Hi

We are visiting Belgium and Holland in September. The thing that we are concerned about is the total cost of rail travel between cities. Would anyone know of any economic rail passes that would cover travel from Belgium to Amsterdam. We have read about a few passes, but some of them seem quite expensive.

There are four of us travelling (1 under 26 years of age, and three over 26). We are staying in Bruges for the first four days, then we need a train to Amsterdam (since we wanted to be in Amsterdam over the weekend), and finally we need to go from Amsterdam back to Brussels.

If anyone could advise us on rail passes, it would be of great help. Thank you.

raileurope.com

A regular 2nd class train ticket from Bruges to Amsterdam is € 37 (via Antwerpen). From Amsterdam to Brussels is € 31.40.

There is a Benelux Tourrail Pass for $163, but you would probably be better off with individual tickets.

Railpasses are only cheaper if you are doing lots of train travel. Check your itinerary at:
www.railsaver.com

I suggest you surf to
www.railpass.com where there is a "form" you can fill out which tells you which pass is best of if you are economically better off buying point to point tickets. Hope this helps.

Hi jen,

For the little traveling that you are doing a railpass will likely be too expensive.

www.railsaver.com will compare point-to-point with a railpass.

If you are concerned about buying your tickets before you leave the States, I suggest calling Euraide at
1 941-480-1555. They will provide all of your tickets, or passes if cheaper, and your reservations if needed for one $35 fee plus the ticket cost as if you were in Europe.

Jen,

Check
www.b-rail.be
for schedules and price info. It's the official web site of the Belgian rail company SNCB.

As an example, a full-fare round trip ticket from Brussels to Amsterdam costs EUR 62,80. There are various discounts available (for travelers under 26, for weekend travel etc.) - check the site.

A rail pass makes absolutely no sense for your itinerary. Also, advance purchase of these tickets in the US is crazy - if you don't want to stand in line on your departure date, just go to the station in Bruges a day or 2 before to purchase your tickets.

One more tip: it's not worth taking the Thalys trains on these routes, as they're no faster, run less frequently, require reservations and cost extra. Just take the normal intercity (IC) trains.

Hope this helps,
Andre

Andre is right. Buying tickets in the U.S. is totally unnecessary.
With four of your traveling, you might be eligible for a group discount. Specials pop up from time to time and ask what the cheapest ticket for your trip is (for example, it costs less if you leave after 9 am). If you can afford it, splurge for first class, especially if you are traveling on a week-end or around rush hours--the trains can be incredibly crowded! (week-end rates in first class are quite reasonable).
Skip the Thalys. As Andre noted, it won't really save you much time. You'll spend more and have less flexibility.
BTilke (Brussels)

Hi everyone

thanks for your replies. Railpass.com and Railsaver.com came up with good suggestions for us. The tips on Thalys trains were helpful, thank you. As you were saying about group discounts, BTike, we had read that it was less expensive to travel in groups, but could not find any group discount fares.

Jen.

I agree: if that's all you're doing, point-to-point tickets would be your best bet. If you were staying longer in the region, I'd suggest the previously-mentioned Benelux "Tourrail" pass. As I'm sure you've gathered, it would be pointless to spring for 1st class tickets: 2nd is just fine! Also, having done the Amsterdam-Bruges trip, don't be thrown if you have to change trains: the station used is Roosendaal (sp.?) on the Dutch-Belgian border and all that is involved is getting off one train; taking a few step across the platform; and getting in the waiting train (both train and platform well-marked). Enjoy!