I guess I misunderstood how the railpasses work. I thought you could ride anywhere, 1st class in the countries I [INVALID]ed and the price of reservation was included? I was charged in Germany upwards of 55 euros/ea for my traveling group when making reservations and I also found out that when travelling in France you must reserve seating. I was frowned upon at the DB travel center for rejecting a reservation one time and felt obligated to purchase.
Is there a way to avoid reservation costs?
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23554 posts
Yes, by riding trains that do not require reservations - some ICs, regionals. If you had researched this question earlier on this site you would have found dozens of discussion on rail passes. For the most part rail passes are not the no brainer that they were ten or twenty years ago. You cannot avoid a reservation on a train requires a reservation. This is true of all premium - high speed - trains and some others.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19237 posts
In Germany, at least, the only trains requiring reservations are some of the fastest ICEs, like ICE Sprinters from Frankfurt to Berlin. Those "reservations" are actually a surcharge for riding a special premium train. There are also other ICE connection between Frankfurt and Berlin that do not require a surcharge.
Use the Bahn schedule website, http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en, to find trains between towns and whether or not they require or recommend reservations.
Read the section about railpasses on this site. It specifically says, "Railpasses cover 95% of all state-run trains in Europe, but don't cover reservation fees."
As long as I've known about railpasses, the price of reservations have never been included with them. In Germany, if you decide you want one, for most trains, passholder reservations can be obtained at a ticket counter for €4,50 2nd class or €5,50 in 1st.
Posted by
OP
West Valley City, Utah, USA
2 posts
Thank you. I was hoping there was a way to just hop on and look for unreserved seats (which were plenty) and get to and from. I'll do better next trip to expect to pay for reservations on the ICE's and faster rails:)
BTW: France rails are on strike and all night trains were cancelled last week. If you paid for reservation you could get from Manheim Germany to the french border by train then by bus to Paris
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19237 posts
"I was hoping there was a way to just hop on and look for unreserved seats"
You can do that on any train in Germany except an ICE-Sprinter (there are not many of them). On some routes trains are often SRO and reservations are recommended. I've been on at least 8, maybe as many as a dozen, reservable trains in the last 10 years. On only the last three did I have reservations (and they were not needed). On the others only once did I have to stand, and that on a holiday and only until we reached the next station.
For any express train (ICE/IC/EC) in Germany, you can get advance purchase, non-refundable tickets for as low as €29 online from the Bahn. Reservations, when purchased online with any ticket are only about half price (€2,50) in second class.
Posted by
San Francisco
14780 posts
Hi Lois, If you are wondering whether you can just hop on with the Pass in hand without a reservation, the answer is yes, but under certain conditions. I did that this summer and last summer of 2009. You can just hop on daytime on an ICE in Germany and Austria, w/o the reservation. If you're going to France from Germany, or vice versa, say Mannheim-Paris, daytime, you need a reservation for the ICE; the controller will ask to see the reservation when you show the Pass. If you're going from Berlin-Frankfurt, daytime, ICE, or Frankfurt-Duisburg, etc., just hop on (w/o the reservation). I've done that. If you're going Munich-Berlin, NIGHT, you need the reservation, or you pay the controller right then and there. I've done that too this summer. I was traveling solo. Between France and Germany you always need a reservation, day or night, TGV or ICE.
Hope this helps.
Posted by
San Francisco, California, USA
446 posts
The train industry has changed a lot in Europe. Ten or twenty years ago, the "classic" Eurailpass made sense for most tourists. It was first class, relatively inexpensive, you could hop on and off most trains with no problem, and if you wanted a reservation, it was cheap. In Germany, I recall making a reservation cost just a couple of Deutsche Marks, which was about fifty cents.
Nowadays, there are a confusing number of different types of trains, some of which are rather expensive, both to make a reservation or to buy a point to point ticket. And, the fare structure has changed, too. When I lived in Germany in the 1960's, if I wanted to take a train, I just went to the station and bought a ticket. I may be wrong, but I think in general there was only one fare for most trains, that was calculated on mileage. None of this "airline style" advance purchase stuff.