Bahn in Germany: Advance purchase necessary?

In Germany, except for a few trains (ICE Sprinters) that require reservations, you can always get on the train of your choice. Even if you buy a ticket a minute before for a train that is SRO, you can get on, and stand. The only way to assure a seat is to buy a reservation, and regional trains aren't reservable. On most lines there is a minimum of one train an hour. In 10 years, I've been on two regional trains that were SRO - both rush hour on commuter runs. However, advance purchase for a specific train can get you considerable discounts.

>>Munich-Nürnberg: There are 9 ICEs from Munich to Nürnberg just from 8 AM until noon. If you commit to one of them and buy a non-refundable ticket in advance (3-92 days), you can get a fare from Munich to Rothenburg for as little as €29. However, if you take regional trains from Munich to Treuchtlingen to Steinach to Rothenburg, it will only take 25 min longer and you can do it with a fully flexible €20 Bayern-Ticket Single, for one person. . >>Rothenburg to Füssen and Füssen to Munich: Both legs are best done with regional trains. Again, a €20 Bayern-Ticket Single will cover each trip. . >>Munich to Salzburg is ½ hr faster by express train, but you can do the trip with a regional train with a Bayern-Ticket.

Personally, based on experience you will have no problems buying tickets or seat reservations at the window. The ONLY time I was happy we bought seat reservations was on the Lauterbrunnen to Salzburg, Austria train. Had we not had seat reservation, we would have had to sit in 2nd class, which would have been just fine.

Prior to our trips, we know our travel day in advance. I print out the timetables for those days and can choose which train to take or wait until the next if our plans should change.

Until recently, I would have said don´t bother with reservations. But I´ve been in enough standing-room only ICE trains lately that I do think they are helpful. With or without a reservation, you can get on a train. But during rush hour for some of the busier routes, you may have trouble finding a place to sit. It´s a nice feeling to walk onto a packed train and see your reserved seat waiting for you. If you travel outside of rush hours, you probably don´t need a reservation for any of the trips you have mentioned. But during peak times, it might be helpful for Munich to Nuremburg, and maybe from Munich to Salzburg.

I was very happy I bought in advance and had reservations, despite what others advised- our trains (IC/ICE) during the Christmas season were all SRO. My mom said that my Opa (German grandpa) recently took a trip where he was too cheap (her words, and that was the case!) to pay for reservations, and he, at 88, was stuck standing. Luckily, someone did take pity on him and gave him her seat after he stood for at least two hours.

Regional trains don't take that much longer, but they are older, more crowded and have less comfy and perks like power socks or on-board Wi-Fi. Just pay the little it costs and reserve ICEs instead. They are way better than any other service category trains.

I agree with that assessment on regional trains...they're refurbished trains from the 1970s which I used to ride back then. Nothing beats the ICE trains, which I almost aways take when given a choice. Maybe you might want to reserve for the Vienna-Prague ride.

"I agree with that assessment on regional trains...they're refurbished trains from the 1970s which I used to ride back then." Actually, there is tremendous variation in the types of regional train you might encounter in Germany. Some are 40+ years old. Some are modern, climate-controlled double-deckers based on an old East German design. Some, like the trains along the Rhine between Mainz and Köln, are brand spanking new Siemens products; check out the video (in German, but you can see them under construction and in use along the Rhine: www.mittelrheinbahn.de/imagefilm-der-mittelrheinbahn

Thanks to everyone for the helpful replies in this thread. The one question I still have is, on the Bahn website, you cannot reserve for the Vienna-Prague ride (which is pretty long, and I would not want to stand for that one) because it goes outside of Germany/Austria. Can I reserve this ride easily enough in person when I get to Germany (say, in Munich, well before I even get to Vienna)? Or is there a better way to do it?

I've never felt I needed a reservation. It's true trains are crowded during rush hour. If you need to train during those times, a reservation may be worth it.

Regarding the difference between regional and intercity trains...... The big difference is regionals stop at every (or nearly every) stop to drop off and pick up passengers. The stops are under five minutes (maybe under one minute), just enough time to quickly hop on or off. The combination of regularly slowing, stopping at stations, speeding up again costs you time. On a short leg, the time lost may be only a few minutes. On a long leg, you are likely to lose hours......My style of travel is to keep the legs short and stop at lots of smaller places so I ride regionals almost always. Since regionals are the commuter trains for most workers heading into cities, they get crowded during rush hours and you may have to stand until you get to the city everyone is going to.

Ty, for the Vienna-Prague trip, go to oebb.at/en/ (the Austrian train website) for tickets. The train trip is 5 hours or less for most trips. It starts out nice and easy, then gets a little harry......I know enough German to squeak through the purchase process but if you need translating and only have Google Translate that should be enough - I hope! - but by purchasing early, you can save 1/2 off the full price tickets! That'll pay for some pivo ;-)