I recently ordered 2 adult rail passes for an upcoming trip and they need to mail the paper copy to me. I am being told by UPS that I owe taxes and duty to the tune of $110 on this before they can deliver. Does this sound right or is there some sort of mistake? I am working to get in contact with RailEurope but, in the meantime, I thought I'd post here too.
Posted by
Chicago
8165 posts
It is just pieces of paper so this does not sound right.
Did you use this site to order
https://www.raileurope.com/en/index.html.
They usually charge for delivery (was it express delivery) when you buy them online and have them sent to your home.
Did you get the receipt from Rail Europe?
Posted by
3439 posts
That doesn't sound right. I have ordered EuRail Passes from RailEurope and they charged a pretty high shipping fee, but that was paid to them - not UPS.
Please update us after you contact RailEurope.
Posted by
OP
5 posts
Thank you for the replies. Yes, I did order from the site you listed and, because our trip was close, we had to pay the overnight shipping fee which was high for a couple of pieces of paper ($36!) so another $110 in some sort of customs fee seemed strange! I'll let you know how it goes after I speak to a representative tomorrow.
Posted by
OP
5 posts
Next time I'm just going to order from Rick! :)
Posted by
San Francisco
14980 posts
I use a rail pass on my trips. Before I leave I order my pass on-line, use my credit card to pay for it. From the date ordered on on-line from Eurail, I get it in the mail exactly a week later. No shipping fee is charged, ie, I've never had to pay for an on-line ordered pass shipped to my address in SF. The shipping for the pass is free.
My experience in having the pass sent to me is totally different from yours.
Posted by
Vienna, Austria
5507 posts
Reason #26 not to buy a Rail Pass.
Next time, don’t get a pass at all as it is a huge waste of $$$. Point to pint or even buy at the counter tickets are less. Add the shipping and other fees here you describe and it is incredible that anyone buys these anymore.
Posted by
Vienna, Austria
5507 posts
I have also seen now that you will be in Austria doing a lot of regional travel. Uugghh, why did you get a pass?
Posted by
Green Bay
21152 posts
Marketing, marketing, marketing.
Posted by
2574 posts
This is the best site for European rail travel advice:>https://www.seat61.com/Europe-train-tickets.htm
In France, there is this cheap way of using high speed train services by an offshoot of SNCF:> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ouigo
http://www.sncf.com/en/trains/ouigo (I have not tested them out).
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
"You'll just order from Rick next time..."
And who do you think "Rick" routes you through to buy your passes??? Eurail Passes are a waste of money but a definite knee-jerk reaction to uninformed travelers. Wonder how much profit RS makes from marketing these passes?
Next time just take the advice that's presented here over and over and over - buy point to point tickets and make your life simpler as well as CHEAPER.
Posted by
OP
5 posts
Thanks all for your replies, good to know that I shouldn't be charged extra taxes on this--on hold with RailEurope now. To answer the questions as to why I bought the rail pass: I added up all of the point-to-points we wanted to do and the rail pass was less $$. So, rest assured, I was not blindly buying the pass because Rick recommended it! (I was hoping point-to-point tickets would have been less because I didn't want to deal with the silly paper ticket that I could misplace!)
Posted by
Washington DC
28074 posts
For future trips, be sure you're checking the appropriate national rail website(s) to find ticket prices. Some other sources assume you are buying at the last minute and will not be able to take advantage of promo fares, and RailEurope in particular is known for not always showing the less expensive options.
Posted by
Vienna, Austria
5507 posts
If you checked your costs using this site or a Rail Europe, then you’ve looked at the wrong place. I’d be interested to know your itinerary so that I can understand better. If you don’t mind sharing, that would be great!
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
Sorry to tell you more bad news but Eurail Passes are "paper" too. And that's a hugely expensive piece of paper to lose.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19274 posts
I don't see that anyone else has asked this. To where are you having the passes shipped? If to somewhere the US, I believe RailEurope is in the US (White Plains, NY), so there should not be any duty on this shipment. Are you having these shipped to a foreign country? Where?
If you checked your costs using this site or a Rail Europe, then you’ve looked at the wrong place.
Definitely, Rick's map with rail cost does not show the least expensive options and is sometime inaccurate due to changes in the €/$ exchange rates. For shorter trips, where you only need regional trains (or only regional trains are available), there is the Einfach Raus Ticket, an all-day pass for 33€ (for 2-5 people) valid for unlimited travel for an entire day on regional trains.
Posted by
2574 posts
In Italy, there is also a cheaper competing high speed train operator on certain routes:>http://www.italotreno.it/en/destinations-timetable