Hi, I've read in a guide book (Lonely Planet) that the following are stops along the way -- Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam, The Hague. If I buy a ticket from Paris to Amsterdam, would I be allowed to hop off and on along the way? Or is there some ticket I could buy that would entitle me to the privilege? What would the price difference be?

Thanks.

Hi 111,

Thalys trains are reservation only. If you want to make stops, buy tickets from city to city.

The price is the same.

Hi ira, I haven't checked -- but do you mean when I add the ticket prices up from say Brussels -> Antwerp, Antwerp -> Rotterdam, Rotterdam -> The Hague, The Hague -> Amsterdam that the four pieces add to the whole? (Well assuming the stops are on the way.)

Thanks.

There are TGVs or Thalys from Paris to Brussels every half hour. You need to reserve a seat for these. From Brussels to Amsterdam via Antwerpen and Rotterdam, there are hourly intercity trains which are cheaper than Thalys and only slightly slower (there is no high-speed service on this route). There are no seat reservations on the intercity trains so you just buy tickets before joining the train and there would be no problem in breaking your journey for a few hours; if you want to stop for longer, you'd have to check whether this is allowed when you buy the ticket.

Hi 111,

Not necessarily to the penny, but "Yes".

European trains charge by the kilometer.

Hi

Geoff brought up something I was thinking about.

If you are going to stop in Brussels, you would save money by just buying tickets Brussels-antwerp-rotterdam-den hague-amsterdam on the IC trains.

You could then spend as much time as you wished in each city and just get the next train.

Thanks to you both. I'll investigate further.

111op: if you buy a ticket (Thalys or another one) you're not allowed to interrupt your journey. OK, this may be difficult to verify with a regular ticket on a regular intercity train. But you'll have no chance at all on a Thalys train because your ticket will only be valid for a particular seat on a particular train. Your best option would be to buy a Thalys ticket Paris/Brussels and continue your journey on the intercity trains (that don't take longer from Brussels to A'dam) buying separate tickets.

Thanks Myriam. Actually if I make this trip, I'll probably do this one-way only -- i.e. Brussels to Amsterdam. So probably the potential savings I get without stopping won't be very much. However, a friend may join me in Brussels from Paris and he'll have to return to Paris after Amsterdam. So it sounds like for him the best option, is, as you say, buy Eurostar/Thalys for Paris to Brussels, probably with the cheapest round-trip option, if he can. As for the rest I guess he probably has to buy point-to-point tickets.

Thanks again.

I have a couple of questions. Where do you buy the intercity tickets and how can you find out about the schedule and rates? I want to know about going from Brussels to the Hague or Rotterdam for a day trip, and returning to Brussels. Also, what station do we leave from in Brussels? Thank you for your help.

RebeccaM:

'Where do you buy the intercity tickets and how can you find out about the schedule and rates?'
Holland IC tickets can be purchased in any train station. For schedules and fares go to www.ns.nl.

'I want to know about going from Brussels to the Hague or Rotterdam for a day trip, and returning to Brussels.'
Go to the international ticket office in Brussels. From Amsterdam to Brussels there is a Super Dagretour, an economy ticket valid weekdays except July and August. Maybe they have a corresponding fare from Brussels.

'Also, what station do we leave from in Brussels?' Thalys stops in Brussels only at Zuid, also known as Midi. You can catch other trains at any of the stations, Central/Centraal or Nord/Noord.

Everything in Brussels has two names because the city is bilingual, French/Dutch or Walloon/Vlaams as they would say.

Hopscotch: Thank you for all the great information. I went to that website, but I didn't see an English section.

Where is the international ticket office? In the center of the city? Thanks again.

RebeccaM -

Take another look at the website - www.ns.nl
The "ENGLISH" link is right in the middle of the page.

I've used this sight on all my travels to the Netherlands. It's filled with information, not just rail schedules and rates. If you link on to the "rail station" it takes you to a page containing info about that particular station, ie: map, water closets, luggage lockers, etc... Have a happy journey. Peace.

Robyn

RebeccaM,

The international ticket office would be in the train station. You can also visit a travel agency in the city to buy your tickets. You'll probably get friendlier service in a travel agency.