Any suggested web sites for purchasing a Rail Pass?

The primary web site I suggest is www.railsaver.com - - odds are great that it will show you that you will not save money by purchasing a rail pass.<BR><BR>And then, here's a personal prejudice. if your itinerary would save money by using a rail pass, then you are either:<BR><BR>a) a traveling salesman with a lot of destinations in the least possible amouint of time<BR><BR>or <BR><BR>b) traveling around too much to be called a vacation.<BR><BR>Travel around less. See where you are more.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>[email protected]<BR>

Rex: You admit it is a personal prejudice, but...<BR><BR>We found that buying a 4-Day (France'n'Italy Pass) is saving us $100 over buying point-to-point tickets - and we plan on only using it for 3 days of travel. <BR><BR>So I don't agree that &quot;odds are great&quot; that you won't save money.

For me, a Britrail Pass usually falls between the cheapest (Apex) and most expensive point-to-point tickets. However, without careful planning, it is easy to end up closer to the expensive end of the spectrum. Unless I know my exact itinerary in advance, a railpass usually works out to be about even as far as cost.<BR><BR>Aside from cost issues, there are so many wonderful places I would've missed without the flexibility a railpass provides. Visits to York, Durham, Winchelsea, Blair Atholl and many more were only possible because I saw that my train would be passing through and had the opportunity to say &quot;Hey, that sounds like an interesting place. I should hop off the train for a couple of hours and check it out.&quot;<BR><BR>Also, while it's far less important now than when I first started traveling, I know that if I get on the wrong train or miss a stop, it's not a crisis - I have a pass that will eventually allow me to get where I need to go (or maybe someplace even better!).<BR><BR>Travel around more. See what's out there.

We used a railpass last time we went through Europe. It wound up costing very close to what the second class tickets would have cost. Since the pass allows you to sit in first class, that is a benefit--especially if you're traveling in Italy.

Janam, don't think me rude, but you need to look at how to effectively use this website. You posted this same question twice today, so you have two threads going at once. You need to scan down through the other posts (your first one never moved down very far), rather than just starting a new one. Or you can click on your name at the top of your first post here and you will be given all the other posts you have made as well as the ones you've responded to. If you have further questions, you can ask them on that same original post, rather that just starting a new one.<BR><BR>Hope this helps. It's all about how to get the best and most information. If people are all on one thread commenting and furthering suggestions, it will work to your advantage over having people post to two or more separate threads on the same topic.

And Rex, I'll disagree with your overgeneralization once again. We bought Benelux passes for our five night stay in Amsterdam, with several daytrips by train out, three nights in Brugge, daytripping to Antwerp and Brussels, and then taking the Eurostar to London. I don't call that &quot;traveling around too much to be a vacation&quot;! And yes, it was far cheaper than the point to point tickets would have been. In addition there is a great advantage in going out somewhere, spending a few hours and if you want, just hop on another train and going somewhere else. We did that two days in Holland -- two of our favorite days. I know that you do that by car -- so what's wrong with exploring several small towns in a day by train?

I express this opinion in more strong and less strong wording, from time to time - - and that's why I labeled it as a personal prejudice.<BR><BR>I should ahve said &quot;odds are&quot; - - instead of &quot;odds are great&quot;.<BR><BR>I think one of the reasons I point people there is that it seems to me that many &quot;less experienced&quot; travelers come to this site (and janam is at least &quot;less experienced&quot; at using this forum) - - and they assume from what they have heard that a rail pass is what they need, even if they only plan two train trips! A lot of people have heard of &quot;Eurailpass&quot; for 30 or 40 years, and figure that there is one monolithic Europe rail company, and a $500 pass is simply part of the &quot;required&quot; gear. <BR><BR>So, I suggest that they look at railsaver.com or travel around less.<BR><BR>Maybe this is a reflection of what the &quot;odds are&quot; (my personal speculation here, not researched facts) - - out of 100 people who go research their itinerary on railsaver.com, they break out as follows:<BR><BR>40% will NOT save money using a rail pass. Not even close.<BR><BR>20% have a good itinerary and WILL save money with a rail pass.<BR><BR>20% really ARE traveling around too much, and often thinking (initially at least) of ping-ponging around the continent - - from Paris to Prague to Rome to Amsterdam, when they could arrange things better and travel fewer miles)<BR><BR>and 20% would do well to use one longer distance low-cost flight to connect their most distantly separated destinations, and then a few point-to-point tickets.<BR><BR>So, I see it as 80% versus 20%. But that's the spectrum of &quot;rail pass&quot; questions I see posted here - - and I see those questions through my own perceptions.<BR>

I think many rail passes are standard prices, regardless of where you buy them. I have used Raileurope because the railpass price is the same as anywhere (not tickets, though). I've heard many like Rick Steves because you get a free book or map or something if you buy from him. <BR><BR>I think many people do think you have to buy a railpass and may not need one, but I don't agree that they are rarely useful or save money. France railpasses generally are good buys if you plan a couple long-distance TGV trips. I've bought them and am not a traveling salesman and take plenty of time to see things. France railpasses have pretty broad time limits to use them, a month, as I recall.

I agree with Christina that rail passes can be a decent deal if you have several long legs planned for your trip, such as going from Paris to the South of France and back. You also don't have to plan in advance exactly which train you want to take since you're not buying tickets for a specific time, and can easily change your mind on the spur of the moment. Only those cases in which the train requires a reservation in addition to your pass, such as the TGV, or when you want to book a sleeper, do you need to think ahead a little bit.

Janam<BR>You have not given any countries or time frame with regard to a rail pass. I was recently in Europe for three months visiting eight countries and I found no need for a pass and it would have not saved me any money, in fact it would have cost more. You need to check the websites for costs, write down each leg and then compare. Unless you are 'on the go' by train every day and covering long distances they are often not worth buying.

I have the following impression:<BR><BR>The first poster janam asked just for &quot;Any suggested web sites for purchasing a Rail Pass?&quot;. Rex threw in a stone and started a lengthy comment against Rail Pass (though he did give a web site) without being asked. Now it looks like janam is gone and the threasd is about rex vs the others.