Euro Pass

[JMSH]

I have a 20 year old son looking to do some travelling in Europe this Fall/Winter. He has noticed that Euro Pass for the trains is currently on sale. Can anyone advise if NOW would be the time to buy? I would think that the passes would probably be at a better price come the Fall/Winter season as that would be off season? Anyone give any thoughts on this matter?

 

[x3 skier]

In my experience, unless one plans on using a train daily or more, it’s cheaper just to buy a regular ticket when you want to go somewhere. A modicum of planning and early bird tickets makes it even cheaper.

YMMV

Cheers

 

[Sandy VDH]

It all depends on your travel plans: What countries, number of days travel, types of trains, whether they can use a train in a city for some travel.

It can be cheaper with a pass, but NOT if you only plan a few train rides. If you plan a bunch of train rides in a condensed time frame, then the pass might make sense.

JMSH, say Hi to Jumbo for me. I am a London Girl living in TX, haven't made it back to St Thomas area in ages.

 

[K2Quick]

I have a 20 year old son looking to do some travelling in Europe this Fall/Winter. He has noticed that Euro Pass for the trains is currently on sale. Can anyone advise if NOW would be the time to buy? I would think that the passes would probably be at a better price come the Fall/Winter season as that would be off season? Anyone give any thoughts on this matter?

Buying point to point tickets is generally a lot cheaper than a pass if you buy the tickets 60-90 days in advance. It does require you to set your plans in stone at that time, though. The best train travel advice I found was at seat61.com. That guy put a lot of effort into that site and if there's a good deal to be found, it's probably listed on his site.

 

[x3 skier]

Another vote for seat 61. An excellent site for all European Train travel.

Cheers

 

[JMSH]

Buying point to point tickets is generally a lot cheaper than a pass if you buy the tickets 60-90 days in advance. It does require you to set your plans in stone at that time, though. The best train travel advice I found was at seat61.com. That guy put a lot of effort into that site and if there's a good deal to be found, it's probably listed on his site.

Thank you all....anyone have any real good sights that are helpful in planning out a trip.....have used Go Real Europe but they do not seem to offer anything in France.

 

[Talent312]

Check out: https://www.trainline.eu/
It's a highly recommended agency selling Euro train tickets.
We bought Carcassonne, FR > Barcelona for this July at 39euro/pp.

You can use them to price point-to-point tickets.
BTW, 2nd class costs less than 1st, but gets there at the same time.
OTOH, if the Eurail Pass is cheaper, early sales (now) are prolly the best.

.

 

[Tamino]

Check out: https://www.trainline.eu/
It's a highly recommended agency selling Euro train tickets.

As is www.oui.sncf or www.loco2.com

You can use them to price point-to-point tickets.
BTW, 2nd class costs less than 1st, but gets there at the same time.
OTOH, if the Eurail Pass is cheaper, early sales (now) are prolly the best.

Due to the idiosyncrasies of revenue management software, I have seen cases where 1st is actually cheaper than 2nd.

One of the primary reasons Eurail passes are no longer cost effective is that using them for TGV travel requires a special reservation at additional cost. Additionally, the SNCF, French rail, makes very few seats available to pass holders.

Point to point tickets purchased well in advance, up to 6 months for some types, 3 months for most, will be the cheapest way to travel Europe.