Question about changing trains to get to one destination and Tickets not covered by Eurail pass, is it worth it?

  • 22 November 2023
  • 1 reply
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Bianca Gomez

Hi everyone! I plan on visiting Spain, Italy, and Switzerland over 3 weeks. To my understanding, there are some stops in Switzerland, such as Interlaken which are not covered but we are given a discount when purchasing. Are these available for purchase through the app or website? Or would this have to be done in person. I’d like to figure out how much more I’d have to spend on transportation on top of the eurail pass if i decide to go this route.

We plan on taking a train from Switzerland to Spain, I noticed there are multiple ticket options. Some say, “pass not valid” what does this mean exactly? To get to Spain, there are multiple train changes and some of the stops are valid, some require reservation, and some say pass not valid, Paris for example is not valid. I believe we would need to find a route that allows us to travel there with no issues. Has anyone had any difficulties with this?

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The vast majority of trains are included honestly. Some notable exceptions : Paris RER trains, Swiss mountain railways (you often get a discount on those though). Tickets mostly have to be bought in person but it’s not an issue in Switzerland : tickets are valid all day and cannot sell out. Seat reservations aren’t a thing either.

Check SBB app or sbb.ch for full-fare prices and then you can deduct the discount. Also :

https://benefitsportal.eurail.com/benefits/swiss-private-trains-benefits/

https://benefitsportal.eurail.com/benefits/swiss-private-boat-benefits/

Journey between Switzerland and Spain : I guess the app shows Ouigo low-cost high-speed trains. Those do not accept Interrail/Eurail indeed but there are plenty of regular high-speed trains on the same route.

At the moment you cannot get online reservations for the AVE between Lyon and Barcelona. The only possibility is at Spanish ticket counters (so useless for most people). Really unfortunate !

What is your starting point and destination ? On which date ? I could suggest an itinerary, probably via Valence TGV. :)

Feel free to ask further questions, mentioning your travel period if possible. Trains will be very busy between Christmas and New Year while January and February are low-season months for example.

EDIT : seat reservations are mandatory on Spanish, French and Italian high-speed trains. The latter has availability on the day or the day before so you’ve still got flexibility. For the others you have to book in advance or use slower reservation-free regional trains (complicated in Spain though). Check this helpful link : https://www.seat61.com/interrail-and-eurail-reservations.htm

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