BootsnAll Travel Community

has anyone tried the interrail pass vs the eurail pass? Family of 4 (42, 38, 16, & 12) needs info for summer 2008. We will bum around for a month. Looking for options...

Interrail is for European residents, Eurail for non-residents. Check out the FAQ in the InterRail website. From your profile, you'd probably only be eligible for the Eurail. But they're pretty pricey unless you do a lot of traveling. If you have a general idea of your itinerary, I'd research the point to point fares and see how it compares.

Some observations about buying Eurail:

First, as a general rule Eurail is only good value if you spend a long time in Western Europe. For Eastern Europe pay-as-you-go is usually cheaper.

Secondly Eurail is more expensive for those over 26.

Thirdly, the longer you travel the more chance it will save you money. If you travel for just 1 month it is less clear cut whether you need a Eurail or not. It depends how far you are travelling.

This is a good reminder for all those planning on using a Eurail ticket - do not try using it without having your passport handy!

It says very specifically on the Eurail conditions of use that "This Pass is strictly personal, non-transferable, and only valid upon presentation of a passport or a valid travel document replacing the passport... If the traveler cannot present a valid passport with his/her Pass, the control staff is authorized to demand payment of a full fare ticket and a fine."

Depending on the type of trip (between countries, very long) or type of train, the ticket attendant may or may not ask to see a passport. However, it is better to be prepared, rather than to be unlucky and land in this unpleasant situation.

Just wondering what a trip using a two or three month Eurail Global Pass would cost total? Is there anyone out there who can give me a total cost of their two or three month long trip? My husband and I are interested in traveling around Europe...hoping to use couch surfing as a way to keep costs down. Any help or experiences would be much appreciated!

many thanks and blessings

thank for the informations and l say special thanks to the adminstrators who put this forum together. it is one of the best foplace to get such timely info. later l will tell of mine experience

Someone mentioned that it is not worth it to use a pass in Italy. When I use railsaver and plug in my (tentative) itinerary it recommends a France-Italy pass. I'm 27, my partner is 26, but with the regional pass you can still buy 2nd class. Our tentative itinerary looks like this (plus railsaver recommendations):

May 3 - Arrive London (from Toronto)
May 5 - to Rotterdam (not sure how yet - ferry, train?)
May 5-7 - stay in rotterdam, day trips to amsterdam (any idea how much train trips between the two cities cost?)
May 7 - to Paris (use individual ticket + pass)
May 9 or 10 - to Barcelona (use pass + individual ticket)
May 12 - to Marseille or Nice (ticket + pass)
May 14 - to Le Spezia/Cinque Terre (pass)
May 17 - to Florence (ticket)
May 18 - to Rome (pass)
May 20 - to Venice (pass)
May 21 - to Lyon (pass)
May 23- to Paris (pass)
May 24 - to london
May 25 - fly home

Anyway, some of this will change I'm sure, maybe cut out barcelona, some other places, spend more time in some places. Just trying to come up with something tentative to decide on a rail pass.

I just really am getting SO confused about what is actually the best option. I tried looking up individual trips today and it seems like a pass is definitely better overall, it's just a matter of which one to get. If we do a bunch of trips between rotterdam/amsterdam, then maybe we should get a 3 country instead of france/italy!


Is it really unnecessary to have a pass in Italy? Should I maybe get a pass for fewer days and get some more city to city tickets in italy?

This is more of a question. I was reading that the Eurail pass doesn't make sense for Eastern Europe?

I've been living in France this whole year and have gotten a TON of use out of my "France" youth pass. Would be dead without it.

I am planning on doing some traveling with my brother and two best friends in June (about a month). Our proposed itinerary includes:

Berlin- Prague- Vienna- Budapest- Croatia- Serb/Montenegro-Greece

I thought it would be worth it to do the 10 days in 2 months kind of thing. Thoughts on this? Or is it so much cheaper in the Baltics that I might as well "pay as I go."

Feedback???

I think it depends on how much you're trying to use a pass in Eastern Europe - you may not get as much out of it as you are your France pass, but you might find it cost-effective. I'd suggest checking out our Eurail Pass section and then, if you still have questions about whether a pass is worthwhile, call our Eurail expert, Dave, at 1-866-549-7614 (toll free in the USA). He'll help you out!