OMG: do we buy Eurail passes or not?!
 

Wow...who knew this would prove so difficult. We are a family of four plus Grandma; travelling from Brussels to Bruge to Amsterdam to Hamburg and finally to Berlin. We will take trains but I cannot determine if it less expensive to buy passes or just get tickets at stations. The passes will cost five of us $2000 Cnd and that sounds awfully pricey to me for four trips for the five of us. Would be grateful for anyone's assistance in making this calcuation. We are going in July. thanks!

The Belgian RR website is http://www.b-rail.be/main/E/

Brussels to Bruges non-discounted price is 13.10 euros per person. There may be family discounts available.


Bruges to Amsterdam about 45 euros


Amsterdam to Hamburg about 42 euros
www.nshispeed.nl/en

Hamburg to Berlin
about 40 euros
www.bahn.de/i/view/USA/en/index.shtml

I add that up to 700 euros total for 5 people, or $1000 Cnd, for 2nd class seats.

Definitely much cheaper to buy point to point tickets compared to a pass, and that's not including any discounts you may get for family, weekend, or youth tickets, or other advance purchase discounts.

Well yes the Germany-Benelux Railpass may well prove a good deal for you - the more days of travel the cheaper it is - and you can hop on nearly any train in Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg and Germany anytime you want - just show up and get on - such fully flexible tickets in Germany at least often cost a fortune. Anyways check out these fab IMO web sites for lots of great info on trains in those countries and railpasses - www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.ricksteves.com and www.seat61.com. And if my decades of incessant European rail travel have taught me anything it is for a group like your go first classw - actually a first-class railpass is not all that much more than 2nd class and there are IME many many benefits of first class train travel. If you have kids under 12 they pay just 50% of what adults pay.

I have little doubt the Germany-Benelux railpass is your best option, especially for first-class travel where you all can pretty much bet on just showing up an finding seats by each other - very very iffy IME in 2nd class where you often IME find isolated single or double seats not a block of several.

If you have kids under 15, they'll travel for free with adults in Germany on point-to-point tickets.

Hamburg to Berlin
about 40 euros>

well regular fare is 70 euros on the fastest ICE trains that most folks will take and that is about $105 just for that journey alone so that is a large chunk of the railpass alone and that is second class - first class tickets lots more - the 40 euro fare must be some severly restricted fare you must book far in advance as they are sold in limited numbers.

If you are not making multiple journeys or various short journeys, point to point tickets are always better. Check for the kids age as some of the shengen countries gives fabulous discounts or offers.

OK, so assume the Hamburg - Berlin is 70 euros list price. It doesn't change the conclusion: the $2000 price for rail pass is not a good deal.

I'm not making an argument against rail pass if there are better details like the Germany-Benelux pass as suggested then that's great - simply pointing out that $2000 rail passes aren't the way to go.

Do you agree with that assessment?

If you are okay with scheduling the trains you will take in advance, you can probably save money by booking in advance.

We don't book in advance (like the flexability to take whatever train we want whenever we want), and are "youth" on the pass, so a pass is almost always a better deal for us.

You can use bahn.de to get prices for the German trains. Hard for me to tell you as I don't know the ages of all in the party.

OK, so assume the Hamburg - Berlin is 70 euros list price. It doesn't change the conclusion: the $2000 price for rail pass is not a good deal>

Well a 5-day pass valid on nearly every train in Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg and Germany is $285 p.p. adult and 50% off if any kids under 16 - free four and under so the pass is no where near $2,000 US or Canadian - they may have been using the Eurail Select Pass pricing but this price if for the Germany-Benelux Railpass which is much cheaper than a Eurail Select Pass, especially the more days you buy.

and at $285 per adult for five days unlimited train rides that comes to about say $57 a day or about 38 euros a day - note 38 euros cheaper even than the discounted 40 euro ticket Hamburg to Berlin and with the pass you can just show up at the station and board any train anytime - even the fastest ICE trains in Germany! So there is a lot of misunderstanding about passes and statements, etc - do your own research is my advice and also pay not attention to advise saying that a pass will necessarily be more expensive than even discounted and at times hard to get and restricted online tickets - and again the pass provides full flexibility - you decide that day which of the zillions of trains to take - no having to hurry to the station to catch a non-changeable non-refundable train - and with a large party this is always a hassle - with the pass relax and go to the station and catch the next of zillions of daily trains in these countries. And again the pass is even a better deal in first class compared to first class fares and IMO it is a no-brainer for such a group to go in first class (and even for any casual tourist on the trip of a lifetime.

and with a pass once you arrive in say a Berlin or Munich your pass that day also allows unlimited use of S-Bahn trains which in each city are very utilitarian - yeh only a few bucks but still a perk that figures into calculations.

and a 5-day pass in first class is about $350 per adult or $70 a day and I believe if you compare that to unfettered at will first class tickets it could be an even greater deal. - about 45 euros a day - about the same on Hamburg to Berlin it seems as the restricted unchangeable and potentially hard to get discounted ticket mentioned above in 2nd class.

Pudgy oh pudgy - what did you decide - pass or not? Curious.