Why Eurail passes suck

Eurail passes-

I know I typically center every post on this blog about a country or city where we are, but I feel strongly enough (and by strongly I mean fiercely furious) about this particular topic that I feel it deserves a post all to itself.  So strongly and fiercely in fact that I very much wanted to bluntly and honestly title this post, "Why Eurail passes are a fucking bullshit scam that take advantage of stupid tourists like me and no one should ever buy one", but Natalie then reminded me that our family and co-workers are following this blog and I should title the post something less aggressive - hence the title "why Eurail passes suck"

I would like to note that only under very certain circumstances would I ever recommend getting a Eurail pass. ONLY get Eurail if you are 25 or under, going to multiple countries and cities for at least a month and only hitting every location for a few days, and not going to France. Otherwise, you're wasting your time and money.

Natalie and I purchased our Eurail passes several months ago.  Though we had heard mixed reviews on the internet, everyone we knew who personally had used them seemed to rally behind the purchase.  (What we should have realized is everyone we had asked had used Eurail several or more years ago when the Eurail restrictions on seating and train types didn't exist and was under the age of 26 when they used them so they were a lot less expensive).

Having turned 26 just a few months before our trip, we were deemed to old by Eurail to purchase a youth ticket (the cut off is 26) and had to pay double for an adult ticket.  Though we got a slight discount for getting a group pass, which basically means Natalie and I will always travel together, it still cost Natalie and I $900 each.  As we had quite the ambitious travel plans (8 countries/12 big cities) we estimated it would save us money.

The passes gave us instruction to validate them once we decided to begin our trip.  As we took a plane from Dublin to London and the Chunnel from London to Paris (Chunnel isn't included in Eurail) , we went to validate them in Paris.   They have one single person at the Gare de Nord train station who handles all things Eurail so expect to wait in the line of 30+ disgruntled Eurail pass holders for at least an hour if not more.

Validating the passes was no problem, though the "validation" couldn't have been less official if the ticket guy had just drawn a happy face on the piece of paper and given us a thumbs up sign.

We were then informed that all the trains to Italy that day were booked for Eurail pass holders.  (Note- France only holds a small amount of seats on their trains for Eurail pass holders so they're basically always full for popular travel destinations like Italy).  He told us we should have reserved seats on the train earlier - this is where I start to think Eurail passes are crap and here's why...

Reason 1 Eurail lied to you- it isn't as flexible and easy as you think:  You have to reserve seats to get on a train.  You can't just show up with your pass and hop on the way they make it seem.  Also, you can't reserve a seat on a train until you've validated your Eurail pass and once you validate it, your 10 days or 30 days or whatever pass length you purchased begins so it's a catch 22.  Also, the reason people buy Eurail passes is because it's advertised as giving you the "ultimate flexibility".  They literally on their website advertise that you can just hop on and hop off trains using your pass.  Clearly, this wasn't the case.

Reason 2 Eurail lied to you- savings: Additionally, the whole speak about the Eurail saving you money is also crap.  Whenever you need a seat on the train you have to pay a "reservation fee" for every trip which can range from anywhere from 10-30 euros ($15-$50).  So to use your Eurail and get on a train from Paris to Zurich is 20 euros and Lausanne, Switzerland to Florence is 21 euros.  

Reason 3 Eurail lied to you- you don't need Eurail to use the European train system.  Buying point to point tickets is easy and can often be cheaper.      You want flexibility on your travel?  $900 in cash buying point to point tickets will take you a lot farther with flexibility than a Eurail pass which has limitations on seat availability and the type of train you can take (see reason 4 Eurail lied to you below on train restrictions)

Reason 4 Eurail lied to you- Eurail passes, even the big kahuna ones that we got, don't include all trains.  Most night trains (you know the ones you sleep on so you can save money on a hostel) or high speed trains (you know the ones that get you to your destination in a reasonable amount of time so you don't spend your entire vacation on a train) are NOT included with a Eurail pass.

So here's my 2 cents.  Obviously don't buy a Eurail pass.  Eurail passes cost an exorbant amount of money for what you're getting.  Eurail passes are a huge scam in my opinion.  They market them towards Americans, preying on our fears of being unable navigate the scary and intimidating European train system and appealing to our laziness by promising they will simplify our travels and decrease planing time.

I was nervous about navigating the train system too.  In America, especially CA, we are not used to using trains or public transportation in general so the thought of navigating train stations and tickets in a foreign language seemed too foreign, confusing, and daunting.  In truth, all major European cities have people working ticketing that speak English and certainly enough English to say "ticket from Florence to Barcelona" or wherever you're going.  Also, they also have ticket machines where you can select English as a language and purchase your tickets.  OR if you want to purchase your tickets ahead of time, you can do it online in English there as well.  I know it's hard to believe me, but I promise you that it really is that easy.  Not to mention, even with Eurail you still will need to reserve seats so you'll have to deal with it anyways.

Just buy point to point tickets 2 months ahead of time for the cities you know you'll be going to on certain dates, then if you want some flexibility wait until you're in Europe to buy the remaining train tickets. Often times, you just jump on trains without tickets (aka paying) here anyways.  It's really bizarre, but I swear it's true they literally never check tickets.

FYI -  even when you buy tickets or "reserve" them you're not guaranteed a spot on the train as people often don't pay for tickets and will just take your seats (which happened to us in France).

The best thing to do- don't be afraid, know that you are more competent than you think you are, just buy tickets for where you need to go, smile, be assertive, and roll with the punches.  This my friends is how you'll save money, get where you need to go, and have an awesome trip.  It's also how Natalie and I ended up in beautiful Lausanne, Switzerland.