julzieluv1

I'm so puzzled on the train. I figured that would definately be a budget form of travel but I went to the Bahn.de website and just one way from Amsterdam to Munich was like 250 Euros for second class?? I think a rental car is the best way? Am I missing something? Am I not looking at the right train? I was looking for a ten day pass AMS, Germany, and Salzburg.

hetismij2

Car rental would be really expensive - fuel is not cheap, a one way drop off fee would be high.

I don't know where you are looking for the fares, but on www.nshispeed.nl for May 29th I can go to Munich for €83, one way second class.

Even cheaper for 3 months from now.

Try www.bahn.de if you prefer.

PalenQ

Am I missing something?>

Well there is a multi-day railpass that would probably be cheaper than that one train ride - the Germany Benelux Pass which lets you hop on any train practically anytime - fully flexible - no reservations ever required except on a hadful of trains you will not be taking.

For lots on train travel in these countries and the pass check out: www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.ricksteves.com and www.seat61.com.

suec1

Some countries are much cheaper than others and it is getting more and more that the train fares are like the airline deals here - all sorts of fares for booking early, non refundable and such. Personally I liked it better when you walked up and got a fairly decent price - now it requires alot more homework and research, plus sometimes often tangling with tricky international bookings / credit card issues. But the experts here will be helpful. All that being said, I find it hard to believe that Munich to Amsterdam is going to be 250E's, or are you buying a pass and not a point to point ticket???

Mimar

julzie, are you looking at RailEurope by any chance? It's not a good source of train information. It doesn't show all the trains and there's a markup on the price -- usually.

PQ has given you good sites for pass information. For prices including any deals, always look at the train site for the country where your travel originates. hetismij has give you the sites for crossborder travel from the Netherlands and for Germany. In the Netherlands look at www.ns.nl/en.

PalenQ

ttt

Dukey1

Yes, you are missing quite a lot:

thinking something is "budget" that you have never obviously been on

thinking that renting a car and dropping it off in a different country is going to be affordable

thinking you need a pass just to get from A to B to C

amy_torres_sd

Dukey1, your message isn't constructive at all. There's no need to be snarky. I'm finding my way with my trip to Europe this summer too, and messages like yours are just plain snotty.

amy_torres_sd

Julzie... I booked my June train from Amsterdam to Munich this weekend. Four of us on a day train (the night train had only 4 or 6 berth compartments)was 252 euros. What threw me off at first was thinking that the amount was per person, not for all 4 in our party. www.seat61.com has great information, and I booked through www.bahn.de. I've read some discussion about issues with credit cards, but I used my American Express card successfully.

nytraveler

Like airlines, in some countries walk up train fares on the fastest trains can be expensive and bought in advance, nonrefundable fares on slower trains will be much cheaper.

And when looking at car rentals you need to consider drop off charges and the cost of gas at $8 a gallon.

Although as a confirmed road tripper - we often prefer driving, which let you get further into the countryside and see a lot of sights serendipitously.

julies

I'll admit that we've often rented cars in Europe because by the time we put together rail fares for two of us a rental car seemed more affordable and offers more flexibility. This is IF you are not just planning to visit major cities. IF your plan is mostly for cites, then take the train.

Also, you need to examine if you will be on the move enough to truly get your money's worth from a pass. Often you are better just buying point-to-point tickets.

Man_in_seat_61

By train, it's simple.

Go to www.bahn.de/en and look for the direct CNL sleeper train with 0 changes, departs 20:31 arrives 07:10.

Booking opens 92 days ahead, book early as train fares vary like air fares as departure approaches.

On the direct sleeper train, fares start at €59 with couchette, €104 with a bed in a 2-bed sleeper.

If you find €250, then you're trying to leave immediately, not booking in advance!

Man_in_seat_61

And if you want daytime trains, you simply split the booking:

Step 1, book Amsterdam to Frankfurt from €29 at www.bahn.de/en

Step 2, book Frankfurt to Munch from €29 also at www.bahn.de/en

julzieluv1

Thank you so much!! I will go back to the links you suggested and try again!

thursdaysd

"Four of us on a day train (the night train had only 4 or 6 berth compartments)"

If there are four of you, why would you not book the 4-berth couchette? And seat61 just posted that there are actually two-berth sleepers, so you could book two of those, realising you will save the cost of a hotel room.

azzure

That 92-day advance purchase is your best bet for getting cheap fares on bahn.de, or virtually any European rail trip. I did Frankfurt-Munich-Salzburg-Rothenberg-Frankfurt last year, and the total 2nd class fare was 216 euro for two of us.

amy_torres_sd

Unfortunately, the two-berth compartments were sold out for my date(there had been some available the day before!!) Things sell out fast, so grab good fares while you can.

amy_torres_sd

ARGH... I wish I'd known about splitting the booking... however mine wasn't too bad at €63 each, €5 more per person than the least expensive option recommended by Mr. Seat61. Incidentally... thank you so much, Mr. Seat61, for your website and your presence on these message boards. It's a new world for me.

PalenQ

Early bird does indeed get the proverbial worm!

LSky

By the time you pay for parking, gas and drop off fees then you may as well take the train if you don't like driving.

European travel isn't going to be really cheap. If you want a cheap vacation stay in one place. Go off season. Go someplace that isn't very interesting.