Dunning1874 Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 Anyone with experience of German trains know if bookings are absolutely essential for the ICE trains, ie you are genuinely likely to be turned away and not allowed on without a seat booked when it's busy? Had one booked from Duisburg to Munich for 0655 on Friday arriving 1210 (although was going to be getting on at Koln instead now due to accommodation plans changing) but have had an email from Deutsche Bahn and it appears to be cancelled, with their suggested alternative being an hour earlier but I'd rather go later. No issue with the tickets themselves as we have interrail passes but it doesn't seem to let us reserve a seat when selecting alternatives without paying the reservation fee again, which okay isn't much but between 6 of us I resent giving them another €30 because they've cancelled our train at 2 days notice! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Belcher Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 I had tickets for all three games but having to curtail and come home pre Hungary game in Stuttgart My hotel in Stuttgart (Mercure) is non-refundable. Does anyone know of any groups where people may still be looking for accommodation in the city? Munich tomorrow via London and Frankfurt, absolutely buzzing! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJF Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 6 minutes ago, Dunning1874 said: Anyone with experience of German trains know if bookings are absolutely essential for the ICE trains, ie you are genuinely likely to be turned away and not allowed on without a seat booked when it's busy? Had one booked from Duisburg to Munich for 0655 on Friday arriving 1210 (although was going to be getting on at Koln instead now due to accommodation plans changing) but have had an email from Deutsche Bahn and it appears to be cancelled, with their suggested alternative being an hour earlier but I'd rather go later. No issue with the tickets themselves as we have interrail passes but it doesn't seem to let us reserve a seat when selecting alternatives without paying the reservation fee again, which okay isn't much but between 6 of us I resent giving them another €30 because they've cancelled our train at 2 days notice! I’m not sure if you will know, but my friend and I have taken advantage of the Deutschland ticket for rail travel. I understand this doesn’t include ICE trains, but does include local and regional ones. So, we are planning on using the regional trains to travel about the country a bit. Do you know if there will be the necessity to pre-book these journeys like the ICE trains you mention? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunning1874 Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 Just now, AJF said: I’m not sure if you will know, but my friend and I have taken advantage of the Deutschland ticket for rail travel. I understand this doesn’t include ICE trains, but does include local and regional ones. So, we are planning on using the regional trains to travel about the country a bit. Do you know if there will be the necessity to pre-book these journeys like the ICE trains you mention? Regional trains are definitely okay to turn up without bookings, it's just the ICE ones I'm not sure about. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pie Of The Month Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 (edited) 17 minutes ago, Dunning1874 said: Anyone with experience of German trains know if bookings are absolutely essential for the ICE trains, ie you are genuinely likely to be turned away and not allowed on without a seat booked when it's busy? Had one booked from Duisburg to Munich for 0655 on Friday arriving 1210 (although was going to be getting on at Koln instead now due to accommodation plans changing) but have had an email from Deutsche Bahn and it appears to be cancelled, with their suggested alternative being an hour earlier but I'd rather go later. No issue with the tickets themselves as we have interrail passes but it doesn't seem to let us reserve a seat when selecting alternatives without paying the reservation fee again, which okay isn't much but between 6 of us I resent giving them another €30 because they've cancelled our train at 2 days notice! You'll be fine to get on without a reservation by showing your tickets/booking for the cancelled train. If you have time go into the DB ticket office and explain the situation and get them to refund you the seat reservation for your cancelled train or move it to the other train if you want to make sure you've got guaranteed seats. A lot of ICE trains have a section of seats for people who have had their train cancelled or missed connections due to delays just in case all other seats are reserved but I would think if your train has been cancelled a lot of other people will be in the same boat. Worst case scenario on the later train you might need to move a couple of times if people claim their reserved seats. If you want to be really German about it then demand to see their reservation before you agree to move. Edited June 12 by Pie Of The Month 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunning1874 Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 10 minutes ago, Pie Of The Month said: You'll be fine to get on without a reservation by showing your tickets for the cancelled train. If you have time go into the DB ticket office and explain the situation and get them to refund you the seat reservation for your cancelled train or move it to the other train if you want to make sure you've got guaranteed seats. A lot of ICE trains have a section of seats for people who have had their train cancelled or missed connections due to delays just in case all other seats are reserved but I would think if your train has been cancelled a lot of other people will be in the same boat. Worst case scenario on the later train you might need to move a couple of times if people claim their reserved seats. If you want to be really German about it then demand to see their reservation before you agree to move. Magic, thanks very much. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alert Mongoose Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 Those prices are expwnsive but not excessively so imo. If I were a non-drinker I would probably be miffed at the price of the alternatives though. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 36 minutes ago, Bob Belcher said: I had tickets for all three games but having to curtail and come home pre Hungary game in Stuttgart My hotel in Stuttgart (Mercure) is non-refundable. Does anyone know of any groups where people may still be looking for accommodation in the city? Munich tomorrow via London and Frankfurt, absolutely buzzing! I had a non refundable room in Munich and I sent them a message saying as the hotel was full they'd have no problem reselling it and would they be willing to refund it. No problem, and they probably got a lot more than I paid. I'm not sure what the score would be for someone using your booking, you nearly always need to show ID. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finlay1021 Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 If anyone is still looking to get across cheap we’ve just booked flights from Edinburgh to Nuremberg (1 hour train from Munich) flying tonight, 1 night at half decent hotel in Nuremberg, 2 nights at hotel in Munich and fly home Saturday Nuremberg to Edinburgh. £400 each 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Holiday Song Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 1 hour ago, Dunning1874 said: Anyone with experience of German trains know if bookings are absolutely essential for the ICE trains, ie you are genuinely likely to be turned away and not allowed on without a seat booked when it's busy? Had one booked from Duisburg to Munich for 0655 on Friday arriving 1210 (although was going to be getting on at Koln instead now due to accommodation plans changing) but have had an email from Deutsche Bahn and it appears to be cancelled, with their suggested alternative being an hour earlier but I'd rather go later. No issue with the tickets themselves as we have interrail passes but it doesn't seem to let us reserve a seat when selecting alternatives without paying the reservation fee again, which okay isn't much but between 6 of us I resent giving them another €30 because they've cancelled our train at 2 days notice! I've found a lot of Pie Of The Month's information really useful, so I'm not trying to dispute what he says. What I would say though is I've been on ICE trains where you can get on but not get a seat so have to stand in the aisles. If I look at the DB site, one random Koln to Munich train already seems on the seat maps to have limited seats to book (although appreciate maybe not all these are already prebooked, but are kept aside as a free for all). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smurph Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 Booked this all two weeks. Flying from Edinburgh to Berlin tomorrow then a train down to Nuremberg where I’m based. Trains books to the three game cities and can RE it back, and staying just outside of Cologne for a few nights too. Feels quite surreal! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aufc Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 Is there flooding on the trains between Frankfurt and Munich? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Todd_is_God Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 2 hours ago, Dunning1874 said: Anyone with experience of German trains know if bookings are absolutely essential for the ICE trains, ie you are genuinely likely to be turned away and not allowed on without a seat booked when it's busy? Had one booked from Duisburg to Munich for 0655 on Friday arriving 1210 (although was going to be getting on at Koln instead now due to accommodation plans changing) but have had an email from Deutsche Bahn and it appears to be cancelled, with their suggested alternative being an hour earlier but I'd rather go later. No issue with the tickets themselves as we have interrail passes but it doesn't seem to let us reserve a seat when selecting alternatives without paying the reservation fee again, which okay isn't much but between 6 of us I resent giving them another €30 because they've cancelled our train at 2 days notice! I don't think you are suggesting this but for others that may be thinking about it J certainly wouldn't be boarding a train in Germany without having first bought a ticket. They aren't soft touches like here and will just hit you with a penalty fare. Nor would I want to take a chance on a walk up ICE fare. Some of them are eye watering. RE: Seat Reservations. Make new ones if you can. You can claim back any unused reservations for cancelled / missed connections the day after the travel date. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
afca32 Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 Just finished my last half day at work, train to London leaves in a couple of hours, sleeping on a mates floor tonight and then flying to Munich tomorrow morning. 2 hours until the first of many beers. Cannot fucking wait. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunning1874 Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 16 minutes ago, Todd_is_God said: I don't think you are suggesting this but for others that may be thinking about it J certainly wouldn't be boarding a train in Germany without having first bought a ticket. They aren't soft touches like here and will just hit you with a penalty fare. Nor would I want to take a chance on a walk up ICE fare. Some of them are eye watering. RE: Seat Reservations. Make new ones if you can. You can claim back any unused reservations for cancelled / missed connections the day after the travel date. Yeah, we've all got valid interrail passes for ICE trains that we'll be activating on those days so certainly not trying to chance it without a valid ticket, no point risking the fine. Hadn't realised unused reservations could be claimed back after the fact, may do that. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itzdrk Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 (edited) 24 minutes ago, Todd_is_God said: Nor would I want to take a chance on a walk up ICE fare. Some of them are eye watering. This, I slept in for my flight from Hamburg home once and had to ICE train it to Berlin which was expensive enough without also paying for a new flight. When looking at the options this was considerably better than the others I saw about €125 etc Edited June 12 by itzdrk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigkillie Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 18 minutes ago, Dunning1874 said: Yeah, we've all got valid interrail passes for ICE trains that we'll be activating on those days so certainly not trying to chance it without a valid ticket, no point risking the fine. Hadn't realised unused reservations could be claimed back after the fact, may do that. Roughly in the same boat as you in that I have the Interrail pass but unsure whether to pay to book a seat or not. The main issue is that I'm flying into Cologne tomorrow and don't want to lose the money if the flight gets delayed or I get held up at the airport with luggage etc. For all my other trips I'll be able to much more easily plan in advance, do people think it's worth booking for these? Leaning towards yes. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Holiday Song Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 I thought you had to get a reservation for ICE trains, even with the interrail pass? That's what this says (may have been covered either way before, apologies) ICE (InterCity Express) Train | Interrail.eu 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smurph Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 (edited) If anyone needs one or multiple last minute ICE trains, totalling over €80, it’s worth getting the 25% off card for €20. edit- this is a subscription which you have to cancel but lasts for three months. There’s an option for one that if Germany win the competition, you can get a free year with it afterwards. Edited June 12 by Smurph 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted June 12 Share Posted June 12 (edited) 20 minutes ago, The Holiday Song said: I thought you had to get a reservation for ICE trains, even with the interrail pass? That's what this says (may have been covered either way before, apologies) ICE (InterCity Express) Train | Interrail.eu You're better off booking direct through DB, it's cheaper and the timetables are more up to date. Reservations are optional but are thrown in free for first class. Edited June 12 by welshbairn 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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