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Eurail 1st class vs. 2nd class

  • 18 July 2021
  • 6 replies
  • 1723 views

Besides wider seat, wifi, etc. as advertised on the website, are there other benefits in reservation, luggage space in 1st class cabins, change of trip, etc. We are planning a trip between Germany, Czehia, Hungary, Austria, possibly Switzerland, I don’t see much direct night train available to warrant a 1st class purchase. Any insight to the differences is appreciated.

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Best answer by seewulf 18 July 2021, 17:43

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Userlevel 7
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You don´t need a 1st Class pass for Nighttrains as for example on Nightjet you can reserve even a sleeper deluxe with a 2nd class pass :) 

1. of all it´s often less crowded (few exceptions are possible)
2. You have with a 1st class pass acccess to the waiting lounges of Austrian Rail and Hungarian Rail (Budapest only), Czech Republic you can visit them even with a 2nd Class pass and a reservation for a Fasttrain 🙂 Germany no access for Railpassuser :/
3. You have a bit more of service for example a on seat service from the dinning car 🙂 on major trains 
4. SwissRail have some special Panoramic coaches on Eurocitý´s from Graz to Zürich EC 163/164 “Transalpin”  that can be used with a 1st Class pass 🙂 They are even on Route between Hamburg - Cologne -  Rhinevalley - Mannheim - Basel  - Zürich Here some pictures of these Eurocity Panorama cars

Reservations for the Panoramic trains as GlacierExpress or BeninaExpress can be a bit more expensive as in 2nd Class :) but with a 1st class pass you have always the choice between both travel classes :)
 

Wow, those are awesome pics from the panoramic train cabins. So if I get a 2nd class ticket, can I book 1st class seats with upgrade fees?

Userlevel 7
Badge +14

Wow, those are awesome pics from the panoramic train cabins. So if I get a 2nd class ticket, can I book 1st class seats with upgrade fees?


Yes it´s usually possible to buy upgrade tickets from 2nd Class to 1st Class
It´s usually the difference between the standard fare 2nd Class and 1st class :) (Depends on the Route)
I used often Promotional and Saver Tickets in German called “Sparpreis” or “SparSchiene” as they were cheaper as the upgrade and i saved a travelday of my flexipass for another nice stop :)

Makes sense.  Thx.

Userlevel 2
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It’s not a reply but more a supplementary question.

If I do take a 1st class pass, am I obligated always to pay the 1st class reservations etc or can I pay for a 2nd class resrevation and “only” sit in second class?

TIA 

Steve

Userlevel 7
Badge +14

It’s not a reply but more a supplementary question.

If I do take a 1st class pass, am I obligated always to pay the 1st class reservations etc or can I pay for a 2nd class resrevation and “only” sit in second class?

TIA 

Steve

 

No you can still decide to book / sit in the second class :) Depending feom Country there is sometimes no price difference between 1st Class reservations and 2nd class reservations :) 

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