Bayern pass
 

Our family (2 adults a 21yr old and 17yr old)will be leaving Karlsruhe June 1st traveling to Munich and then to Garmisch the same day. I am looking at a rail ticket from Karlsruhe to Munich, touring Munich and then purchasing the Bayern ticket to go on to Garmisch later that day. If I get my rail ticket to Garmisch instead can I get off at Munich and catch a later train to Garmisch? I am still trying to figure out this rail travel! Is the Bayern pass on slower trains? I will be returning to Munich to take a flight to Berlin later the next week and would use the Bayern then also if it is just as fast? Would that take me to the airport station or would I have to make other arrangements for that.
I know I should have the rail system figured out by now!!

Post this on ricksteves.com and you will get a wonderful, helpful answer from a man named Michael! He is knows a lot about the German rail system.

All German states (Laender) have a day ticket similar to the Bayern Ticket. Both the Bayern Ticket and the Baden-Württemberg Ticket cost €27 for a day, and are valid for up to five people traveling together.

All Länder Ticket are valid on regional trains (IRE, RE, RB) only but include S-bahns. They are not valid on express trains (ICE, IC, EC). They are valid all day long on weekend days or after 9 AM on weekdays.

If you are going to Munich via Ulm (the border between Baden-Württemburg and Bavaria (Bayern), the cost of individual regional tickets from Karlsruhe to Ulm will be more than the cost of a Baden-Württemberg Ticket.

So, my recommendation is this. If you are willing to take the time to go by regional trains, get a Ba-Wü Ticket in Karlsruhe. You can do that from either a blue/white regional train (Nahverkehr) automat or from a red/white/blue long distance train (Fernverkehr) automat. You might also get one from a Karlsruhe transit district (KVV) automat, or, for an extra €2 from a ticket counter. That will get you from Karlsruhe to Ulm.

In Karlsruhe you can also purchase the Bayern Ticket, but only from a ticket counter (extra €2) or from a Fernverkehr automat, or you can wait and get it in Ulm from almost any machine. The Bayern Ticket is valid for travel that day all over Bayern, so you can use it for Ulm to Munich and for Munich to Garmisch.

If you choose to purchase point to point tickets to Garmisch, these tickets are valid until the end of the day following purchase, so you can stop over in Munich. You must purchase a ticket for a route that includes Munich, but almost every route will go through Munich. Purchase those tickets at the counter and tell them your plans.

For the trip to the airport, you will probably take a train to Munich Hauptbahnhof and go by S-bahn to the airport. The Bayern Ticket is valid for all means of transport (S/U-bahn, trams, buses) in Munich, so you will be covered all the way to the airport.

If I take the Lander or Bayern pass from Karlshrue to Ulm to Munich, approx how much longer does it take for the trip? Will we change trains alot and do they stop at every town?
Thanks for good info on this site!

You would need two Länder Tickets, a Baden-Württemberg Ticket to Ulm and a Bayern Ticket from there.

Using the Länder Tickets and regional trains will take 6 1/2 to 8 hours and require 3 to 7 changes, depending on your timing. Of course, it will cost €54 for the two Länder Tickets. In most cases, the connection from Munich to Garmisch is by regional train anyway.

You can find schedules on the Bahn website, http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en.

Travel from Karlsruhe to Garmisch via Munich by express trains in most cases will take 5 - 6 hours and require two changes, one in Stuttgart and one in Munich. Cost for three of you will be €200-€220.

You could reduce the cost of the express trains somewhat by buying SparPreis tickets. These tickets require a three day advance purchase. They also require a return trip and a Saturday night stayover, but, since they would only cost €134 for the three of you round trip, you could fake the return date and just throw them away in Garmisch. They can be refunded up to the day before travel for a €15 fee, but then you would have to pay full fare for the replacement tickers.

You can find out more about traveling by rail in Germany on my website, www.geocities.com/reise_deutschland.

Sorry, when I calculated the price of rail fares from Karlsruhe to Garmisch, I mistakenly thought there were three of you. For four, the express train fares from Karlsruhe to Garmisch would be €270 to €290. Taking advantage of SparPries fares would reduce the express train fares to €175. Using regional trains and Länder Tickets would still cost €54 (Länder-Tickets are valid for up to 5 people for the same price).