eurail special deals

Specials are most reliably sold in the winter. There was such a sale at the start of this year. However, I would keep your eyes open through August, since other sporadic specials or coupon codes could come up; check http://ricksteves.raileurope.com/special-deals/featured-deals.html. Regular prices vary with the euro-dollar exchange rate, as well.

Hi,

You missed the special deal this year on getting the extra day. That deal expired on 30 April by which time you had to have ordered on-line the Eurail pass. This year's special deals of getting the extra day were more generous than those of previous years since it applied to several duration of passes, ie an eight day Pass got you an extra day making it 9 days, a ten day Pass got you 11 days, etc. That's the one I ordered, arrived within a week without having to pay extra for shipping.

Had you ordered the Pass through Eurail in April, you would have gotten the extra day since you have six months to activate, ie have it stamped for validation based on your leaving in Sept. Time wise you would have made it. As a rule what I have noticed in getting that extra day, you must order prior to 31 March, the normal deadline. Eurail extended that deadline until 30 April. Keep in mind it was in March and April that the Euro kept sliding every day or every other day to a point of $1.05. Now it has crept slowly up to $1.11

Without even knowing your itinerary I can guess that you'll spend less by buying point to point tix. Eurail Passes are dinosaurs left over from the olden days when they actually were beneficial. Not the case anymore.

Earlier this year they offered up to 5 free days which we got at www.eurail.com Keep watch- they may pop up again. One benefit of ordering early is that you can not only order your pass but also place your reservations at the same site which is useful. That is available at www.eurail.com/plan-your-trip I love doing it all at that site because we can buy a 3 month pass, do our planning, and get our reservations done. Don't believe anyone who says Eurail passes are dinosaurs. Millions of people use them. We travel year around and have done so for decades and we love the passes. It's not always about being a cheapskate and pinching pennies as some here would have you think. Your time and effort is worth something too and convenience is a great selling point.

Rail passes are not only pitched to North Americans, who presumably are the largest audience, but also to Asian countries. On the most recent trips I've seen numerous Japanese kids at the hostel (this was in Vienna) with Eurail materials since they appear in Japanese.

Everyone's travel needs are different, so for some people a Eurail Pass makes good sense financially as well as for the convenience. On our last trip we got two free days. Comparing our cost with second class seats (and of course with the pass we were in first class) we saved $1,000. Comparing our cost with first class tickets (apples to apples) we saved over $3,000. We traveled on the train every single day, including long distance travel from and to our gateway city into Europe. There was summer flooding and several of the trains we intended to take were delayed or canceled. Had we been holding point-to-point tickets we would have been screwed. (excuse the vernacular)
Dinosaurs are extinct, so clearly that analogy is inaccurate. :) Eurail Passes are alive and well, and for some people they are the correct choice. I would never be so arrogant as to dictate what makes sense for other people.

Alright...let's play nice.

I would never be so arrogant as to dictate what makes sense for other people

Is it arrogance, though, to suggest that people can travel on the same exact trains, in the same exact seats, for much cheaper prices than offered by the rail pass companies?