Was about to buy my Saver train pass for me and my boyfriend for our euro trip in July ( 5days,2months, Benlux, Paris, Spain .) I have compared the prices to the point-to-point and it seems that the prices will be around the same ( i think ?) Is it a better deal/save some money if I buy a pass now or wait till were there and buy point-to-point ? Lots of money to spend, I don't want to make a bad chose :) !!
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19091 posts
"I have compared the prices to the point-to-point " HOW have you compared the prices to point-point? RailEurope's point to point prices are unrealistic. They are based on the prices for only the most expensive trains, with their markups added. Rick's map is also highly inaccurate. The only way to get accurate point-point prices is using the national railroads, Bahn.de, Trenitalia.com, SNCF.FR. Is that what you have used? According to RailEurope, the fare from Frankfurt Airport is $151. If you book online with German Rail, the full fare ticket, with reservation is $138. However, there are less expensive fares RE doesn't tell you about. Using just ICs, you can go for $112, with reservations. By regional train, it's only $31.35.
Posted by
Boston
4132 posts
Also, buying point-to-point means you can go 2nd class, which is a good bit cheaper.
Posted by
Mount Vernon, WA, USA
11 posts
I will be traveling by rail pass this summer, and think I will end up coming out a bit ahead on the costs over ptp, BUT if I had it to do over, I would not buy the pass. When you are comparing prices, you must add the reservation fees to your rail pass amount to compare to the ptp ticket prices. To get the res. fees, go to the Rail Europe home page and at the bottom left there is a place to choose: Book Reservations. There you can find out how much more you will have to pay in addition to your pass. And I have to say that this area of RE is not fun to navigate at all, you must break your trip into legs (any transfers must be checked as separate "trips" to get the fees or generally they just tell you the route can't be found). Depending on the type of train, the reservation fees can be high, so check this out first would be my advice.
Sometimes you can alter your route or time of travel to lower the fees, but not always.
Posted by
Texan in CA
4407 posts
Depends on when and where you're going; Amsterdam>Paris can cost €35,00 2nd class with an advance-purchase ticket; that's less than the passholder fare alone (€39,00)! Compare point-to-point to a Saver pass that costs approx. €284,00 (Rail Europe's price IN EURO = €284,00 x 1.49 exchange rate = $423, and your Saver pass would cost $434).. Where are you going, and on what exact dates? (FYI, you must purchase these advance tickets ASAP to get these kinds of prices!!!)