swgospe
Traveller
1 comments
Posted 10 years ago
Clarifying the railcc Ticket Booking/Reservation Process:
Hey all,
I am brand new to railcc and much of Europe. I have studied in Spain since August 21, 2013 and will begin my trip March 4, 2014 so I will be eligible for and be buying the InterRail Pass.
I am confused about how tickets and reservations work though, I know it varies from train to train, but in general, I want to know if I can/should buy my tickets online, and if I need to reserve ahead of time.
Here is my proposed route, please tell me which places I will need a reservation, and which ones I can do online. Thanks.
Now my question is as such:
#1) If I buy the 22 day continuous pass, and I need to make a reservation for ANY of the valid trains, where do I do it? Do I have to do it through railcc through the online reservation for passholders place? And does this correspond to ALL train options not just DB because it says it’s through DB?
#2) With the 22 day Interrail pass how can I actually board the train? Do I buy a ticket from the online site or at the station, get a reservation from Eurodude, or just do nothing and enter the train and show m pass? What happens if I buy either a reservation or night train ticket through railcc when I already have the pass? Will I get a ticket to printout and bring with me to the train?
#3) If I start travel on 3/4/2014 and I get the 22 days continuous pass, I should be able to travel until 23:59 on 3/25/2014, right?
#4) For my last part of the trip, Antwerp to Dover, and then Dover to London, I can’t just use the Eurostar. I want to make sure that I can do this route too it’s:
Antwerp->Bruxelles: Belgian Railways (NMBS/SNCB) OR Thalys
Bruxelles->Ashford (Kent): EuroStar
Ashford (Kent)-> Dover: First Great Western
Dover->London: First Great Western
#5) Any suggestions for where I should reserve and where not to? Also I am planning to do a night train between Zurich and Vienna, and Budapest and Prague. Any suggestions about that?
Location Days 3/3/2014 3/23/2014 Transportation Company
Milano, Italy 1 3/3/2014 3/4/2014 Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (SBB)
Bellinzona, Switzerland 2 3/4/2014 3/6/2014 Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (SBB)
Zurich, Switzerland 2 3/6/2014 3/8/2014 railcc
Österreichische Bundesbahnen
Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (SBB)
Vienna, Austria 2 3/8/2014 3/10/2014 Magyar Államvasutak
Budapest, Hungary 3 3/10/2014 3/13/2014 Magyar Államvasutak
Rail Dude
Prague, Czech Republic 2 3/13/2014 3/15/2014 Deutsche Bahn
České dráhy
Berlin, Germany 3 3/15/2014 3/18/2014 Deutsche Bahn
Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (SBB)
Hamburg, Germany 2 3/18/2014 3/20/2014 Deutsche Bahn
Nederlandse Spoorwegen High Speed
Amsterdam, Netherlands 2 3/20/2014 3/22/2014 Nederlandse Spoorwegen High Speed
Antewerp, Belgium 2 3/22/2014 3/24/2014 EuroStar
Dover, England 1 3/24/2014 3/25/2014 EuroStar
London 3/25/2014
I know it’s a lot, but I really appreciate it, thanks!!
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Hi!
ad 1) The standard way to get reservations for trains is directly at a railway station at the ticket window. Bring your ticket with you as in some countries personell wants to check it. Usually you can get reservations for domestic travel plus reservations for international travel for at least the neighbouring countries. In many countries you can also get reservations for other countries as well, not only for neighbouring ones.
The railcc online reservation feature, run by our partner company ACP Rail is only an extra service which should be only used if you need a certain reservation beforehand but cannot get to a railway station in time - since reservations made through the online shop are sent by mail it does not really make sense to use this feature during your travels.
Like I said, the easiest way to get reservations during your travels is to go to a staffed station.
ad 2) Your InterRail pass is your ticket! Only for trains with compulsory you need to get an extra seat reservation as explained above; trains which do not require a reservation you can just hop on the train and show your ticket to the inspectors.
In some countries/on some services you might encounter platform ticket control where you have to show your InterRail pass (and reservation when necessary) when entering the platform prior to bording the train but this is rather rare.
The InterRail pass will be shipped to you as a paper ticket - dont forget to take the ID document you used while ordering the ticket with you. ;)
ad 3) Yes.
ad 4) This trip makes no sense. ;) You have the following options:
1) Antwerpen - Rotterdam - Hook van Holland by train, then ferry to Harwich and train to London as explained here: :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/blog/from-london-to-amsterdam-with-the-dutchflyer/[/u]
2) Antwerpen - Bruxuelles by train, then Eurostar directly to London; this will be quite expensive but by far the quickest option :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/brussels-london-eurostar-train/f1807[/u]
3) Antwerpen - Lille - Calais by train (do not use Thalys, Eurostar or TGV services on this route as this would cost you unnecessary reservation fees), then ferry to Dover; train to London :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-ferry/calais-dover/21[/u]
ad 5) Make reservations only for trains where it is compulsory. Especially as a single traveller it is almost never a problem to find a seat on a train where reservations are not compulsory.
The Zürich - Wien night train requires a reservation :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-night-train/zurich-vienna-en-467/63[/u]
On the Budapest - Prague night train you can travel on a regular seat without a reservation, reservation is necessary if you want a bed in a couchette or slepper: :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-night-train/budapest-prague-en-476/218[/u]
Having a look at your itinerary I have to stress that railcc is not a transportation company!
Hope that helps for a start, maybe also have a look here: :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/first-time-interrail[/u]
Flo 8)