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InterRail & Eurail passes simplified & extended for 2019...

Posted by (Snohomish, WA, United States) on

Not sure what the prices will be for the passes.

Taken directly from Seat61.com website:

"The InterRail & Eurail pass ranges are streamlined and aligned with each other for 2019. The InterRail pass range for European residents and Eurail pass range for overseas visitors now virtually mirror each other in coverage, available pass periods, reservation requirements and even pricing.

Overseas visitors will no longer be forced to pay for 1st class travel if they buy a global Eurail pass, all passes will now come in both 1st & 2nd class, even global ones. A very welcome step forward.

The Eurail pass range is significantly simplified: The 2, 3 & 4 country Eurail Selectpasses are discontinued, leaving just one-country passes and global passes, as with the InterRail range. The Eurail global pass is being reduced in price to compensate for the removal of the cheaper Selectpasses and to align pricing more closely with the previously-cheaper InterRail passes for European residents, so this a real benefit.

Another welcome move, there's a new 'Senior' category of Eurail pass saving 10% off Adult Eurail passes for anyone over 60. On the other hand, Saver passes are discontinued, these gave two people a 15% discount on adult passes but they always have to travel together. This again reduces complexity.

The old 'after 19:00' rule for using sleeper trains with Eurail and InterRail has been replaced with a much simpler rule, see the InterRail or Eurail pages.

I've saved the best until last: UK JOINS EURAIL!! Eurostar joined the Eurail & InterRail scheme last year, accepting Eurail & InterRail passes with a €30 passholder fare with great availability. The UK has always been part of the InterRail scheme for European residents, but earth-shattering news this year is that finally after 59 years, the UK joins the Eurail scheme too! A Eurail Global pass now gives free travel for overseas visitors all over the UK as well as in the other 27 countries. There has always been great demand for this - how many visitors dropped the UK from their itineraries as it wasn't covered by their pass?"

Posted by
1881 posts

Thanks Kimberly for this information. I look forward to seeing the details.

Posted by
16895 posts

Relevant details are already up-to-date for 2019 throughout Rick Steves' rail pass info, such as the Eurail Global Pass and Rail FAQ pages. We'll also summarize these in a Travel News article going online on Friday, with the rest of the January articles.

I don't think many "visitors dropped the UK from their itineraries as it wasn't covered by their pass" but it certainly will be nice not to have to analyze buying a second pass to cover that country on a multi-country trip!

I agree that these changes are generally positive for travelers, and in some cases a significant change to the old math that we may have in our memory bases. As usual, dollar prices are subject to change throughout the year, based exchange-rate adjustments as well as special offers.

Posted by
14979 posts

Luckily I bought my 2 country Selectpass already by the Nov 30 deadline and getting that promo discount. I won't activate it until June 2019 and have 2 months before it expires...perfect. . Good news on the 19:00 hr night train rule since this 2019 trip will include those night rides.

Posted by
1 posts

I have not been able to find the official change in policy for the Eurail Flexipass travel days for overnight trips. I've checked the Eurail website as well as the posted "Eurail Pass Conditions of Use" at: http://eurailgroup.org/eurailcou

Both still state the 2018 policy for the "After 19:00 rule" not the new midnight to midnight rule that seat61.com website outlines. I hesitate to finalize my itinerary for my Germany-Austria-Italy trip in May 2019 until this policy is official.

I had planned to take the NightJet 40295 train from Salzburg to Padova leaving 2202 and arriving at 0521 the next day and then connect to Venice Santa Lucia using R 20805 leaving Padova at 0535 and arriving 0625. This itinerary complies with the "after 19:00 rule" to use only one travel day but with the new rule would consume two travel days.

My other option is to use NJ 237 which leaves Salzburg at 0140 and arrives Venice Santa Lucia at 0824. Problem is to get a good nights sleep I would need to travel to Vienna and board NJ 237 there at 2127. This itinerary including the train ride from Salzburg to Vienna to board NJ 237 would only use one travel day under the new rule. However, this itinerary consumes 4.5 hours more time.

Conclusion: Save the 4.5 hours and extra travel day by using NJ 40295 on Flexipass and paying the 5 euro point-to-point ticket from Padova to Venice instead of Flexipass.

Posted by
14979 posts

Taking the night train train, I would ride the NJ 40295, fits in perfectly, have done that sort of schedule more or less numerous times, the arrival is always after 06: 00 hrs.

I never ride a night train when I have to board at midnight or later, 23:30 hrs. boarding is the latest for me, but I have seen Germans get on when the train stops at 1 am or 2 am or get off at that time, even families.

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