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ABS fare in Belgium?
I don't fully understand the ABS fare even after reading online explanations.
Do I need to purchase a fare from say Paris to Brugge or could I just purchase Paris to Brussels and hop on the train to Brugge train? |
Just book your Thalys ticket (if that is what you are talking about) from Paris Nord to Brugge.
Once you get to Brussels Midi, you can take any train to Brugge. I think your ticket will actually say 'any belgian station' rather than 'Brugge'. Check www.nmbs.be for train times and platforms. If you only book 'Paris - Brussels' your ticket will not be valid for onward travel to Brugge. |
If you only book 'Paris - Brussels' your ticket will not be valid for onward travel to Brugge.> This is not true I believe - book Thalys ticket to Brussels then you can go with the ABS fare to any Belgian station - you do not need to declare. And French TGVs don't have the ABS fare - only Thalys from Paris and you can stay in Brussels for up to 24 hours and take any train to Bruges - just hop on.
When booking your Thalys ticket simply buy the ABS fare for several euros. If going on to say Amsterdam you can book an ABS fare from Antwerp to Amsterdam and again take any domestic train within 24 hours of your Thalys train departure from Antwerp. https://www.thalys.com/be/en/deals-f...ions-abs-offer The Thalys site does not list Bruges as a destination when buying Thalys tickets so just put in Brussels and then again hop any Belgian train to all Belgian stations. For lots of info on trains and booking tickets - book early for serious discounts - www.seat61.com; BETS-European Rail Experts or www.ricksteves.com. |
Thanks so much for the help!
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I'm looking at the site from Belgium, so perhaps options are different, but if I book Thalys Amsterdam-Antwerp (which I do on occasion), I have to buy an ABS ticket. The Amsterdam-Antwerp ticket does not cover onward travel, as I found out when I did this once. I had to pay a fine because my Thalys ticket didn't cover the very short local train to another Antwerp station.
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Ok, I went through to book as mentioned but did not find any option to add ABS? |
I don't know Banff, my version of the Thalys website does give me the option to book to my final destination.
For I example if I try to book Paris - Brugge it gives me a fare of 82 euro, with a change at Brussel Midi. If I book Paris-Brussels Midi it gives me a fare of 75 euro; the additional 7 euro covers the Brussels/Brugge part. A Paris-Brussels ticket would not be valid for the Brussels-Brugge part. I know for a fact that I got a fine on a connecting train, since I only had a Thalys ticket Amsterdam-Antwerp, that was not valid for my connection. |
A Sncb staff told me the Thalys ticket paris Bruxelles a s valid only to Bruxelles. You need to see on the ticket ABS to effectively go to any Belgian station. |
I made a simulation on the Thalys website, Paris-Brugge.
In the Travel conditions below you will see that your Thalys ticket includes the ABS ticket. This is NOT the case in case you buy a ticket Paris-Brussels. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...da80f3a43d.png |
Paris-Bruges it is. Sorry misrteading schedules quickly.
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Originally Posted by PalenQ
(Post 16887006)
The Thalys site does not list Bruges as a destination when buying Thalys tickets
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https://www.thalys.com/be/en/deals-f...ions-abs-offer
Can't get Bruges on this site - I can't that is - can you? |
Yes, I can. The city is called Brugge, not Bruges.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...77fba14458.png |
This is precisely why I will probably opt for the car over the train when in Europe again. The ABS fares are just one example of how complicated and confusing it has been trying to plan and coordinate travel using dozens of different sites that I haven’t always felt were overly user friendly. Plus I’ve found that different sites have different fares and the fares on one site can fluctuate from day to day. For instance, I’ve been tracking fares for sometime and one day I’ll find a great deal on a particular site only to find it disappear the next day and REAPPEAR several days later. The different passes, different websites, fluctuating prices have kinda created a paralysis by analysis. |
....not to mention, the stress of non refundable fares! With a car I can alter my schedule or plans but with the train I’m now locked in stone 3 months out. |
Thalys offers also partially or fully refundable fares: Choose the connection you plan to use and then switch to Comfort 1.
Both the regular Comfort fares as well as the Premium fares offer (different levels of) flexibility, surcharges, etc. |
Realy not confusing - Thalys.com is the official site with lowest fares. The only site you should consider and book early. ABS fare just means they put 7 euros on your Thalys ticket then you can use it to go to all Belgian stations -put in Brugge like Myrian C shows above. If you think driving out of Paris is easy think again. And into Brgues too. Cars great if you want to stop off enroute otherwise boring freeways that in France also cos a ton of tolls.
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Yes I hear you.... definitely pros and cons and I wouldn’t want to drive in and out of big cities but most of my time is spent in the small towns/villages anyway. I just think when all is said and done, the train has been more stressful. Now, come June and when I’m on a high speed rail between Basel and Paris I might think otherwise😁 |
Renting car in Paris and returning in Belgium could have an exorbitant drop-off charge.
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Actually just check different drop-off sites in different cities. We picked up a rental car in Brussels (Bruxelles-Midi station) and wanted to drop it off in Rennes and take the train to Paris, where we were going to spend several days. Bad idea because it was very expensive. But dropping off that same car at Charles de Gaulle airport at the very end of the trip cost us hardly anything more. I don't think it had French license plates, I'm pretty sure they were Belgian, but possibly from CDG there is the possibility of finding someone to drive back into Belgium, which might not have been the case in Rennes.
Lavandula |
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