I THINK the Global Pass makes sense for me?

This sounds like the perfect use of a pass. The best resource for train schedules is the DB site:

https://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query2.exe/en?protocol=https:&rt=1&

you can find times/routes and whether reservations are required. If you find yourself on a full train with no seats and no reservation head to the bistro/bar car, have a beverage and meet some fellow travelers.

There have been times we would just arrive at the train station and pick the next train leaving! Sounds like you have plenty of time so no worry about fast trains - although many are still available to pass holders even without reservations. In places like France & Belgium where reservations are needed on many trains just try a different route - I use google maps to pick a secondary clty along my route and change regional trains there. Just be creative. I use the evening hours when we returned to our hotel room to check for the trains I might want on our next journey.

We are using the two month global on our next trip as well - its a great value - only $400 more than the 30 day for the 2nd month

Have a ball!

Just make sure you understand each train system for the use of a pass. The days you flash the pass, jump on any train headed in the correct direction are long gone. In Italy all trains except Regionale trains require a seat reservation. You cannot just jump on train and sit in the bar. The fine is very high. Germany is (I think) a mix of reserve and non-reserve so that might work there. My understanding in France is a reservation for a pass holder is required and severely limited for each train. With the development of high speed trains the old sleeper trains are going away. There are trains making late night/early morning runs and could have multi-changes so I am not sure that makes a lot sense unless you like a few sleepless nights.

I will cut the trip to 88 days in the Schengen zone just to give yourself a little pad on the 90 day Schengen zone requirements just in case you are delayed somewhere. The enforcement is pretty strict.

Hi,

Bravo on planning this trip for 90 day! ...just be certain that you have the 90 day count exact. I envy you going for 90 days, more than 12 consecutive weeks, and using Global Pass.

On the night train option, use it when you can. But check at the train station (best in the evening) office and get a seat reservation so that you sit sleeping upright. That's what I do with my Austria-Germany Pass. Doing that your night ride is free since it is covered by the Pass. I do likewise in Austria and Germany, taking the EN night train option, say from Munich to Düsseldorf, Kiel to Munich, Linz to Berlin, etc. You save a day doing the night ride. If you don't need it, no need getting a sleeper or couchette, (I don't ), that's extra, ie, not covered by the Pass. You do, say, a ten hour night ride, you pay 4.5 Euro for a seat reservation only, the rest is covered by the Pass.

With this Global Pass you can use it day or night going from Vienna to Gdansk, or Prague to Amsterdam, Cologne to Warsaw. I suggest Budapest, Germany, CR as part of the itinerary, and Poland. too. Budapest and Munich are the hubs for night trains.

On hopping on any train, and just showing the Pass still can be done but certain countries vis-a vis "any" ...Czech Rep, Austria, Germany, possibly Hungary, although I did not have a seat reservation in Hungary. In Poland the express trains have mandatory seat reservations but those are easily avoided.

On your #1....if you stick to that, then you will be able to hop on since you are taking the regional trains, such as the TER in France.

I assume you're familiar with the rail guru, The Man In Seat 61. He has lots of details on everything related to European trains. For instance, here's how to get to Athens: https://seat61.com/Greece.htm

To add to Frank's excellent point about "the days of hop on and ride anywhere are over":

In Germany, only a few trains are reservation mandatory. For those trains that do offer optional reservations, they are cheap (€4.50 last I looked).

In Italy, many trains are reservation mandatory. They are €3 for IC trains and €10 for Freccia trains (Frecciaargento, Frecciarosa, etc). Your pass is only good on Trenitalia. It is not good on Italo (competes with Trenitalia on main routes), or or some of the local companies such as Trenord or Circumvesuviana (these aren't expensive, but the fines for riding without a proper ticket are high, so double check before boarding if your pass is good on a train). Trains called Regional or Regional Veloce do not require (or allow) reservations.

For Spain, the AVE (high speed lines) require reservations. I don't know if the AVANT (high speed for shorter distances) do.

For France, TGV trains and some other require reservations. This is the hardest country to use a pass; even Rick recommends that you get your France reservations at the time you buy the pass. That's because France limits the number of passholder reservations per train. So, even when a train has spaces, it could be sold out of pass holder spaces. You either have to take another train (if one has openings that will work for you), or buy a ticket (likely expensive as it's last minute).

Almost no domestic trains in Switzerland allow or require reservations.

Be aware that even though you say you don't intend to take high speed trains, more and more routes have only, or almost exclusively, high speed trains running on them. For instance in Spain, Madrid to Toledo is only by AVANT. That's why it's important to know the rules for them in each country.

An easy way to get schedules for almost all of Europe is Bahn (German Rail) website http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en, following Rick's tutorial: http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/online-schedules. That site also indicates if reservations are mandatory or optional or not available.

Are trains running in and out of Greece now?

If you spend your entire time in the Schengen area remember that the 90 days includes the entry day and departure day, even if just a few minutes in the day. Fines and penalties are severe, prudence dictates a day or so of buffer time in case your flight home is delayed or you get bumped.

Hi,

I know you are still in the midst of planning, tweaking the plans and details of the trip.

Be advised that in France if you stick to the TER trains, you can hop on, in Austria and the Czech Rep likewise, and on the EC, IC ,ICE trains in Germany plus the RB and RE trains. I'm assuming you're doing day travel. I've hopped on trains in Austria (both the Westbahn and OBB) and the Czech Rep...no problem, likewise in Germany on the iC and ICE. In France some TER trains were so crowded that people are literally standing over you or you are doing that to them, no reservations are sold for those trains, no AC to be had either., same as in Germany with Meridian trains, ie no reservations are sold for them. You either stand or sit on the steps if any are still available, in the case of RB and RE trains.

Hopping on with the Pass can be done, the main thing is whether you find a seat, that might be another story. I've hopped on mostly in Germany, sometimes a seat is easy to find, other times barely. Or, in the worse case, you stand the 2 hrs near the WC area. If it's like that , you can bet others will be standing there too in the isle, sometimes squished in like in a bus.

Trains in the Balkans are few and far between. Read the Man in Seat 61 site for the best advice.

Excellent advice in this article, which also carries a warning about lack of train services in the Balkans.

https://www.priceoftravel.com/2794/should-you-buy-a-eurail-pass-heres-how-to-decide/

Local trains in Italy are cheap. If you are planning a lengthy stay in Italy and won't be travelling every day then I would choose a couple of well located bases and buy tickets as needed.

The only night train in the 28 covered countries that doesn't accept the Eurail pass is between Paris and Italy. See this described at https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/global-pass. Some other not-covered trains (which you're also not likely to take) are listed on our links for each country.

I would not necessarily avoid faster or longer-distance trains, if those serve your destination. The longer the distance traveled each day, the more value you get out of the pass.

The once daily train from Sofia to Thessaloniki is back in operation.

Laura gives good advice - here is the condensed version from seat.61 :

**Do I need to make reservations?*
For journeys on local, regional or suburban trains in virtually all countries, you can just hop on any train at any time, and show your Eurail pass to the conductor if and when asked. Easy!
For travel on longer -distance trains between cities, here is my rough - but actually pretty accurate - rule of thumb:
In Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark & most of central & eastern Europe, seat reservation even on longer-distance inter-city trains is optional and there's nothing extra to pay on top of the pass unless you want a reserved seat, or couchette or sleeper on an overnight train.
You can just hop on any train without a reservation, sit in any unreserved empty seat, and show your pass when asked by the conductor - even premier high-speed trains like Germany's superb ICE or Austria's Railjet trains. Trains cannot 'sell out'. If you want a reserved seat (a sensible move for a long journey to avoid any chance of having to stand, especially at busy times) it only costs €3-€4.50. Passes retain their 'hop on any train' convenience factor in these countries.
The key exceptions in these countries are as follows: Thalys high-speed trains between Brussels & Amsterdam and between Brussels & Cologne have compulsory reservation & a fee for railpass holders. A few scenic tourist trains in Switzerland require a seat reservation & small supplement, such as the celebrated Glacier Express & Bernina Express.
In France, Italy, Sweden, Spain & Portugal, passholders must make a reservation and pay a fee for almost every inter-city journey, including international journeys starting or ending in these countries. You can reckon for planning purposes that this is €10 for every train ride. Sometimes it's less, sometimes more, notably a French TGV is either €9 or €18, and Thalys Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam is €15-€25.
There are limited quotas for passholder places on Paris-Brussels-Amsterdam Thalys, Paris-Switzerland TGV-Lyria, Paris-Turin-Milan TGVs & Paris-Barcelona TGVs which can sell out if you don't reserve seats soon enough, but for other trains including French domestic TGVs and Spanish or Italian high-speed trains, passholders can always get seats unless the train is physically full, which might happen at Christmas or Easter or on a busy Friday afternoons, but generally there's always places available.*

There is also a country by country list here:

https://www.seat61.com/Railpass-and-Eurail-pass-guide.htm#supplements cost

Thanks all for all this helpful advice! And especially to the last poster for that train list by country.

I think Im going to go ahead and do it. Since i have nowhere specific to be, I can also let my pass dictate my way!

Hi,

You have to realise that with 90 days earmarked for the trip, you can tailor your train routes much easier with a Pass, ie, you don't necessarily have to take the route given by Deutsche Bahn. With 90 days and that Pass, you can traverse across Europe, zig zag traveling, etc, on both day and night trains. If you decide to go to Munich, within 3 mins from the station taking the Bayerstrasse exit, there are 3 hostels all on the same block. Wombats is one of them, it's where I stayed.