raejeanne

I wanted to book a saver fare ticket for travel from Frankfurt(main Hbf) but don't know the exact time to book. How long will it take to get through customs/immigration and retrieving luggage ? is 1 hr 15 minutes enough time ?
And are you tied to that exact time/train if my flight is delayed ?

Russ

You are tied to the exact train you book with those tickets and risk forfeiting the fare if your flight is delayed. No way to say how much time will be enough for you on your particular day.

There are sometimes very good flexible alternatives to the savings fare. Where are you headed? Travel date? Scheduled arrival time? Number and ages of people?

Andrew

Yes, for a saver fare, you are tied to the exact time. Doesn't matter whether your flight is delayed or not.

smetz1

I've done what you are doing a few times, and Russ & Andrew are right, you're better off just buying the tickets after you get in. The ticket office is right on the way from the terminals to the train station.

Man_in_seat_61

This is the classic long-haul-flight-connecting-with-cheap-train-ticket dilemma we see all the time not just at Frankfurt but landing at Paris CDG, Schiphol, Rome Fuimicino, Milan Malpensa, etc etc.

Be careful - you may well not be 'better off' buying a 100 euros+ full-flex Standardpreis ticket when you arrive, rather than a 29 euros Saver ticket in advance.

You might want to consider allowing for (say) an hour's flight delay, plus plenty of time for baggage retrieval and immigration, then booking a cheap 29 euros saver, and having a meal if the flight does land on time. You could even buy a backup 29 euros ticket on a later train and still save money over a standardpreis.

But it all depends on what journey we're taking about, what advance prices you actually see on your date, and how you want to manage your risk.

You can also book direct from Frankfurt Flughafen at www.bahn.de/en - is there any reason you're bookinbg from the city centre Hauptbahnhof?

dfourh

Where are you going from Frankfurt? (There may be different ticketing options or combinations).

(And as Man_in_seat_61 points out you may as well get your ticket with an origination at Frankfurt Flughafen).

PalenQ

How many train trips are you doing - if a handful the German (Twin if two traveling together) Railpass can be nearly as cheap as a series of discounted tickets and allow you to hop any train anytime - nice when landing as you just head to the long-distance train station at Frankfurt Airport - not the Lokal or local S-Bahn and regional train station that is closer to the terminals but the Fernbahnhof or Lond-distance station and hop on the next train for wherever.

But if taking just a few trains of course the cheapest way will be the discounted ticket route but I'd leave more than an hour - say 2 or 3 hours extra for planes to be late - there is a raft of restaurants, coffee shops, etc in the airport concourse shopping mall to while away time if the plane is on time.

For lots of German trains and railpasses check out thesee IMosuperb sources: www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.ricksteves.com and www.seat61.com - Man in Seat 61 who posts above hiscommercial site - click on his commercial link to RailEurope for German railpass prices.

PalenQ

If using the train on 4 days in a month period for inter-city travel (where Lander Cards are not practical) then look at the German Railpass - a 4 day pass offering four days of your chossing in a one-month period costs $242 on a Twin Pass - p.p. or about 40 euros - many discounted fares are 39 euros - so for about the same as 4 discounted fares you get carte blanche to hop any train anytime and if ending the day in Munich or Berlin, etc you can use the S-Bahn systems there that are so useful the rest of the day with the pass.

extra days above the 4th day are just $18/day more or about 13 euros a day of unlimited travel - incuding many K-D boats on the Rhine and Mosel rivers.

So the more days the more viable the pass can become - at some point cheaper than a series of discounted set in stone discounted tickets which must be booked weeks in advance to guarantee availability.

raejeanne

thanks for the tips and responses. I am planning on 3 longer trips between 6/20 and 7/1. Frankfurt to Bad Windsheim, Bad Windsheim to Kassel, and Kassel to Frankfurt. The first week I will be using regional trains I think. My plan was to buy the 3 trips on Bahn, and the regional "vga"?
The saver 'rules' say Exchange/refund, EUR 15: Excluded from the 1st day of validity. What does that mean ?
Also - from the above responses, I take it the standard fare is the same as I can get it right from the airport ?

Russ

"I am planning on 3 longer trips between 6/20 and 7/1. Frankfurt to Bad Windsheim, Bad Windsheim to Kassel, and Kassel to Frankfurt."

You mention no one else so I'll assume you're the only passenger (price each might be less with more travelers.)

These are not very long trips. A railpass would be lavish overkill. The sooner you can nail down your travel dates for the 3 legs, the better your price for savings fares - prices rise as tickets sell. The following are the lowest savings fare prices you might get.

Frankfurt Hbf - B. W'heim: €19 possible

(I guess you will have overnighted in Frankfurt the night prior. If this trip is after airport arrival you need a ticket from the airport., not Hbf.

Bad W'heim - Kassel: €29 possible

Kassel - Frankfurt Hbf: €19 possible

Instead of the €19 fare for the first leg to Bad Windsheim, your walk-up fare for the same fast connections is €47 (same price if you buy online.) Or... you can pay €30.80 from a ticket machine in Frankfurt to use the local and regional trains; buy a RMV ticket to Kahl am Main (Bavarian border town, €7.80) and a Bayern ticket (€23) to cover Kahl - Bad W'heim (both within Bavaria.) This option means a longer train ride (by 20-40 minutes or so.)

Russ

"My plan was to buy the 3 trips on Bahn, and the regional "vga"?"

"VGA"?? The VGN transport authority covers Bad Windsheim. You can make day trips within the VGN to Nuremberg, Rothenburg, Iphofen, Bamberg, and other fine towns on a network daypass for €17.50 per day.

"The saver 'rules' say Exchange/refund, EUR 15: Excluded from the 1st day of validity. What does that mean ?"

No refund on the day of travel is possible.

raejeanne

thanks Russ for the response. It is my husband and I traveling.
I will prebook the last two legs of the journey since we can control those.
On the Frankfurt/Bad Windsheim - it is from the airport. So that is not Hbf ? I think since it is the same price as the standard, I will do that (unless I book extra time to get something to eat if we have to wait)

Russ

Hbf is an abbreviation for "Hauptbahnhof" or "main station" in German.

Frankfurt airport station - use "Frankfurt(Main)Flugh" at the DB website.

There are actually TWO train stations at FRA but the above name will provide scheduling from both stations - and then tell you which one to use. One is the Regionalbahnhof (for regional trains) and the other is the Fernbahnhof (for long-distance high-speed trains.)

PalenQ

Yes those trips are not longer ones like I was thinking you may be doing so no a pass is I agree overkill for those limited journeys.