We are travelling to Europe in Sept and am currently pricing Eurail Passes. Could anyone recommend the best sites for ordering. I have checked www.raileurope.com, www.railplus.com.au, and www.eurail.com but all their prices vary. It seems that living in Australia I may be better off ordering in USD because of the rate at the moment. Any ideas I would be grateful.

I bought my railpass from the www.ricksteves.com site, and he threw in a voucher for merchandise from the store.

I recommend http://www.budgeteuropetravel.com/. Ask for the free European Planning & Rail Guide. It is excellent.

Hi Mariebut,

You can't get the planning guide that hopscotch suggested as it is only available to people in the USA - trust me I tried!

Don't know if railtickets.com.au is any better on prices.
Good thinking about ordering the pass in USD though,

Hi M,

Are you sure that you need a railpass?

At least, enter your itinerary at www.railsaver.com and click "only if it saves money".

I doubt if US pass retailers would be willing to send one to Australia because it's like sending cash for them - the pass if lost is worth cash for all practical purposes

And since railpasses are still paper products that must be mailed - no e pass versions i know of - you may have to buy down under.

You can buy Eurailpasses in Europe at Eurail Aid offices and they are priced in dollars but are always i've been told priced about 20% higher than dollar prices in the U.S. - it's mainly for folks who lose their pass but in fact they sell to anyone.

Eurail.com seems to say it will ship to Australia for free, and they quote fares in AUD.

Those rail pass prices are pretty standard, I suspect if you are finding big price differences, it may be a comparison of different kinds of passes or something. I just looked at the Select pass for adults, and it was priced virtually identically on Eurail and Raileurope. There may be some differences in shipping costs, of course, but the pass price was about the same, give or take a dollar or two, due to exact exchange rate used. For example, Raileurope sells the Select pass for 5 days/1 country for US$471 and eurail.com sells it for $469. They both sell the 10 day one for $715.

Thanks Christina, I have found that Eurail have the cheapest prices so far, I suppose there is no agent involved and yes they will post to Australia so I may book with them.

Sorry Christina pressed post too soon, the RailEurope price in Australian dollars is about $150 more for four people, quite a difference than the Eurail price.

Are you sure you want a pass? Many times it's much cheaper to use the budget airlines in Europe. www.whichbudget.com

marie:

Are you sure you are comparing prices that are current

I say this because since jan 1, 2008 Eurailpass prices have gone up about 4-5%, then gone down 4-5% and then back up a tad.

So make sure both your sources are the current price and not that some weeks ago

And check to see if RailEurope in OZ is not running the same promo they are in the U.S.

where if you buy a Eurail Select Pass before the end of March 2008 and it's a 6-day or longer pass you get an extra day free - 6 days becomes 7, etc.

this can be worth about $60 if you need the extra day

or for folks buying 8-day select passes when they really only need 7 days of travel perhaps more. (No 7-day select passes normally available.)

I should have splained that even traveling in Sep you can opt for the extra day free on Eurail Select as you have six months after issuance of the pass in which to activate it in Europe - meaning your two-month flexible period would have to start no later than the last days of September and could use the pass until late November.

The extra day free is only on Eurail Select passes and no other type of Eurailpasses it seems

Thanks PalenQ no Raileurope Oz isnt offering extra day but I did notice it on Eurail site. Seems I cant access Raileurope other sites always diverts me to OZ site.

We would prefer to travel by train to see the countryside and relax, not too keen on lots of airflights.I have checked www.railsaver.com which suggests we need a 3 country Select pass.
thanks for the info everyone.

PalenQ, I have just found your other thread for Train Travel for the Clueless, so much great info. Could I ask whether our Eurail pass can be used for any of the Jungfrau journey, we are staying in Interlaken. If so, an extra day may be an advantage. I understand that you can get discount for the trip having a pass but I wasnt sure from where that happens. Thanks again for your valuable information.

thanks OZ for nice comments

you get a 25% discount off the Jungfrau Railways that operate the trains from Interlaken-Ost (east) station up into the hills - to Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen and all the way to the top of Jungfrau and Jungfraujoch. But you do not use a day of travel on a flexipass to get the discount - just so your overall validity period for the pass - two months for flexipasses - is valid.

No reason to buy an extra day for this.

To get the discount with your pass on Jungfrau Region trains from Interlaken-Ost up into the hills and the Jungfraujoch just take your pass up to the ticket window and show it and the discount is taken off the ticket price. Unlike other trains that are covered 100% you do not just hop on the train.

I especially enjoy taking lake boats from Interlaken-West on Lake Thun - a few hour float late in the afternoon with the snow-girdled peaks of the Jungfrau Massif gloriously overlooking the lake is awesome - your pass is good for 100% cover if you use a day on a pass - meaning perhaps the day you arrive in Interlaken as you will likely be using your pass that day. And presumably you'll have a first-class pass that means you can sit on the first-class only desirable open top deck with the best views. Bring picnic supplies and sip your way around the lake.

<b>mariebut</b> - try clearing the cookies in your browser (then close and reopen it) before you change your country of origin. I know this works on eurostar.com, but may not on your site.

Ok Robespierre thanks for that