We have a 15Plus day holiday in Germany booked: Berlin 5 days, Dresden, Nuremberg, Munich 3-4 each. I was mistakenly thinking the German Rail pass would work for not only intercity travel but S and U Bahn and bus. I now seem to understand that it is intercity and S Bahn only. Is this correct? Is this still a better option for 10 day pass to get us between the cities? Leaving soon. Many thanks for the help.
Posted by
Uppsala, Sweden
6985 posts
For just three intercity trips single tickets will probably be cheaper. At least if you buy them in advance, but if you're leaving soon they might be a bit expensive.
Posted by
Paradise
7072 posts
Berlin 5 days, Dresden, Nuremberg, Munich 3-4 each.
A German rail pass can be used for your itinerary. However, a "10 day pass to get us between the cities" would be supreme railpass overkill. To get between those 4 cities, you will need 3 train trips - one on the day you leave Berlin, and two additional trips - one when you leave Dresden and a final one when you leave Nuremberg. So what you need, if you want a rail pass, is a 3-day rail pass - the "flexi" type that offers 3 days of use within a month.
For travel within the cities, you may want to supplement your pass with local day passes. The S-Bahn option is inadequate for getting around - and buying a 10-day pass just to use the S-Bahn is going to be a waste.
That said, you probably don't need a rail pass at all. I believe you might find it even less expensive to purchase individual tickets in advance for each major rail travel leg from DB. A rail pass offers convenience of scheduling, however - and may be convenient if you want to keep those journeys maximally flexible.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Many thanks. Oh I wish we had the options in the US!
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19275 posts
I was mistakenly thinking the German Rail pass would work for not only intercity travel
but S and U Bahn and bus. I now seem to understand that it is intercity and S Bahn only.
Is this correct
That is correct. All four of the cities you plan to visit have their own day passes (Tageskarten), which include not only S-Bahn, but U-Bahn, buses, and trams. As I remember, a lot of travel in Dresden is by tram. You will probably spend less and have more options with a metro day pass vs a rail pass.
For the other three intercity days, if you can commit to a day and time, you will probably save money with advance purchase, Savings Fare tickets. For Nürnberg to Munich, use a Regio-Ticket München-Nürnberg or a Bayern-Ticket (use the Bayern-Ticket if you will use any local [metro] transport in either city that day).