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SparNight fares?

I'm trying to find out how much it would cost me to do point to point tickets instead of a railpass - so far so good, but I'm having trouble getting the discount fares for night trains. I'm trying to find the sparnight fare for CNL 40319 from Amsterdam to Zurich on the night of August 6th. However, the best rate I'm seeing on bahn.de for an economy double is 278 euros. Yikes! Are the SparNight fares just not available yet?

Also, as an aside... I have three night trains to book: this CNL night train, a EuroNight from Bern to Rome, and an Artesia from Florence to Paris. I'm hoping to get the advance booking discount fares on all of these. Can all of these be booked from here in the US or should I go through a service like Euraide? Would they be able to make sure I'm getting the best discount fares?

Thanks everyone for all your help...

Posted by
19274 posts

Yeah, I get that too. €278 for two, 139 per person. The CityNightLine brochure indicates that Eco Dbl SparNight should be €79, but maybe not on that train. I suspect Amsterdam to Zurich is very popular so they charge more. I checked other dates and never came up with anything less, so I expect its not just that they are sold out of the low cost ones. According to Euraide, the Aufpreis, or reservation, on that train is €60, so you might be better with a railpass, IF all the other days pay, too.

Posted by
60 posts

Something still just doesn't seem right... do you think calling them might help? Do you know who I would call in this case - perhaps an english CNL #?

Posted by
19274 posts

Joel, you can go to the CNL booking site. It's kind of like the German Rail query page but only for night trains. Try a few dates, but I think the lowest fare you will see for 2 people in a double is €278, and that is listed as the "Savings Night" fare.

If you want to call City Night Line, their number, in Germany, following whatever you dial for Int'l calls, is (49) 1805 141514. I've never called this number before, but I have called German Rail in Germany in the past. The person who answers never speaks English, but if you say "English", they will put you on hold for a few minutes, and then you will get an English speaker.