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I'm gonna be in Central Europe in a couple months and I was thinking of getting the Eurail pass to explore within and between a few different countries.
Full disclosure: I have been overseas exactly once, to Japan, in a very regimented program, whereas on this trip I have to do all the planning and coordination myself. So I'm sure there's a ton of very basic knowledge about international travel in general that I don't have, so forgive me if anything I say on this thread sounds stupid or unrealistic and kindly correct me, lol.
So I'm not the kind of person who likes to plan out every single day down to the hour when I travel within the US - I might decide, "oh, this town is cool, I'm gonna spend a few hours walking around here" or "eh, I don't really feel like going to that museum after all, I'm just gonna skip it". Does this approach work with Eurail - is it like (say) Greyhound buses where you can just order a new ticket a few hours before the train leaves, or do you really have to plan everything out well in advance, because the trains only come once a day or the price goes way up close to departure time? Does it depend a lot on whether you're going between two big capital cities vs. two random small towns?
Depends where in Central Europe - you can download apps where you set the start and endpoint, and get all the possible ways to get there, incl. all transfers and pricers. You can even order the ticket online while you walk to the station.
That's what I am using, but for you, I (we) could do some search and see what might be helpful
Eurail isn't a bus, it's a ... rail. But they have many long busses, even something called "blablacar" where you can catch a ride for a fraction of the price (contribute to the fuel cost).
Give us more info and we will try to help.
Do you speak any languages other than English? How long you will be there (how many countries/cities you want to visit)?
If you're planning the trip around Christmas, you need to consider planning around winter school break, cold weather, and short daylight. The transportation schedule tends to change around holidays too, so you need really to plan ahead. With public transportation, you need at least to know their schedule. Then plan your activities accordingly.
Years ago you had to be on the train a lot in order to get your money's worth (relative to just showing up and buying a ticket).
The fast trains will cost more and may require a seat reservation. Often this can be bought a short time before traveling (if a seat is available, that is). Also they may require a supplement over the Eurail pass.
The logistics of traveling (including the problem of what to do with luggage) means that it will usually make sense to stay in one place for more than a night.
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Local rail is often cheaper, especially commuter routes. Eurail has rules, know them. It was really flexible when we used 25 yrs ago. We would board after 10 pm and go to furthest destination overnight, then use the same 'punch' the entire next day and up until midnight to another far destination. Often 4-6 trains / destinations per 26hr punch.
There are dozens of local, regional, and national rail systems which sell an infinite number of tickets under different pricing criteria. For some, like the London-Pairs route there are deep discounts to booking ahead while for others, a second class walk up fare is always the same price. Some of those systems are full participants in the Eurail program while others only offer a modest deduction or no deduction at all.
If you don't have a firm plan at spreadsheet level to try to maximize Eurail benefits, and you aren't eligible for any sort of deep discount under-25 pass offers, you're probably better off just buying point to point tickets for day of departure, especially if you're looking at cheaper regional routes rather than longer distance high speed express routes.
The Man in Seat 61 is often a very good resource for European train travel:
Depends where in Central Europe - you can download apps where you set the start and endpoint, and get all the possible ways to get there, incl. all transfers and pricers. You can even order the ticket online while you walk to the station.
That's what I am using, but for you, I (we) could do some search and see what might be helpful
Eurail isn't a bus, it's a ... rail. But they have many long busses, even something called "blablacar" where you can catch a ride for a fraction of the price (contribute to the fuel cost).
Give us more info and we will try to help.
Do you speak any languages other than English? How long you will be there (how many countries/cities you want to visit)?
If you're planning the trip around Christmas, you need to consider planning around winter school break, cold weather, and short daylight. The transportation schedule tends to change around holidays too, so you need really to plan ahead. With public transportation, you need at least to know their schedule. Then plan your activities accordingly.
That sounds great. Could you tell me the names of the apps you use (the start/endpoint one and the one where you get car rides)?
Yeah, I know Eurail is a train system, but we don't really have a robust train network here in the States so Greyhound was the first comparison that jumped to mind, lol. (Actually, I just remembered Amtrak - I haven't ridden that in a long time.)
I speak some basic German, Czech, and Hungarian. I'm reviewing them a lot before I go and bringing phrasebooks in case I freeze up and forget a word or phrase. I'll be there about a week and a half, focusing on Prague and Budapest but checking out one or two neighboring countries a bit if I have time.
This won't be around Christmas; I'm looking for flights in late November/early December depending on how my project at work goes and when's the best time for me to take off.
I haven't bought a EurailPass in ages, but DH and I used trains in Europe all the time and liked to do last-minute excursions, many times depending on the weather. My only caveat is that you should check the schedules before you leave for the train station- we once nearly missed a train from Milan to Venice for a day trip and the next one didn't depart for 3 hours. And we did like having reserved seats and sometimes using the First Class car. although that got expensive over the years.
Have fun- that's my kind of travel!
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