Is Eurail Pass Worth It: All You Need to Know to Get Value

To Eurail Pass or not? Is it worth the $200+ USD? Will it save you money on your trip? Everyone considering getting the Eurail Pass always asks themselves if it is worth it, and I wish the answer were less complicated. The truth is, it depends on your trip and your preferences. Let’s dive deeper into determining how to determine if it’s right for you.

Table of Contents

What is a Eurail Pass?

The Eurail Pass is a mobile train pass that lets you travel across Europe or through a European country by train flexibly over a set number of days with many European train companies such as Eurostar, Trenitalia, and more. With a Eurail Pass, you can travel to over 30 European countries by train whenever you want. You can purchase a pass up to 11 months in advance.

The Eurail Pass is aimed at foreigners traveling throughout Europe. As a result, only non-European residents can buy and travel with a Eurail Pass. European residents traveling across Europe can buy an Interrail Pass.

How Does the Eurail Pass Work?

You’re ready to take the train once you’ve purchased a rail pass! However, while most trains in Europe are free to ride with your Eurail Pass, some train companies ask you to pay an additional seat reservation fee. You will know if you must pay a reservation fee when planning your train routes. Reservations are mandatory for most high-speed and night trains in Europe and are NOT covered by the Eurail Pass.

When you purchase your Eurail Pass, you’ll have a certain number of travel days by train. The less number of travel days purchased, the cheaper the pass is. A travel day is a 24-hour period when you can train travel with your pass. A travel day lasts from 12:00 AM (midnight) to 11:59 PM CET on the same calendar day. You can access the train networks where your Eurail Pass is valid on each travel day.

What are the Types of Eurail Passes?

There are two types of Eurail Passes: global and country pass. Depending on your travel plans, there are two passes to consider.

Global pass

The Eurail Global Pass is a train pass allowing multiple European country train travel covering 33 European countries. This is the best choice if you want to spend your vacation across Europe. You can choose between a Continuous or Flexi pass, where you can travel for X amount of days back to back or X amount of days spread out within a period.

Country pass

The Eurail One Country Pass is a train pass covering one out of 29 European countries of your choice. This is the best choice if you want to spend your vacation experiencing 1 European country.

What countries are included in a Eurail Pass?

As mentioned, 29 countries are covered by the Country Pass, and the Global Pass covers 33.

Covered by both: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey.

Global Pass only: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Scotland, and Switzerland.

Country Pass only: Greek Islands.

Here is a Eurail Pass map showing all the countries.

Eurail Pass Map for Global Pass — From Eurail

How Much are Eurail Passes?

Eurail Passes vary in price depending on a combination of factors: age, number of trips, and length of stay. Passes can cost anywhere from $59 USD to $803 USD. The Country Pass is cheaper than the Global Pass, which is more expensive because you can travel between countries.

How to Figure Out if the Eurail Pass is Good for You

You should consider these important factors before purchasing a Eurail pass:

Budget
Flexibility
Country Itinerary

What is your Budget?

If you are looking to budget or are on a budget, the Eurail Pass may not be best for you. There are cheaper ways to travel in and between countries via bus, ranging from 9-30 EUR per ticket, depending on where you are going.

The Eurail Pass is not extreme budget-friendly, as it can be an average of 300 EUR for a Global Pass and 100 EUR for a Country Pass—not including any seat reservation fees you might have to pay.

Do you want Flexibility?

If you want flexibility, then the Eurail Passes may be great for you. The advantage of the Eurail Pass is that you can access a vast network of European railway companies, meaning hopping from place to place is convenient. You aren’t limited to a railway company or train ticket booking, and you can easily reserve a seat through the Eurail app.

Where are you Going?

Before getting a pass, determine what countries you want to visit. The Eurail Pass may not save you much money, depending on the country you are visiting.

The train railway companies from popular European countries will charge a separate seat reservation fee for their trains, ranging from 15 EUR upwards. For example, the fee for going to Paris to London is $30 USD. The Paris to London train is especially unique, as it travels underwater, and I break down the specifics here.

Additionally, if you travel to more popular countries like France, Italy, Spain, or Greece, you will pay more for your train tickets, so it might be best to buy stand-alone tickets. You can see which countries are more likely to have seat reservation fees here.

Let’s do the Math!

Ultimately, to decide whether to get the Eurail Pass, the most definite way to do that is to calculate it all manually. This only works if you know your route, though. If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll have to make an educated guess.

For example, if you know you want to go to Paris, London, and Geneva on your trip, you can input the dates and times you are traveling on the Europe rail reservation tool and calculate whether buying tickets without the pass is more cost-effective.

What I Spent

Here’s how much I saved on my trip to Europe in December 2022.

Itinerary:

Paris ←→ London
Paris ←→ Luxembourg
Paris ←→ Brussels
Paris → Geneva
Geneva → Lyon
Lyon → Paris

Route	Price (w/ Pass)	Normal Price
Eurail Youth Global Flexi 5-Day Pass 2nd Class	$212	N/A
Paris ←→ London	$60	$162
Paris ←→ Luxembourg	$10	$92
Paris ←→ Brussels	$50	$54
Paris → Geneva	$27	$43.50
Geneva → Lyon	$0	$27
Lyon → Paris	$20	$38.80
Booking Fees	$14	$50.70
Total	$399	$468
Total Saved	$69

The Eurail Pass helped me save a little money on my trip in 2022! To me, the pass was worth purchasing because not only did it save me some money, but it allowed me flexibility in my travels. I really valued the flexibility as I traveled to and from many countries, making my experience easy. But as you can see, the pass really shined in my Paris to London and Paris to Luxembourg trip, as the seat reservation fees were much less than the regular prices.

Eurail Pass Tips

Here are some tips that will help make your Eurail Pass experience smoother:

Be aware of time zones for travel day: Some European countries do not observe CET, so travel day times may differ from where you departed. It’s also a good habit to check time differences to know when you will get to your destination, especially when it’s late at night.
Overnight trains: From Eurail: “When traveling on a night train that leaves on one day and arrives the next, without changing trains after midnight, you only have to spend 1 travel day: the day of departure. If you change trains after midnight, you must spend 2 travel days.”
Don’t get caught by seat reservation prices: As previously mentioned, more popular European country railway companies will charge seat reservation fees on top of the Eurail Pass fee. Keep this in mind when you are deciding to buy single tickets or the pass!
Age gets you discounts sometimes: If you are under 26 or over 60, you’ll get a discounted pass! Children 4-11 ride free.

Is Eurail Pass worth it?

I wish I had a clear answer for you, but the truth is, it depends! Depending on which countries you are visiting, what you value in your travel experience, and based on the math you do, the Eurail Pass could be worth it for you! The Eurail Pass was worth it for my travels because the flexibility and value made sense to me. Hopefully, this helps you determine if the Eurail Pass is worth it! Happy travels!