We are a family of 4 (2 kids, 21 and 18), and will be in Germany and Italy for 15 days, beginning in Frankfurt. What is the best pass to purchase for this time if we want eventually to travel from Munich to Lake Como?
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19092 posts
You need to analyze all planned legs of travel and compare P2P costs with a railpass. You might find that a rail pass wouldn't pay.
Note, for Munich to Milan, you can get a pre-purchased, non-refundable, Europa-Spezial Italien ticket for four adults for as low as €156 (€39 pP). For travel within Germany, you can usually do better with promotional and Länder tickets than with a rail pass.
Remember, the route from Munich to Italy via Innsbruck goes through Austria, so you would need either Austria as a country on the rail pass or to purchase separate P2P tickets for that stretch. The other way to get to Como would be via Switzerland, which would then have to be on the rail pass.
So, Select 3 country passes would be needed for the number of days you plan on traveling (unless you just got a global pass). A Select Saver pass for the two adults would be best for the parents, but it is only available in 1st class. There are youth select passes, and they are a particularly good deal for the later days, but they are only in 2nd class, so you would either split up or the parents would have to ride with the kids in 2nd class.
I predict Frank (Centennial) will come along and back me up on this.
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23269 posts
Wait for Lee, he is the German rail expert. But to answer your question in a broader sense. Rail passes these days are not always good deals unless you are doing a lot of travel. Therefore you need to id your rail trips careful, then using one of national rail sites (bahn.de) price the tickets. RailEurope is travel agency and not a good source for ticket prices. Then compare with the prices for various rail passes. Lee should be along shortly with discount details for Germany.
See, I told you Lee would be along. He was posting slightly ahead of me. Better yet, if that is Parker, CO, you can join us for our monthly get together on the 3rd Saturday of each month.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19092 posts
I have never found that "locking in" a major leg of the trip is such a problem. Unless I am spending a lot of time at one location, where I can be flexible from day to day, I generally plan the travel in a day to maximize what I will see. This means selecting trains in advance. In 16 weeks of travel, I don't think I have once failed to be on that train.
Most people have accommodation reservations for each end of the leg, so the day is already locked in. If the trip is long, consuming most of the day, there might only be one train that would leave at a reasonable time and get to the destination before dinner. And, how many people want seat reservations for a long trip, and those are date and train specific.
As for Rick's chart, by ignoring promotional tickets (SparPreis) and Länder tickets in Germany, it tends to seriously over-estimate the price of P2P tickets.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19092 posts
How far off can the RS price map be?
For Frankfurt Hbf to Munich Hbf:
RS est. (3 hr), $130
Bahn ticket prices using $1.40/Euro
Full fare on an ICE (3+ hr), $127
Full fare by IC/EC (
SparPreis fare (any express train) $40.60
RMV ticket to Kahl, Bayern-Ticket from there, (5h23m),
$38 for one person,
$29.61 pP for 2 people
$19.81 pP for 4 people
In all fairness, he does say the costs on the map are maximums, but there are far less expensive options. If you are willing to spend an extra 45 min, you can save 20%. If you are willing to book in advance, you can save 70%. If you have more time than money and are willing to use regional trains, you can save over 75% on Frankfurt to Munich.