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• Q. I’ve already booked my rail pass, but think I’d like a different one. Can I exchange it? It’s totally unused.

  A. Unused and unvalidated rail passes can be exchanged for an alternate rail pass of equal or greater value. A 7% administration fee, any price difference, and additional shipping fees would apply. Some promotional rail passes are non-exchangeable; please read the terms and conditions for these passes for more details.

  Please send us a message through the Contact Us page to begin the exchange process. To exchange a rail pass, we must receive your original unused and unvalidated rail pass no later than 3 days prior to your departure to Europe, issue a new rail pass, and ship it to you.

  If you bought the Rail Protection Plan™ when you placed your rail pass order, you are eligible to receive the full value of your original pass as a credit and use it towards any future Rail Europe purchase within 2 years, with no fee or penalty incurred.

• Q. Can I use my rail pass on any train within its area of coverage?

  A. In general, yes, but there are some exceptions and a few rules to keep in mind.

  First, be mindful that some trains (such as high speed, scenic, and night trains) require rail pass holders to purchase reservations at an additional cost.

  For international train journeys, be sure that your rail pass covers the country of departure, country of arrival, and any countries through which your train will travel.

  Lastly, some private rail lines in certain countries don’t offer reservations for rail pass holders and don’t accept rail passes. In these cases, you can purchase a train ticket locally for the desired journey.

• Q. What food and drink options are on board?

  A. If the train you’re traveling on offers a bar-buffet car, you’re free to walk in, sit down and eat. Or as soon as the restaurant car opens, make a reservation for any time of day.
  On many long distance trains there may be an attendant with a snack cart who travels from car to car.

  Bar-buffet cars are a unique part of the train experience, where the quality of the food and wine can rival that of a gourmet restaurant. With the exception of Eurostar, special meal requests are not available. But typically, regular menu options are plentiful and usually cater to most taste buds or dietary restrictions.

  If you travel with a Premier Class ticket, food and drinks are included and served at your seat or in the bar-buffet car.

  On local trains there’s usually no catering. However, you are welcome to bring your own food and drinks on board. Please make sure to follow the local law when considering taking alcoholic drinks on board any train.

• Q. Will there be someone to help me find my reserved seat on the train?

  A. Generally speaking, train cars and seats are prominently marked. If you have any trouble finding your reserved seat, one of the conductors on the platform or onboard the train will be able to assist you.

• Q. How much luggage can I take on an overnight train?

  A. There are usually no restrictions on the amount of luggage that may be brought on an overnight train, but there is limited space in the compartment to store the luggage. A small luggage rack and any floor or bed space must be shared among all travellers occupying a sleeping compartment or couchette.

• Q. I haven't departed for Europe yet and want to exchange or refund my train ticket. How do I proceed?

  A. There are different ways you can exchange or refund a train ticket prior to your departure to Europe, but they depend in whether you booked a paper ticket or e-ticket.

  For refunds:

  If you booked a paper train ticket, the original ticket must be returned to us for the refund to be finalized. Please visit the Contact Us page for further information.

  It’s strongly suggested that you send your documents by some type of traceable mail for proof of delivery.

  If you booked an e-ticket from our website, you can usually complete the refund online via our Cancellation and Refund page. The refund will be processed immediately and no further action on your part will be required.

  For exchanges:

  Similar to the previous situation, the original paper train ticket must be returned to us for the exchange to be processed. Visit our Contact Us page to begin the exchange process for paper tickets, or the Cancellation and Refund page for e-tickets.

  When exchanging tickets, you are responsible for paying the difference in fare, as well as any applicable fees for your new train tickets. Please keep in mind that exchanges on train tickets are only permitted for the same city pair or route originally booked.

• Q. What information do I need to provide in a booking to purchase with Rail Europe?

  A. We require your name as it appears on your passport (first and last name only), gender, and (in some cases) date of birth. Please note that this same information will be necessary for all travellers in your travel party.

  Depending on the type of train ticket you are booking, we may also need a physical mailing address where we can send your travel documents. We send documents using traceable shipping methods, and the package will need to be signed for. In addition, we’ll need a valid email address so we can send you an invoice, and a phone number in case we need to contact you regarding your booking.

• Q. Can I choose a specific seat when booking a train ticket?

  A. At this time, we are unable to offer this service. Unlike airlines, most rail carriers do not offer the possibility to select your specific seat.

• Q. Do you offer student, family and/or senior discounts?

  A. Yes. Rail Europe offers a wide range of train tickets and rail passes that provide discounts to children, youths, seniors or groups of people that travel together.

  Discounted rates vary depending on the type of train ticket or rail pass you are purchasing, and are not always offered.

  We do our best to provide you with the cheapest fares for your traveling party and get you the discounts you’re eligible for. This is why it’s important to accurately indicate the composition of your traveling party when requesting fares and schedules or rail pass prices from our website. You may also have to enter the age of certain travellers, so we can determine whether they’re eligible for certain age-related discounts.

• Q. What's the difference between a rail pass and a train ticket?

  A. A rail pass and a train ticket are two completely different types of travel documents.

  A train ticket is valid for a single journey between two cities. Many tickets also include a reservation, which mean that they are valid only for a specific train, on a specific date and at a given time. To learn more about tickets, read our article: tickets explained.

  A rail pass, on the other hand, is good for travel in an entire geographical area (1 country, 2 countries or more). With it you can take as many train trips as you want within that geographical area, for as many travel days as you purchased, within a set period of time (the pass validity period).

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