A TRAVEL expert who has travelled thousands of miles around Europe by train has revealed his top tips on how to buy the cheapest tickets.
The boss of Rail Europe Bjorn Bender knows all about trains and in 2023 alone travelled more than 46,000 miles around the continent.
AlamyA TGV speeds through the countryside on the line between Paris and the south-east of France[/caption]
Bender though sees train travel “not about going from A to B” but more as a “second home”.
He added: “It’s my office, where I can really do my work.”
Demand for train travel has risen since the Covid pandemic with people wanting to stay closer to home and also as a way to mitigated the negative environmental impact of air travel.
Bender told Euronews: “Mobility demand is huge and is increasing globally.
“The railway industry is growing – throughout Europe and cross-border services, it’s up perhaps 20 per cent.”
He added that 2023 was “an amazing year” for his company, with year-on-year sales up by 66 per cent, compared to 2022 and growth up around 75-80 per cent compared to 2019.
Here are his top tips and hacks on how to make the best savings when booking train travel.
Don’t book train tickets directly
First off, Bender recommends not to book your tickets directly with the rail provider, comparing the experience with booking flights.
He said: “Usually you don’t book directly on an airline website – at least I wouldn’t do it. I compare prices on Skyscanner or Kayak for example.”
Instead, use comparison sites as they give the travellers the most options as well as the ability to choose between different routes and fares.
Bender said: “When I want to travel from Frankfurt to New York, I don’t care if I sit in Delta, United or Lufthansa at the end of the day.”
Book tickets seven to 12 weeks in advance
Everyone may know that when it comes to travel, booking earlier is cheaper but as with air travel there is often a period when train tickets are at their lowest.
Bender said: “I would say booking between seven to 12 weeks in advance is quite a good range.
“In the past, you only had a very limited number of saver fares on high speed trains. Now I can book a saver fare 30 minutes prior to departure for every carrier.”
However it is best to remember saving money on tickets is dependent on when and where you want to travel.
If you have to, say, travel on a Monday morning, don’t be surprised if this isn’t a particularly cheap ticket.
Include stops on your route
Nonstop services will be undoubtedly faster and so more expensive.
But if you’re able to change trains once then you’ll probably get a cheaper fare.
Bender said: “If you’re willing to change trains once, this will increase the chance of finding a better price.”
You might need to do a bit of research to find the best times so you’re not hanging around too long for a connection but the savings can easily make it worth it.
Join loyalty schemes and buy passes and rail cards
Bender said: “Loyalty programmes, particularly for cross-border services, increase the chance of getting better fares.”
The same also applies for rail passes and rail cards.
He said: “Travelling on passes when you go with your family on a summer vacation gives you the chance to travel almost throughout Europe – for a couple of hundred euros for four weeks.”
He added he believed the availability and usefulness of rail cards and passes is still underappreciated in Europe.
Bender added: “There are lots of opportunities, but the education, even for Europeans, is not that high yet.
“It’s a lot on us, on mutual providers, to spread all the information and really be a companion for travellers, from inspiration until after sales.”
AlamyA Bernina Express train by Lake Bianco in Switzerland[/caption]“}]]