Hi,
We are going to purchase rail passes for Italy, Switzerland,& Germany. We will be going to Salzburg Austria for one day on our way to Germany. Would we be better off price wise to buy a 3 country rail pass and then add Salsburg, or buy a 4 country rail pass.
NV Mike

HI N,

You might not need a railpass.

Have you checked prices at www.trenitalia.com/en/index.html
www.bahn.de
www.sbb.ch/en/index.htm

Look for specials 90 days and 60 days out.

If (big if) you do decide the rail pass route after looking at point-point tickets as Ira suggests, you will NOT need an Austria pass.

Salzburg is considered a valid station with a German pass, since it is right on the border.

Do you need the flexibility afforded by a railpass or can you commit in advance to specific dates and times? You'll probably want a pass for Switzerland. In Germany, walk-up point-to-point tickets can be expensive, but there are many special advance purchase discount fares plus Laender (regional) tickets. In Italy walk-up point-to-point tickets are usually cheaper than a pass, particularly if you take fast EuroStar Italia trains which charge passholders a 15€ reservation fee.

What is your itinerary?

If coming to Salzburg from Italy you will pass thru a fair amount of Austria and thus a 4-country pass would be better for you than a 3-country one.

Thank you all for your help. We do want the flexibility of a rail pass, but didn't know if we needed one for Salzburg. Now we know and we will only buy the three country pass.
Thanks,
NVMIKE

Hi NV,

I hope you don't mind my asking:

What do you mean by "We do want the flexibility of a rail pass, ..."?

Are you planning on just hopping a train on the spur of the moment and going to another city in another country?

If so, what are you planning to do about accomodations when you get there?

Are you aware that you will have to purchase seat reservations ahead of time if you take the fast trains?