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Bayern Ticket for Train Travel in Germany

Posted by (San Leandro) on

Hi my name is Shirley and I will be travelling to Germany the last weekend of May thru the first two weeks of June.

My schedule is as follows:

May 31st (Saturday)- arriving in Frankfurt at 9:30am and taking train directly to Rothenburg od der Tauber

June 2 (Monday)---taking train from Rothenburg od der Tauber to Munich

June 5 (Thursday)---taking train from Munich to Fussen (from Fussen renting a car and driving back to Munich on Sunday morning)

June 8 (Sunday morning at 10:00 or 11:00)---taking train from Munich to Salzburg

I am planning on buying the Bayern tickets for my train travel and here are my questions:

1). Can someone tell me if the Bayern ticket will work for weekend travel in the mornings on May 31st and June 8? I have read on some websites that the weekend ticket travel time starts at midnight to 3:oo next day--so does that mean you need to buy the tickets for May 31st on May 30 and for June 8 on June 7?

2). Can I just buy the ticket from the machine or counter on the day of travel instead of online in advance and is it the same price regardless of whether I buy now or later?

3) I read that the ticket must be used for the day of travel that is stamped on the ticket, but can you travel anytime during that day on weekdays between 9:00am to 3am next morning & weekends from midnight to 3:00am next day? The reason I am asking is because when I go onto the train website, you are asked to choose date and time of train travel and I was hoping to not be locked into a certain time if I bought the tickets in advance.

Thanks in advance for any help that you can give me. :)

Regards, Shirley

Posted by
4684 posts

Yes, you can buy the Bayern Ticket on the day of travel. You don't have to buy it before the validity period starts and there's no discount for doing so.

The train website asks you for specific journeys because it's set up to sell single journey tickets. If you really want to buy your Bayern Tickets online in advance, you can do so at http://www.bahn.com/i/view/USA/en/prices/germany-regional/bavaria-ticket.shtml. But as I say there's no extra discount for doing so.

Remember that the Bayern Ticket is not valid on long-distance express trains, such as IC, ICE, or Railjet. This is particularly relevant when you go to Salzburg.

The Bayern Ticket will not cover your journey from Frankfurt to Rothenburg ob der Tauber. Book NOW at www.bahn.de if you want to get a cheap advance fare ticket. But remember that these cheap tickets are limited to specific trains and you have to pay full fare if you miss it, so give yourself plenty of time at the airport (I assume when you say you arrive at 0930 you'll be flying into Frankfurt Airport). A number of long-distance trains run direct from the airport, so make sure you search for trains from Frankfurt Flughafen, not Frankfurt Hbf.

Posted by
21162 posts

Your second question: "2). Can I just buy the ticket from the machine or counter on the day of travel instead of online in advance and is it the same price regardless of whether I buy now or later?"
There is a service charge of, I believe. 2 euro to buy from a human being rather than a vending machine.

Also, in order to travel to Rothenburg on the Bayern Ticket, you will need to get to Bavaria first. So when you arrive, you will need to buy a ticket to Kahl (Main) from the RMV ticket machine at the airport. The cost of that ticket is 7.80 euro. Then get a Bayern Ticket from a machine (I believe a DB machine) for the day for 23 euro. Now take the S-bahn to the Hauptbahnhof. There you will connect to a regional bahn to continue on to Rothenburg via Wuerzburg. The trains run at 34 past the EVEN hours. For the odd hours, you will have to take a train to Hanau at 26 past the ODD hours and change to a train to Wuerzburg. The Bayern Ticket will kick in as soon as you reach Kahl (Main). Prices are all predicated on your traveling alone. If you have a partner, adjust accordingly.

If all that sounds complicated, it is. You can also give yourself a time cushion of a couple of hours and buy a Sparpreis ticket now for 19 euro that will require you to make a specific train time and connection. Your call.

Posted by
19274 posts

Understand that, although the Saving Fare ticket gets you to Würzburg faster (1-1¼ hr), you still have to take the same regional trains from Würzburg to Rothenburg by way of Steinach. With connection times in Würzburg, you might arrive in Rothenburg an hour early, you might not arrive any sooner. If you wait two hours at FRA to catch a specific train to Würzburg, you'll probably arrive later in Rothenburg than if you had just left immediately on an S-Bahn for the Hbf. With the Savings Fare, you'll only have two changes instead of three. Also, if you puchase your Savings Fare early enough to get the 19€ fare you'll save vs 30,80€ using the Bayern-Ticket. However, there are only 19€ fares left for a few times of the day on May 31, if those don't coincide with the time you want, the next fares are 29€, still a savings, but possible not enough to justify the risk.

ABOUT THE REGIONAL CONNECTION TO WÜRZBURG -

Unless your flight comes in very early, I don't think you can reasonably expect to get to the Hbf in time to catch the EVEN hour RE (4611) at 10:34.

Before the next RE, the ODD one, departs Hanau at 11:59, there are four S-Bahn departing the FRA Regionalbf:

S8 10:32 Arr Hbf 10:43

S9 10:47 - 10:58

S8 11:02 - 11:13, and

S9 11:17 - 11:28.

While the 11:02 S8 gets to the Hbf in time to catch the 11:26 regional train to Hanau, there is no need. Stay on that same S-Bahn; it gets to Hanau to 11:44 in time to catch the 11:59 RE to Würzburg. The RE that leaves Hanau at 11:59 starts at Frankfurt Stadion Bhf at 11:28. All of the S-Bahn listed above, including the 11:17, get to Stadion 4 minutes (next stop) after leaving the airport, all in time to make the RE that starts there.

The next 3 S-Bahn, at 11:32, 11:47, and 12:02 all get to the Hbf in time to come up the elevator from the Tief (deep) S-Bahn station (about 10 minutes) and still catch the 12:34 RE to Würzburg.

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