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Eurail Pass Advice

  • 20 February 2024
  • 5 replies
  • 152 views
marcuslim

Hi everyone! I will be visiting Europe very soon and are delighted to hear that the Eurail Pass is on 15% off this spring!

Upon doing some calculations, we found that the flexi Eurail pass could save more cost compared to the half-fare pass/STP. I'm sharing our itinerary, could anyone help me to fact check that I am using the pass correctly? Do let us know if there are better ways to use the flexi pass! We are open to adding more days too

 

Also, are reservations typically made with eurail/europeb? I noticed that I can make the seat reservation at Raileurope as well. Is this correct?

Day

Activate Eurail Pass

Itinerary

1

No

Frankfurt - Interlaken (book on DB)

Explore surroundings using Interlaken guest card

2

Yes

Interlaken - Grindelwald - First

 

Interlaken <-> Grindelwald (Free)

Grindelwald <-> First (50% off)

3

Yes

Interlaken - Schilthorn

 

Interlaken <-> Murren (Free)

Murren <-> Schilthorn (25% off)

4

Yes

Interlaken - Lucerne - Paris

 

Interlaken - Lucerne (Free on panoramic express - is reservation needed?)

Lucerne - Basel (Free)

Basel - Strasbourg/Mulhouse Ville (Free)

Strasbourg/Mulhouse Ville - Paris (Free, reservation needed) - it’s cheaper to take this route

5-10

No

Travelling within Paris (getting Navigo easy pass)

11

Yes

Paris - Hoorn

 

Paris - Amsterdam (Free, seat reservation needed)

Amsterdam - Hoorn (Free)

11-15

No

Travelling within Amsterdam and neighbouring cities

16

Yes

Hoorn - Brussels

 

Hoorn - Amsterdam (Free)

Amsterdam - Brussels (Free, IC train)

 

Is there a need to purchase a 7-day pass? I might be using one of the days to travel from London - Edinburgh as I am travelling in London prior to this trip.

 

Thank you everyone

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Best answer by thibcabe 20 February 2024, 13:26

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5 replies

T
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +5

Eurail should definitely be good value for your trip!

I'd buy a longer pass yes as London - Edinburgh easily costs 100£ and the pass would allow to remain flexible.

If you get a 7 day pass Frankfurt - Interlaken would also be included.

Do not miss a boat ride on Lake Thun or Brienz while in Interlaken : fully included. :)

Rail Europe is a good place to book seats yes (no fees), here is a guide you might've seen : https://www.seat61.com/interrail-and-eurail-reservations.htm

Don't bother with seat reservations in Switzerland, they're a waste of money and nobody makes them. Simply board the front or rear part as those will be less busy.

Mulhouse/Strasbourg is definitely the way to go.

Book Paris - Amsterdam well in advance as there's a passholder quota. If you wish to save money travel via Lille but it'll take longer.

Questions welcome.

R
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +9

Eurail should be avoided if possible to make reservations. They're more expensive and have worse refund/exchange conditions. B-europe is currently not needed because you can make all reservations they offer on raileurope.com without added booking fees. Raileurope can book, among others, reservations in/to/from France.

For other reservations, see this overview:

https://www.seat61.com/interrail-and-eurail-reservations.htm

Reservations in Switzerland are not needed. I've done Interlaken-Luzern a few times but never booked a reservation.

If you book a 7-day Eurail pass, then you can also use it for Frankfurt-Interlaken, with the added advantage that you're flexible, which is an advantage if you're arriving by plane.

Please ask questions in the community and not via a private message. That's the quickest way to get a response. I don't work for Eurail/Interrail.
marcuslim

 

I'd buy a longer pass yes as London - Edinburgh easily costs 100£ and the pass would allow to remain flexible.

Yup! My trip is happening in a month and upon checking, the cheapest train ticket from London - Edinburgh is about 40€ (via lumo) and much higher price with LNER. I understand that I can make free seat reservations with the LNER.

 

 

If you get a 7 day pass Frankfurt - Interlaken would also be included.

Do not miss a boat ride on Lake Thun or Brienz while in Interlaken : fully included. :)

Yup! However I was thinking if I could get first class tickets on DB website (I saw that the price was just 10€ extra from second class for a 5h train ride) Do you think the upgrade to first class is worth not using the 7th day on this route?

But this also means I need to find another day to use the Eurail pass.

 

Or is there a way to upgrade to first class with a Eurail second class pass?

 

I also understand that I would have to activate the pass to enjoy the free boat ride on Lake Thun (we are visiting late March). We would certainly use the pass if we have time!

 

marcuslim

Actually ideally, we would want to take the first class for long-distance journeys (Frankfurt - Interlaken, Basel/Mulhouse Ville/Strasbourg - Paris, Paris - Amsterdam)

 

However we feel that the additional cost to upgrade the Eurail pass to first class is not really worth it. I compared it to the cost of first class if I bought the tickets directly. The additional fees for the premier class costs 10€, 5€ and 20€ respectively (currently when looking 1month+ ahead).

 

Certainly, the fees will fluctuate with time, was just wondering if there is any way for us to make the upgrade possible without purchasing the full ticket. Or, do you think the additional benefits in first class is worth it?

 

Thanks

T
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +5

Upgrades are sometimes but not often possible. They’re also expensive most of the time.

I’d get a 1st class 7 day Global pass from the start : bigger seats, less people, you’ll get a (small) meal on LNER and Eurostar. You’ll also have access to the upper deck on boats! :)

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