We%26#39;re traveling by train around France for 2 weeks...does anyone have any insight on the pros/cons of these two pass options, or just buying tickets individually. From what I can tell by RailEurope%26#39;s site is we would save money, but we%26#39;re limited to certain schedules and still have to pay a fee for advance purchase tickets. Is this the case? Also, must tickets be reserved in advance, or can we simply show up to the station the day of travel and buy? Thanks.
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I don%26#39;t know what the specific passes are to which you are referring. If you are only traveling within France, then you don%26#39;t need more than a France railpass.
You can try plunking your routes into
www.railsaver.com
and click %26#39;only if it saves me money%26#39; to get a rough estimate of whether you want a pass or or just P2P tickets.
http://www.railsaver.com/
You don%26#39;t necessarily need seat reservations on every train. I imagine you will need to possibly research either the specific trains/routes you plan to use, or which type of trains are the ones that require a seat reservation. (ex. TGV is one). You can buy seat reservations at the train station or in an SNCF %26#39;boutique%26#39; agency.
Also premium trains probably require some surcharge above the pass.
You can learn a lot about using European trains at:
http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/rail_menu.htm
http://www.seat61.com/
www.reidsguides.com/t_tr/t_tr_system.html
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When you realize that RailEurope is a travel agency that imposes a hefty surcharge on the rail services fare, and doesn%26#39;t offer every train or even every route, and that second class fares on trains that don%26#39;t require reservations are generally much cheaper than the fares offered on RailEurope, you understand that the pass savings might not be as obvious as they are on RE.
Do download Rick Steves%26#39; rail file. He uses RE fares to calculate point to point fares, so buying from the SNCF will be cheaper.
If the EuRail pass still imposes an age limit on second class fares and you don%26#39;t qualify, you%26#39;ll be buying a first class pass. Additionally, there is a supplement to be paid for reservations, TGV fares and sleeping accommodations. I don%26#39;t know about being limited to certain schedules, it may just be the fact that RailEurope doesn%26#39;t offer all trains on all routes.
On some trains as well as TGV, reservations are required. But you can still buy the tickets on the day of travel if there are seats available.
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Thanks - this is all helpful. Just so I%26#39;m clear - regardless of if we opt for a pass, we can go to the station the day of travel and buy the ticket/rserve a seat there right? It%26#39;s not something that we have to do way in advance, correct? We%26#39;re leaving for France in 2 weeks and just want to make sure I have everything squared away.
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