multi-currency account and works like a debit card. In my experience, Wise is more likely to be used by those temporarily living abroad or traveling long term. Your credit cards should be sufficient for a shorter trip.
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/money-transfer/wise-review/
https://www.exiap.com/reviews/transferwise-debit-card
Yes, we really need more details to be able to answer your question. But the options are not just Eurail pass or Flixbus. Single train tickets can also be a good idea. Or other passes.
To understand the "best" approach, you need to be a bit clearer. If I was going to Europe for 30 days, I would not be going to 12 countries.
Write down the dates of the trip. Then write the name of the cities and the nights to be spent there. Every day of travel is pretty much consumed with travel only. So, if you are going to 12 countries, you actually don't have a 30 day trip, you really have 18 days of touring, with 12 days to go from one place to another. You are spending 1 or 2 nights in each place. You probably will never entirely unpack. Since the arrival day and departure day are also travel days, you are down to 16 actual tourist days.
Most here would suggest that you consider 6-7 locations. That way, you can get a better and deeper taste of each location. SInce you are probably a young person, go to Europe thinking "This is my first trip" not "This is my only trip". Also remember that FOMO means "fear of missing out" which is the concern that if you go one place you are not other places. Life in the moment of the location.
I like Rome2rio to help planning. It's not always 100% accurate, but can give you an idea of the travel options from A to B. That can help you understand where you need the Flixbus (we've used them several times, and I like this bus company) vs train. I doubt that any kind of Eurail pass can help you - the pass is not as cheap as point-to-point because it is 1st class train travel
Croatia now uses the euro.
Slowly, we have been finding that FlixBus is a better option than rail as to cost, and convenience. So we check that out first, for intermediate distances and day trips. Longer cross country, we still use rail. Eurail pass is, in my opinion, a bit out dated, cause point to point tickets, when you add them up, are often cheaper then the Pass. And you lose nothing by going out side the time frame of the window, Eurail Rail, offers. Eurail may still have some validity, in very specific cases, but this didn't fit our travel style any more. :) It might fit yours, if your going to 12 countries in one month.
I'm so glad I spotted this post. I was looking into using the train to get from Strasbourg, France to Freiburg, Germany as a day trip, but it was a bit confusing. Then I came across a blogger who suggested using FlixBus. It looks like it will actually be easier, quicker (direct) and less expensive.
I downloaded the app. I still need to figure out where the pickup/dropoff sites are, but this seems promising.
Theoretically, you would need 6-8 weeks to do 12 countries, not the mere 4 in a month, unless in some of these 12 you intend to visit only one city and that's it, say, for Austria, just Salzburg or Linz, etc. If not, I suggest the number of countries to be scaled down.
The best bet on getting the Eurail Pass is that 15 days within 2 months, then you calculate the amount per day in Euro, easily done from info provided on its website. I had that on my 6 week trip, which would have worked even more effectively on a 7 week trip.
I'm assuming you are younger than 28, then you qualify for Youth Eurail Global Pass, 2nd class, even more savings. Both Croatia and Hungary are served by the Night Jet night train routes.
Get a compartment seat, your ride is basically free, except for the inexpensive price of the seat reservation, very doable. I did one night train route this time (NJ) using that option from Hamburg to Vienna on this last trip.
It does not have to be an "either or " choice between Eurail or Flixbus. I prefer arriving in a train station. Are your bus stops far from them or close enough?
Do you qualify for some super discounted fare on Eurail? If not, compare point to point tickets with FlixBus. A Eurail pass only beats point to point if you're going really long distances - longer than most travelers plan to go in a day. If you're choosing rail, the earlier you book the cheaper the fare. You have to look at both options and decide what works best for you.
I generally go with either rail or a rental car, when rail doesn't make sense. I believe FlixBus is a much cheaper option, but I have yet to take one.
I agree with all stated, just wanted to add that we’ve been quite happy with FLIX and we learned on our last trip that FLIX tickets can be changed or canceled for credit towards future travel. We did our booking (and rebooking) easily thru their app.
