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Activate early? I have seat reservations, should I activate the journey now?

  • February 21, 2026
  • 4 replies
  • 37 views

Hello,

I’m not a newbie to European travel, having used the paper pass ages ago without problem, but now I’m concerned and confused about the digital disconnect between reserving seats and the pass activation and ticket QR code generation on the Rail Planner app. 

We have flights and hotels and trains picked and planned, I have seat reservations for our group of 4 for trains in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy (Amsterdam to Florence).  All of us have 10-days-in-15 days passes for the trip, and I’ve planned out the big connections so I could reserve seats.  Only the Switzerland to Italy train actually required a reservation.  

Here’s where I get confused: if there are limited seats for Eurail pass holders on trains that require reservations, and the pass and reservations are completely disconnected, could a train hypothetically “sell out” and deny us the ability to activate and select that train for boarding with the pass, even though we have reservations for it?  Does that mean I should activate our passes early so I can get the train ticket QR ready now?  (We travel in May.)  Thanks for your help.

Best answer by Marvin Heer

No, if a reservation sells out for passholders that just means you can no longer buy the reservation. (Also as far as i am aware the switzerland to italy train does not have a passholder quota so its just about being fully reserved)

You can always activate the trains on the Pass. No reason to activate your passes early. 

4 replies

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  • Railly clever
  • Answer
  • February 21, 2026

No, if a reservation sells out for passholders that just means you can no longer buy the reservation. (Also as far as i am aware the switzerland to italy train does not have a passholder quota so its just about being fully reserved)

You can always activate the trains on the Pass. No reason to activate your passes early. 


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  • Full steam ahead
  • February 21, 2026

@Gregor 1986 Since reservations are not mandatory in Germany and Switzerland, it's impossible to predict how many people will be on board the train. I've already experienced traveling on a train that was 125% full, or even once when the train couldn't continue for safety reasons on a high-speed line until a few people agreed to get off and take the next train.

Deutsche Bahn sometimes stops selling tickets for a specific train, but it is still possible to access it with a flexible ticket or a pass.


  • Author
  • Rail rookie
  • February 21, 2026

Thanks for the quick replies.  That’s encouraging advice, I’ll wait to activate.  

I’ve been on those overcrowded trains where folks are sitting on the floor with their huge backpacks in the connectors between trains - no fun.  We’re travelling at a non-peak time, so while I expect some crowds, it hopefully won’t get too bad.  


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  • Railly clever
  • February 21, 2026

Thanks for the quick replies.  That’s encouraging advice, I’ll wait to activate.  

I’ve been on those overcrowded trains where folks are sitting on the floor with their huge backpacks in the connectors between trains - no fun.  We’re travelling at a non-peak time, so while I expect some crowds, it hopefully won’t get too bad.  

Honestly most of the overcrowded trains i came across where regional trains. I rarely had to stand on a long distance train in Germany, Austria or Switzerland. (But i mostly avoid the peak travelling times) Although finding multiple seats together can be difficult.