Can you direct me to any Senior discount info for Germany? I saw something on one of Rick's pages as I was going through but couldn't locate it later. Do you have to purchase a Senior Card? If so, how much is it and where do you purchase them. Are they worth it? My husband is 64 and I'm 62.
Thanks.
Most discounts are restricted to EU citizens. However, Spain is the exception. Anyone or 60, maybe 62, and proof can get discounts. For the Spain trains you buy a $6 Euro card at the train station.
I paid senior rates on the French trains that I booked in advance on SNCF website. Not all French trains had them but some do, and I think it's only on the advance online purchases. I don't remember any senior rates for my trains in Germany, but then I'm a senior and my memory isn't always the greatest - lol.
Edit: just saw this asked about Germany. Oh well. That's my aging eyesight and brain! Here's info for another trip.
There are senior rates for local trains too, Nancy. The restrictions have to do with day and time of tickets: senior rates are for travel outside of rush hour and outside weekend rush times (Friday pm/ Saturday am and Sunday pm). For example, the 7 am train into Paris is full price but the 9:30 is -25%. This is for 60 and above. Bought my first discounted ticket on my 60th birthday--to Chantilly.
The only deal I know of is that you can buy a BahnCard50 (50% discounts on rail tickets) for half the normal price of 255 euro 2nd class. BUT, it looks like you need a German mailing address to get it.
Yes, French TER trains give a 25% discount when traveling off-peak.
For Germany there are lots of deals using Sparpreis advance purchase nonrefundable tickets, and regional day tickets (Laender Tickets), and Quer durch Lands and Schoenes Wochende Tickets. These often trump any senior discount.
Yes, for Germany, our understanding is also that the only senior discounts are on buying a Bahn Card 50 (pay about €128 instead of €255), which gives you 50% ticket discounts for a year: http://www.bahn.com/i/view/GBR/en/prices/germany/bahncard.shtml.
Advance-purchase ticket discounts or a German Rail Pass (with two-traveler discount) are the usual choices for most short-term visitors: http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/germany-rail-passes.
Senior deals by country that we've been able to confirm are typically listed at the bottom of each single-country page in the rail travel section of our web site (for Austria, Belgium, Great Britain, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, and Spain). Each one is different.
The Deutsche Bahn doesn't offer a lot for seniors, but in Germany there are senior discounts for train and bus travel within some transit authority zones.
If you're 60+ and spending 2-4 weeks in the Rhine/Mosel region, you can get a month-long senior pass for €65 per month for the entire VRM transit zone.
The RMV (Frankfurt area) has a similar pass for 65+.
Those are just two I happen to be aware of. I suspect such offers are actually more widespread.
Here is a link to the Senior Citizen disccounts of Deutsche Bahn (in German). In essence you get the BahnCard 25 or 50 at an even lower rate. The BahnCard 25 First is 81 instead of 129 euros for senior citizens and it grants to 25% on any fare (even saver fares) in first or second class for 1 year. The same card limited to only 2nd class is 41 euros only...
