Train Times and Prices... WOW

[Palermo10]

Ok I for one did not realize the sheer cost of train travel in Germany... and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Here's what I came up with based on the link provided here:
http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showpost.php?p=6079805&postcount=45


http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en

Berlin to Gelsenkirchen = 4:00hrs
Berlin Zoologischer Garten
Gelsenkirchen Hbf
e84.00 one-way only
e156.00 or e168.00 round trip
trains depart Berlin for G-chen every 3-4 minutes before the top of the hour.

Gametime: 6pm local


Berlin to Kaiserslautern = 5:30 to 5:50hrs
Berlin Zoologischer Garten
Kaiserslautern Hbf
Via ICE , CE trains and S, ICE trains
e214.00 round trip
Leaving at noon and returning at 1am the next day: Random departures

Gametime: 9pm local


Berlin to Nuremberg = just under 5 hours
Berlin Ostbahnhof (cheaper than Zoologischer in this case)
Nürnberg Hbf
Via ICE trains and U-Bahn on the return. U, NZ, RE
e151.00 round trip

Gametime: 4pm local


Now obviously not everyone will be staying in Berlin. But still, if you are more than an hour away by train, you are looking at some expensive prices.


The alternative, a Eurail pass, looks like this:
Youth (2nd-class) Unlimited Travel over x days:
15 days= $382
21 days= $495

Regular Adult Eurail pass (first class) Unlimited Travel over x days:
15 days= $588
21 days= $762


(youth passes are for those under 26 years of age)


Just for the 3 matches alone, from Berlin it would run about $525-$550 in train fares without the pass. And that is over a span of 10-11 days.

Therefore if you bought the 15 day pass, you would have extra days of travel for less with an adult pass.

If anybody has more knowledge about this, lets make this the TTT - train travel thread. :eek:

[Wizhawk]

For one thing, there is a German only pass for cheaper if you don't want to travel to surrounding countries. Second, the prices are high because Berlin is far from all of the sites.

[Palermo10]

Germany Only

Youth pass:
4 days in 1 month = $142.00
Additional Rail Days = $13.00

Adult pass:
4 days in 1 month = $260.00
Additional Rail days = $34.00


There are only 3 first round games, so this is pretty good.

(edit: max additional rail days = 6)

[ebarloewen]

It seems that renting a car is not a popular option. Why is that? Parking problem? Traffic problems?

[roadkit]

It seems that renting a car is not a popular option. Why is that? Parking problem? Traffic problems?

Driving in the US sucks. I'd rather not try to decipher German highway (autobahn) signs, find (and pay for) a place to park, pay $7 a gallon for gas, and not be able to put away a few beers on this trip. The train is the way to go. Cough up the bucks and just enjoy it.

[asudnik]

It seems that renting a car is not a popular option. Why is that? Parking problem? Traffic problems?

I was wondering the same thing. I would think driving on the autobahn wold be attractive.

[Wizhawk]

I would guess the top three reasons people dont want to rent are...
1. gas prices in europe
2. post game alcohol
3. parking

btw, does anyone know how old you have to be to rent a car in Germany?

[roadkit]

I would guess the top three reasons people dont want to rent are...
1. gas prices in europe
2. post game alcohol
3. parking

btw, does anyone know how old you have to be to rent a car in Germany?

I think the minimum age is 25 years old, and that's pretty typical in most countries.

[Palermo10]

When I looked at Orbitz it asked if I was either 21-24, or 25. I could rent at 21-24, I dont know if it was more expensive or not.

[NBlue]

First, as to the rail passes -- I am getting the twin Germany only rail pass which looks to be the way to go for myself and my brother-in-law. Its only $135.00 (per person) for 4 days of travel ANYWHERE in GERMANY plus $18 per person per day extra -- the only catch is you have to travel together.
We are getting 6 days for a grand total of $342 ($171 per person) -- can't beat the deal as an adult.
http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/passes/german_rail_twin_pass.htm

For youth (under 26) there is an even better deal if you are not traveling with another person necessarily:
http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/passes/german_rail_youth_pass.htm

$142 for 4 days plus only $13 for any extra days.

Although we are going to take a train to Amsterdam after the first match -- it actually works out MUCH cheaper to just pay for this trip seperately than to buy a multi-country pass.

Good Luck!

[doogiemo]

I would guess the top three reasons people dont want to rent are...
1. gas prices in europe
2. post game alcohol
3. parking

btw, does anyone know how old you have to be to rent a car in Germany?

I'm renting thru Thrifty in Frankfurt. $620 for 23 days (taxes included). Regarding the post game alcohol, well... we'll get lit that night, try to find a place where to crash (without driving) and if we can't find anything then we'll just crash in the car. And next day, tour the country!
Regarding the gas... I'm Air Force, so just have to pop into one of the many bases/posts and refill. Looks like it's $2.50 on base/post for gas. (so is my friend telling me!) If I have to shell out $ for gas, so be it. The WC only happens once every 4 yrs!!

You can rent thru thrifty if you are 21, but have to pay an additional 5.90 Euros a day. Not sure about other places, but I got the best rates thru them even wihtout a discount cupon. :D

[Goalkeeps7]

May I also remind you that a "youth" eurorail pass is something like 25 years and under. I looked it up a while ago(don't have time to now, so check me...) and thats what it said. Certainly a great thing being a young 20-something.


I, shall be going for the eurorail pass. It's everything(right?)

[dirk diggler]

The 2006 edition of Rick Steves' rail pass guide has just been released.
The pdf document can be downloaded via this link:
http://www.ricksteves.com/rail06/pdfs/06RailGuide.pdf

In regards to the above discussion, there is no "law" that say you have to use just trains, or just use rental cars. Depending on your intinerary, you can mix it up. In fact there are rail/rental car combo passes which are described in the Rick Steves' guide.

[nowherenova]

I've driven on the autobahn multiple times and it IS awesome, but traffic is a considerable problem in Germany. I rented a car in Berlin last June and drove for a couple of weeks to many places including Hamburg, Munich, Nurnberg, and Frankfurt. Obviously, these are all host cities for the WC this June. The traffic and parking WILL be a problem.

I am buying a train pass for sure this time. The trains will also be crowded, but they are a lot more fun a peak times. (I took a nightrain once from Oktoberfest/Munich to Vienna and wow!)

Pick another trip to drive. One cannot go as fast as they want sitting in a jam. You can do that at home.

Plus you don't even need to think about drinking and driving over there.

Don't forget you'll still have to pay a small fee with train passes for reservations.

It's going to be unreal.

[T. Donovan]

It would be nice to have a blend of opinion between the "German Rail Info" thread and this one.

In particular, what do you all think about the e-54/e-74/e-90 matchday one way specials, and the e-349 (second class)/e-549 (first class) Germany rail passes which are good for unlimited travel during the tournament?

Also, the strong advice from the "German Rail Info" thread is to go with first class tickets. But, even with first class, you need to make separate train reservations in advance for each train to be sure to get a seat.

How and when these reservations can be made is still a mystery to me since we don't (I think) have a train schedule that applies to the tournament.

A lot of my MN friends want to get an apartment in Frankfurt and, likely, train to and from the match cities on match day. So, a major issue to me is when are trains leaving to go back to Frankfurt (or anywhere else) on those nights? I, for one, don't plan on just walking the city till 6:00 am.

For instance, I left the Ireland v Spain shoot-out while it was still going on to make my train in S. Korea. That's not something I would do for a USA match.

It seems to me that you need to know train schedules before you decide on an apartment based approach vs cheap hotels in Dusseldorf/Koln, Nuremburg/Munich and whereever for the night before and night of the USA matches.

But, then, time passes and if you wait until the train schedules are known, the apartments and hotels are gone.

[The Magpie]

I plan on getting a German Rail Pass for unlimited travel over a certain number of days, which is actually a great deal if you get a Twin Pass. I plan on using it to get to all the first round venues, as well as a number of other cities on non-match days to check out the country.

It's cheaper than you think. Check out http://www.bahn.de, and look up the timetables between cities.

Cheers,

Evan

[dfb547490]

I'll be getting a youth 2nd class pass good for 6-7 days of travel within the month. Won't be using it for the Czech game since I'll be staying in Dusseldorf and it's close enough that I can just use local rail (same with Dortmund if I get Germany-Poland tickets).

[doogiemo]

The traffic and parking WILL be a problem.


I got a solution for that... get there early! I don't plan on arriving 2hrs b4 the match... it would be insane by then! :)

[Galaxian]

I plan on getting a youth pass ( for me ) and then an adult for my dad , with about three extra days . Is there a limit to the number of passes they can sell? or if they can run out?

[MinnesotaScouser]

It would be nice to have a blend of opinion between the "German Rail Info" thread and this one.

In particular, what do you all think about the e-54/e-74/e-90 matchday one way specials, and the e-349 (second class)/e-549 (first class) Germany rail passes which are good for unlimited travel during the tournament?

Also, the strong advice from the "German Rail Info" thread is to go with first class tickets. But, even with first class, you need to make separate train reservations in advance for each train to be sure to get a seat.

How and when these reservations can be made is still a mystery to me since we don't (I think) have a train schedule that applies to the tournament.

A lot of my MN friends want to get an apartment in Frankfurt and, likely, train to and from the match cities on match day. So, a major issue to me is when are trains leaving to go back to Frankfurt (or anywhere else) on those nights? I, for one, don't plan on just walking the city till 6:00 am.

For instance, I left the Ireland v Spain shoot-out while it was still going on to make my train in S. Korea. That's not something I would do for a USA match.

It seems to me that you need to know train schedules before you decide on an apartment based approach vs cheap hotels in Dusseldorf/Koln, Nuremburg/Munich and whereever for the night before and night of the USA matches.

But, then, time passes and if you wait until the train schedules are known, the apartments and hotels are gone.Tom, I'm going on raileurope.com and am about to buy the 10 day 2nd class German Rail Pass for $324. You can check out www.bahn.de. You can make reservations for a seat on a specific train for like 3 Euros up to 3 months in advance.