Couchette and Eurail Passes

Upgrade to what? You can reserve a couchette with a Eurail pass, you just have to buy a reservation separately. It's around 40- or 50EUR for City Night Line trains, not sure about others.

If I understand the question correctly, the answer is yes.

The night train ticket comes in two parts, the rail section and the accommodations section, often called a supplement, Aufpreis, or "reservation". Usually, the night train ticket is sold as a "global" ticket, including both parts. If you already have the rail section covered, such as a day ticket for a comparable train, or a rail pass, then all you need is to pay for the reservation, which can be a couchette or a sleeper.

However, understand that reservations are not always easy or economical to obtain. Except for German Rail, most national rail websites will not sell them online. RailEurope does sell them, but at a substantial markup over the European counter price (Night trains often sell out. It is not advisable to wait until you are in Europe to get the counter price). Euraide will sell you reservations at Euopean counter prices and send them to you with a $50 service charge (per order). Consider this before buying a rail pass.

Often times you can get a global ticket online from a national rail website for not much more than the cost of the reservation alone and not need to use a rail pass day.

Thanks Lee. You also partially answered my follow up question about how far in advance. I'm pretty sure that I'll have a rail pass, but I won't use all the days, so burning one on a night train isn't a big deal. If I do buy a counter ticket, do I have to be in Germany? I want the overnight from Berlin to Vienna. I'm going to start my journey in Amsterdam about 10 days prior to the night trip. I'll be in Bacharach about 7 days prior. If I'm able to reserve a couchette while in either of those locations for a Berlin train, maybe I'll be okay. I just don't want to reservation for the couchette to cost the same as buying a whole new ticket.

It might be a good idea to reserve a seat on the train to Berlin. There will probably be many unreserved seats, but they could be occupied by others without reservations. It's a long trip. You don't want to stand the whole way.

Seat reservations with a rail pass are €4,50. You can get them online from the Bahn or, since you will probably change trains in Koblenz, at a ticket counter there. If the few minutes it takes to get the reservation causes you to miss the next regional train up the Rhein to Bacharach, don't worry, there's another one in an hour.

Also keep in mind many trains now require seat reservations. This is an extra cost above the ticket price included with your railpass. Check carefully the trains you plan to take and get your reservation a few days in advance if possible to avoid long lines and delays.

The Berlin to Vienna night train (EN477) appears on the German Rail website. You can reserve accommodations only (Reservations, Aufpreis) for use with a rail pass. Select "check availability" under standard fare (it will ask your age, then return to the same page. Select check availability again). At the bottom of the page showing the various offers for accommodations, click on, "book only extra charge."

I would recommend getting night train reservations early (up to 3 month). Those are popular trains and accommodations, particularly for pass holders, do sell out.

Most German trains do not require seat reservations, although it is sometimes desirable. The exceptions are ICE Sprinter, mostly to Berlin.

I wouldn't wait until Amsterdam to get reservaions for the night train to Vienna, but you surely cannot get them in Bacharach, as that station is unmanned. Last time I was there (Nov '08) it had only a regional ticket automat.

Other than the night train (for which I will follow Lee's instructions), how do you reserve a seat on a train if you have a pass? Is it an extra charge? Can it be done online? I'll be traveling from Bacharach to Berlin (during the day) at one point in the journey and want to make sure I have a seat. I'm assuming my trip from Amsterdam to Bacharach will have room.

Sorry...these are probably questions I can find if I research online long enough, but I've found the DB website kind of hard to navigate and I want to make sure what I read actually jives with what real people know about the realities of train travel.

A follow up question is about trains in Austria. When I rejoin my wife, we'll be doing some travel there. Are we going to need to have reserved seats between Vienna, Salzburg, and Munich?

Thanks!

Cary,

For Bacharach-Berlin you can buy seat reservations for trains on each leg for which they are available either online from the German Rail site or at a staffed station in Germany.

If you haven't bought your railpass yet, be aware that booking tickets well in advance (up to 92 days allowed) on the German Rail site can get you some very cheap discount fares for point-to-point tickets. Amsterdam-Bacharach for as little as 29 EUR. Bacharach-Berlin for as little as 29 EUR. Discount fares for the Berlin-Vienna night train. You have to commit to specific departure dates and times, but you'll save a lot of money over buying a pass, particularly when you add the cost of seat reservations and sleeping accommodations.

The standard 2nd class fare for Vienna-Salzburg is 47.50 EUR.

For Salzburg-Munich you and your wife can travel on one Bayern-Ticket (good for 2-5 people) for 28 EUR.

Where are you finding those rates? When I look on the DB site, it is always way over 100 euros.

"Where are you finding those rates?"

You'll need to be more specific. What rates? You can't find a seat reservation online for less than €100? Even RailEurope doesn't charge that much. You can't find a Bayern-Ticket for less than €100? They are always €28. I just found Vienna to Salzburg for €47,50, 2nd class, from Austrian Rail, www.oebb.at.

The other fares, such as Amsterdam to Bacharch for €29. That's the lowest level of the Europa-Spezial Niederlande fare. You find in under Savings Fares. If you are looking in the very future, it's possible that all the lowest fares have been sold.

Here's an example of what Lee means when he says the discount tickets may be gone for the date you entered. For Amsterdam-Bacharach the first date for which the Savings fare column appears (to the left of the Standard fare column) is 1 May. All the €29 seats are gone, but there still are €39 seats for some departure times.