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-   -   All rail pass sellers aren’t the same (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/all-rail-pass-sellers-arent-the-same-930854/)

HDcoyote Apr 9th, 2012 07:51 PM

All rail pass sellers aren’t the same
 
We ordered 10-day select passes from Eurail on line in February, planning to use them in May. In April, Eurail promoted a free travel day effective for travel passes from April 2 through May 31. When I inquired about being eligible for the offer they stated that we must return our passes, pay shipping and a service charge, and then re-order the passes. Another words NO.
Their solution to granting the Free Extra Day Offer was ridiculous. Eurails' lack of customer support only reinforced my initial thoughts that I had made an egregious error selecting Eurail.com for rail pass travel in Europe.
Avoid Eurail. They don’t offer required seat reservations either!

fmpden Apr 9th, 2012 08:23 PM

The other error that you may have make was to buy a pass in the first place. Given the fees for premium trains and the discount available for early purchase, it is difficult to break even on a pass. Eurail is really a travel agency.

chapla Apr 9th, 2012 09:24 PM

I believe the Eurail passes of yore are long gone-they really were a great way to travel throughout Europe at a good price and first class.They have outpriced themselves and too many/limitations/ restrictions

Dukey1 Apr 10th, 2012 01:03 AM

I assume you are talking about RailEurope which is wholly owned by a combo of the French and Swiss national railroad companies. It is their North Amercian marketing arm.

If anyone is "ripping you off" here it is the railroads.

As to your "in other words, no" misstatement...you simply chose NOT to agree to the requirements. It isn't as if you were not ABLE to take advantage of their offer...you chose NOT to do so because you didn't want to pay the charges. Big difference.

hetismij2 Apr 10th, 2012 01:28 AM

Actually Eurail is owned by most train companies from Europe and is HQ'd in Utrecht the Netherlands (same building as NS HQ).

Eurail passes for non European residents are the equivalent of Interail passes for European residents.

You presumably read the terms and conditions on your pass when you bought it. And the terms and conditions on the new offer. You agreed to the initial T&C and wanting to change things would have cost you money.

The offer on the pass for a free travel day only applies to passes purchased within a certain time frame.
Just as a discount on a TV only applies to one bought in certain time frame. If you bought the TV two months ago would you expect to still get the discount?

Gretchen Apr 10th, 2012 03:09 AM

Didn't do enough research perhaps if it is a Eurail Pass. Point to point trains are usually more economical. As said above, they are sort of a thing of the past unless doing a LOT of travel in a short space of time.
If it was Rail Europe, then still overpriced.

HDcoyote Apr 10th, 2012 03:44 PM

It's quite possible Dukey1, and hetismij2 are on the Eurail payroll.

Peter_S_Aus Apr 10th, 2012 10:51 PM

Dukey and Hetismij are not on Eurail's payroll.They do offer good advice frequently on here.

And the Coyote joined to post his/her complaint.

The comment that "Eurail does not offer seat reservations" seems to show the the OP was not well informed about the reservation policies of the rail operators. There are always booking fees on top of the Eurail cost.

hetismij2 Apr 11th, 2012 12:56 AM

I'm not on anybody's payroll.

adrienne Apr 11th, 2012 02:15 AM

HDcoyote - you should takes your complaints elsewhere. We've heard it all before and you won't find much sympathy here. I think the best place to find sympathy is in a dictionary - look under "S".


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