{"id":558,"date":"2010-01-12T21:02:17","date_gmt":"2010-01-13T05:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/?page_id=558"},"modified":"2013-02-12T17:02:32","modified_gmt":"2013-02-13T01:02:32","slug":"rail-europe","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/1-2\/rail-europe\/","title":{"rendered":"Rail Europe Reviews | RailEurope.com"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><a onmouseover=\"window.status='http:\/\/www.raileurope.com\/cj\/';return true;\" onmouseout=\"window.status=' ';return true;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.anrdoezrs.net\/click-3040923-10666543\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-size: x-small;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright\" style=\"margin: 8px; border: 0px;\" title=\"Rail Europe Deals\" src=\"http:\/\/www.lduhtrp.net\/image-3040923-10666543\" alt=\"Rail Europe Deals\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anrdoezrs.net\/click-3040923-1205410\" target=\"_blank\">RailEurope.com<\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Most comprehensive rail pass inventory from Ireland to Turkey. Popular rail passes include\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jdoqocy.com\/click-3040923-10383379\" target=\"_blank\">Swiss Saver Flexipass<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kqzyfj.com\/click-3040923-10411732\" target=\"_blank\">Eurail Germany\/Austria Pass<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dpbolvw.net\/click-3040923-10383370\" target=\"_blank\">Eurail Selectpass Drive<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.tkqlhce.com\/click-3040923-10358584\" target=\"_blank\">Thalys High-Speed train<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dpbolvw.net\/click-3040923-10411722\" target=\"_blank\">Eurail Spain Pass<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dpbolvw.net\/click-3040923-10358662\" target=\"_blank\">European East Pass<\/a>, and the popular <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kqzyfj.com\/click-3040923-10358583\" target=\"_blank\">Eurostar<strong> ~<\/strong> between London &amp; Paris<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Two Types of Rail Passes:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol>\n<li>Flexible Passes (Flexipass): Buy a rail pass for any European country you\u2019re visiting. The pass is valid for a specific number of travel days (<em>ie. 1 month<\/em>) in that specific area. You may travel any time during this set time period. Note that some trains require booking a seat in advance, which you can do online while in Europe.<\/li>\n<li>Consecutive-Day Passes: Buy a pass for unlimited rail travel on any single day or set of consecutive days.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>Anywhere Anytime France Pass. Buy advance credits for trips that you can redeem online for actual 1st class seats on any French train. You can change your mind, change departure times or go somewhere else.<\/li>\n<li>Eurail pass holders are eligible for reduced or free fares on ferries, cruises, private trains, hotels, museums, and many other attractions<\/li>\n<li>Discounts for <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jdoqocy.com\/click-3040923-10413929\" target=\"_blank\">Seniors<\/a> (over age 60) and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dpbolvw.net\/click-3040923-10383368\" target=\"_blank\">Youth<\/a> (under age 26)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h5><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Our Editor&#8217;s Review<\/span><\/h5>\n<p>When traveling between 2 countries, you will often get a bonus &#8220;layover&#8221; in a third country, which is a pretty nice side-benefit of taking rail. For example, on the train from Paris to Rome, we got a 3 hour stop in Lausanne, Switzerland. One of the most unique products they have is the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jdoqocy.com\/click-3040923-10358541?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.raileurope.com%2Ftrain-faq%2Feuropean-trains%2Felipsos-train-hotel%2Fhow-to-book.html\" target=\"_blank\">Elipsos Train Hotel<\/a>, which is a world-class international night train with all the\u00a0amenities\u00a0of a contemporary hotel. You can take your whole trip on the train, eat, sleep and see up to 4 countries. We also like the flexibility of the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.anrdoezrs.net\/click-3040923-10358595\" target=\"_blank\">Eurail Selectpass<\/a>. Unlike airline tickets, you can purchase a pass for 2 months, and travel whenever and wherever you like (up to 4 countries). All adult Eurorail Selectpasses are first class too!<\/p>\n<p>For someone who is new to rail travel in Europe, it can be a little bit of a confusing experience. Take the time to read the FAQ section prior to searching for passes. The default &#8220;class&#8221; when using the booking engine is &#8220;comfort class&#8221;, which is an upgraded &#8220;restricted&#8221; 1st class, and can be twice as much as economy class. If you are a budget traveler, you must select &#8220;economy class&#8221;. Rail Europe has an overwhelming amount of products. They are\u00a0definitely\u00a0flexible, which is generally a good thing. However, it left us a little confused and unsure what we wanted to buy.<\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Rail Europe Fees*<\/span><\/h5>\n<p>Up to $18 Handling Fee per transaction. Even after you purchase your rail pass, make sure you reserve a seat on the train (some trains do not require reservations, however, certain High Speed trains such as the TGV, AVE, Talgo, ICE, IC, Eurostar Italia, Thalys, Eurostar, require mandatory reservations). 15% minimum Cancellation Fee + 5% Administrative Fee. Refunds, when applicable, pertain to totally unused and unvalidated tickets only. Expired tickets\/passes are non refundable. Non-refundable Products: Paris Visite, Paris Museums, Great British Heritage Pass, London Travel Card, Fly-Rail Baggage, Original London Sightseeing Tour, Rail Protection Plan\u2122, Seat Reservations. Passes cannot be issued to residents of the countries the pass is valid in.<\/p>\n<p>*Based solely on research done by TravelSiteCritic.com, and may be inaccurate and subject to change.<\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Rail Europe Coupons &amp; Deals<\/span><\/h5>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dpbolvw.net\/click-3040923-1205410?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.raileurope.com%2Fspecial-deals%2Frail-discounts.html\" target=\"_blank\">CLICK HERE for list of new Rail Europe Discounts<\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.kqzyfj.com\/click-3040923-10607063\" target=\"_blank\">!<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dpbolvw.net\/click-3040923-10358581\" target=\"_blank\">Under 26? Get discounted Youth Passes<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dpbolvw.net\/click-3040923-10413929\" target=\"_blank\">Senior travelers &#8211; Enjoy discounted rail passes<\/a><\/p>\n<p>________________________________________________<\/p>\n<p><em>Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are \u201caffiliate links.\u201d This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Read our\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/disclosure\" target=\"_blank\">review disclosure<\/a>\u00a0for more information.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Please\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/disclosure\/be-aware-of-airfare-fees-taxes\/\" target=\"_blank\">be aware of airfare taxes &amp; fees<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<div id=\"social-essentials\" class=\"se_left\"><div class=\"se_button se_button_small\" style=\"width:85px;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share\" class=\"twitter-share-button\" data-url=\"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/1-2\/rail-europe\/\" data-text=\"Rail Europe Reviews | RailEurope.com\" data-via=\"pamela_jones\" data-counturl=\"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/1-2\/rail-europe\/\" data-count=\"horizontal\" data-lang=\"en\">Tweet<\/a><\/div><div class=\"se_button se_button_small\" style=\"width:72px;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px\"><fb:like href=\"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/1-2\/rail-europe\/\" send=\"false\" layout=\"button_count\" width=\"90\" show_faces=\"false\"><\/fb:like><\/div><div class=\"se_button se_button_small\" style=\"width:60px;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px\"><g:plusone size=\"medium\" href=\"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/1-2\/rail-europe\/\" count=\"true\"><\/g:plusone><\/div><\/div><div class=\"clear\"><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">#call_to_action h4{padding:0px 5px;}<\/style>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0RailEurope.com Most comprehensive rail pass inventory from Ireland to Turkey. Popular rail passes include\u00a0Swiss Saver Flexipass, Eurail Germany\/Austria Pass, Eurail Selectpass Drive, Thalys High-Speed train, Eurail Spain Pass, European East Pass, and the popular Eurostar ~ between London &amp; Paris Two Types of Rail Passes: Flexible Passes (Flexipass): Buy a rail pass for any European [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":525,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-558","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/558","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=558"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/558\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":561,"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/558\/revisions\/561"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/525"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/travelsitecritic.com\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=558"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}