shark970
Traveller
3 comments
Posted 12 years ago
Hi!
Me and a friend of mine would like to use the Sud-Expresso for our journey to Portugal in February. We will be travelling from Ostrava (Czech Republic) to Aveiro via Wien, Zürich and Paris. Since we want to travel with InterRail there are some reservations we need to book and Sud-Expresso seems to be unavailable for online booking. It's possible to buy the whole ticket at venta.renfe.com but not just the reservation. I also tried [ux]https://rail.shop/interrail[/ux] but it says For the selected route, please note that prices are currently unavailable online. So I guess this is the only way? Do I have another options? How risky would it be to not buy the reservation in advance at this time of the year (and buy it in Paris or Irun on our way)?
Thx for your help :)
Lukas
Peter
Traveller
9333 comments
Hi Lukas.
It was always a problem the past years to book this train online.
I recommend to buy the reservation at a train station on your way, for example in Vienna, Zurich or Paris.
But you can also try it here. Often it is possible: https://rail.shop/acprail/reservation
There might be a small service fee on it 1-2 Euro. But it is easy. :)
Peter :)
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
Hej Lukas,
why not get the reservation at Ostrava hl in advance? I havent tried this yet but if you live close to or in Ostrava it is certainly worth to try. As it is possible to get the reservation here in Austria at the station.
I travelled Irun - Lisboa with Surex in Feb 2010 and got my reservations about a week in advance. However, I was the only passenger in the nice old sleeping car which was running still back then. Nowadays it is a Talgo type train...I think you should be certainly fine if you book it on your way, probably even in Paris.
Flo 8)
shark970
Traveller
3 comments
Thanks for your replies :)
flow: I tried to buy it in Ostrava but they are able to book it only to Irun (and, as it seems, just regular reservations, not IR prices), not the Surex from Irun to Lisboa. But they told me that I should try it in Prague, and as I am going there tomorrow anyway, I'll ask them and we'll see.
OT: Also, could you please tell me what's the issue with reservation for the TGV 8543 from Paris to Irun departing at 1429? It's not possible to book it for the days after January 28th on railcc e-shop, it says Book these trains separately. Interesting is that it works for the TGV departing at 0829... :|
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
OK...how was it in Praha?
I cant tell you the exact issue with 8543, there can be several reasons why you cant book it:
- it is already fully booked
- it is not opened for bookings by SNCF
- there are massive construction works in the Bordeaux area in 2012 with special timetables...the train could not have a fixed timetable yet
- ...
You can only try again from time to time...or try to get a not 100% official reservation as explained here :arr: [u]https://rail.cc/en/interrail-train-reservation/tgv-sncf/42[/u]
Flo 8)
shark970
Traveller
3 comments
Hi,
so apparently the CD Travel office at Praha hl.n. (main station) is the only office in Czech Republic that is connected to the DB system. However, they still weren't able to book the Sud-Expresso from Irun to Portugal, I don't know why. At least there was no problem with the other trains, including the TGV 8543 from Paris to Irun (6 EUR)... I will book the Sud-Expresso in Vienna, I hope it won't be fully booked or something...
Thx for your help guys :)
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
OK, that is interesting info, thank you.
When do you go by Sud Expresso? I probaby will use it as well at the beginning of February.. :)
I think the reason why you cannot book it at the moment is because it is currently blocked by RENFE - even on their own website you cannot make any bookings for this train at the moment. You can only wait until the unlock it again.
Great that you got the TGV reservation without troubles.
Flo 8)
shark970
Traveller
3 comments
We will be going from Paris to Irun on 6th of February (the 14:29 train)... Leaving Ostrava on 4th afternoon to Vienna and then via Zürich by EN and TGV, staying one night in Paris :)
I just hope that the Sud Expresso from Irun is running and is possible to book in Vienna (or at least in Paris)... I would not like to get stucked in Irun :D
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
You could leave Ostrava in the morning to go to Munich via Wien and then take the night train from Munich to Paris. This would give you some extra hours in Paris.
I probably will go with Surex on 7th February. :)
serafina2u
Traveller
2 comments
Hi I am reading through your site and it's great. I am interested in taking the train from Lisbon or Porto to Paris. I am usually good at this kind of thing but finding it difficult to book this online. I have tried a couple of the links you have provided. Is there a direct route or do you have to switch trains? Also would you be able to give me the station names I should put in when searching the booking site for a train. So far none of the ones I have seen seem to work.
Many thanks for your help.