Booking Train travel in Germany

The ticket will only have the name of the passenger who purchased the ticket, and the total number of passengers. It doesn't need their names.

Each person will need their own BahnCard if you bought tickets with the BahnCard discount. You do not show the ticket and BahnCard when you board; you show them to the ticket inspector when he or she comes around.

I am afraid I do not know anything about purchasing a BahnCard. If you cannot do it online because you do not have a German bank account, then you may have to change your tickets to a different type (One that isn't tied to a BahnCard). Or maybe there is an opportunity to buy it in person when you arrive in Germany.

I hope someone here can give you more information on the BahnCard.

The reason it wants a German bank account for a bahncard purchase it that the conditions require that the card auto-renews. You have to submit a letter in writing before a certain date, or you are charged for the next period and the money is withdrawn from your bank account (that you don’t have). Most tourists find this too onerous.

That said, I did buy 3-month trial cards for me and my family in 2010. I sent in the cancellation letter as soon as I received the cards. And yes, they were willing to mail them to me in Canada. A nice German man on this forum even drafted a cancellation letter for me in German. I’m sure I still have it somewhere if you decide to go through with this. I paid by credit card, I don’t know if that is still possible. I think it may be for the trial card, I’ll look it up.

The Bahncards are purchased separately from the tickets but you do have to show it onboard along with your ticket.

How did you purchase them? It seems I must purchase by June 8.

Maybe you cant purchase a 3 month card with Credit Card.

Well, times have moved on. Your best bet is the BahnCard Flex. It has a minimum validity of 3 months but costs only 6.50 Euro per month for adults, cheaper for under 27s and over 60s. And you can cancel online! No need for a formal letter in the mail.

I went all the way through to the payment page. It worked great. I could change the country, put in my real address, and pay by credit card.

This subscription gives you a 25% discount during the time it's valid. IIRC, it did not give 25% off already-discounted saver fares, so I ended up only slightly ahead. It was still fun to have though. EDIT: the conditions say the 25% is on both flex and saver fares, so this is a good deal.

I didn't readily see the pages in English, but I didn't look too hard. This will work for you if you want it to. You just need to decide if it will really save you much.

And yes, the promotion period is over on June 9, so if you're going to do it, do it now.

I just went through the booking (without actually paying) and it offered a credit card payment option, but only for the full year card costing €62,00.

that's odd. It shows a validity period of one month only, and the credit card selection is open for typing. I didn't actually type in my card number. It sure looks like it will take it but I don't really want one! EDIT: I did type in my card number and expiry date. It took it fine. Don't know if I would get an error after submit though.

Keith, can you let us know if you can get as far as I did?

Nelly, were you logged in when you got that option? I have an account there but was doing my dummy booking as a guest.

no, I did not login. Turns out Keith tried it with a cc and did get an error, because as I'm sure you saw, to pay monthly requires a bank account. Though it doesn't say German bank account...but I really hate to think of the fees a North American bank would charge for that service. Bye-bye BahnCard savings.

Would have been a great hack though...I saved some money the year I used it, and if we could recommend it to others here, it would be a good tip. We'll see if Keith ends up succeeding in this quest.

Some additional points:

Does each passenger need a Bahncard or just the person purchasing the ticket?

You have to enter the number (and type - there is a 25% and a 50% version) of Bahncards during the purchase of the ticket. You need to have that number with you during the trip, and they must be valid on the day you use the ticket. No need to have them before. You can show the Bahncard in the app on DB trains in Germany, but may need the physical card or at least a stamped paper version when travelling outside of Germany or using buses etc.

wants a German bank information for direct debit.

I do not think requiring a German bank account would be legal - they should accept any SEPA bank account with an IBAN. Not sure if they actually do that. I also think you can purchase the version with annual payment using a credit card.

Yes, you can buy an annual pass with a credit card, but that's not a great option for those of us who are just visiting. The annual BanhCard 25 is 62 Euros for the year, pretty much negating any savings you might get on your several weeks' worth of tickets. Unless you're really traveling long distances most days, in which case you'd have to compare it to a pass and see how it comes out. A 3-month investment (the minimum time) in a BahnCard 25 Flex card is a sweet deal at 19.50 Euro to get 25% off all your tickets. I really hope Keith can find a way to make it work and lets us know.

I've just made a test booking of a Bahncard25 Flex, and the modes of payment include credit card and PayPal.