In the latest edition of VRT News’ consumer affairs podcast WinWin Sven Pichal and Kathleen Craenhals looked into how we can ensure that we get the best deal when purchasing international rail tickets. Websites and apps to help us find the cheapest plane tickets to our destination of choice have existed for many years. Recently a number of apps have been launched to help us find the cheapest international rail fares. Those of us that would rather book direct through a rail company are advised to shop around. For example, international rail tickets booked through the Belgian rail company NMBS’ app are more expensive than those booked through the app of the German rail company Deutsche Bahn.
VRT News has compiled a list of three top tips for getting the best deal on rail travel to and from destinations in other European countries.
1. Compare the railway companies
In every country at least one rail companies has its own website complete with search engine. In addition to domestic travel these sites also provide timetable and price information on international rail services. Some international rail operators such as Eurostar, Thalys and ICE have their own apps and websites. In addition to these sites and apps there are now also apps and sites that compare tickets and routes offered by several different rail companies.
However, not all route and ticket information is available everywhere so it is best to compare the information given by several site/apps before purchasing a ticket. Furthermore, some country-specific discounts are not visible when looking up information on international sites/apps.
The passengers’ organisation Train Tram Bus says that booking an international rail ticket through the German rail company Deutsche Bahn’s site/app is cheaper than booking the same ticket through the site/app of the Belgian rail operator NMBS. This is because NMBS charges a reservation fee of 6 euro per train taken to reach a given destination while Deutsche Bahn charges a reservation fee of
4.90 euro for the entire journey. This means that for a ticket to Munich changing train twice you pay 18 euro in reservation fee when booking through NMBS and 4.90 euro if you book through Deutsche Bahn.
2. Try a rail app that offers cheap tickets
The prices of rail tickets can sometimes seem astronomical, particularly compared with cheap plane tickets. However, help is at hand. There are now apps and websites available such as Trainline and RailEurope where you can sometimes a real bargain.
Sven Pichal put this to the test. “I went to Switzerland for 1 week with my rucksack on my back, I have been going there by train for a number of years and always booked via the NMBS international app. This year the ticket prices there really were prohibitively high. Through one of the new apps, I found tickets for same days that were between a third and half the price I’d been quoted by NMBS. For example, I found a ticket from Zurich to Antwerp Central for 107 euros for the return journey. There were 2 express trains on that route, and I was home in 8 hours."
So it is worth shopping around. Don’t only look at the national rail operators’ sites/apps, but also take a look at the new fare comparison and other rail ticket booking sites.
3. Plan ahead, book well in advance
It’s an advantage if you can plan ahead. Rail tickets are often cheaper if you book well in advance. The tickets for a given date are always put online a certain number of months in advance. Then all tickets, including the cheap ones, are still available.
For example: tickets for the night trains that now run on a large number of routes, come online 6 months in advance. Tickets for the German high-speed ICE trains can also be bought from 6 months prior to departure. Meanwhile, Eurostar and Thalys tickets are available from between 4 and 11 months prior to departure depending on the destination. From October this year the Thalys brand will disappear and become Eurostar.
Another way to save on the price of a rail ticket is to be flexible with regard to your departure time. Tickets are often cheaper if you leave early or late. Travel on a weekday is also cheaper than on a Friday evening, a day in the weekend or on a Monday morning.