Buying train tickets ahead of time

Linda,

You shouldn't have any trouble buying tickets at the station on the day of travel. Lee or one of the others more familiar with the German rail system will be able to provide more specific information.

For local and regional travel like the Bayern ticket there is no advantage in booking in advance. You can simply do it when you get to the station. And then you are very flexible in the train and times you choose to use.

For longer distances, there are reduced fees available called "Sparpreis" - when booked in advance. These can cut down your expenses substantially. However, you have to pick a specific train when booking and this travel time cannot be changed at a later time.

Thanks for all the great info. If I may also ask here about other countries........
We are doing two other trains earlier in our trip. One from Rotterdam to Cologne, Germany which should be the Thalys hi-speed train (we don't want to go thru Amsterdam).
Also traveling from Paris to London on Eurostar (stopping in London for a couple of hours) and going same day from London to Glasgow.
I have traveled Europe a couple of times before, but have always driven the entire thing which I enjoy. This time there are too many huge car "one way drop off" fee's, so we're doing section by train, which should also be fun.

You should definitely buy those legs in advance online. They are like airline tickets, non refundable nonchangeable, but if you can buy them early enough, you can get them at very good prices.

Ditto what Sam said. TODAY is not too soon to book the Thalys and the Eurostar, as they only go up in price when cheaper tickets sell out. If you need any help with these, post your specific questions, or look at the Man In Seat 61. Here, for instance, is his Eurostar page: http://www.seat61.com/London-to-Paris-by-train.htm#.U8Fhb7GGd8E

Thank you all so much, I'm really glad I asked the other questions. Appreciate all the valuable input.

Linda,

I agree with the others, book the EuroStar as soon as you've determined your travel dates. Note that that the cheapest tickets are usually non-changeable and non-refundable, so choose carefully. There's a lot of good information on booking EuroStar tickets on the excellent Man In Seat 61 website.

When travelling on the EuroStar, you MUST check-in at least 30 minutes prior to departure or you won't be riding. You'll also be clearing U.K. Passport control at Gare du Nord and will have to go through airport style security, so be sure to leave lots of time for that.

I don't have any information on the London to Glasgow trip, but hopefully Nigel will be along soon as I'm sure he'll be able to answer that one.

Thanks very much Ken. I just booked our Paris to London, and decided to do the 7:43am instead of the 7:15, so that will give us extra time for the security check. Thanks so much for mentioning that!

The Man In Seat 61 is a great site! I have now gone to the Virgin train website as recommended for my next leg. I am seeing trains from London Euston station to Glasgow Central that range from 42 to 259 GBP. The 42GBP states that you can only take the specified train - which I am guessing means the one for the time I choose (13:43 to 19:23). We have plenty of free time in London before catching that train so I think we're safe with this one. We will be picking up our car at the Glasgow airport, but I know there are several shuttle buses. I looked at the trains going to the airport (bus and "local" train added to trip), but this other one is a lot cheaper. Any thoughts on this? Again, I can't say thank you enough for all the help.

You can purchase the Bayern-Ticket ahead of time to save time in the station in the morning, BUT, the ticket has the date of validity stamped on it, so make sure you select tomorrow, or the date, on the screen before executing the purchase.