How The Rail Pass Works

To Purchase
Purchase your pass in North America by calling 1-800-223-7226.

Additional travel days must be purchased at the same time to qualify for the special rates quoted here.

Passes can not be purchased or used by residents of a country for which the pass is valid. Residents of CIS, Turkey, Morocco, Algeria or Tunisia are not eligible to use any of the Eurailpasses or Europasses.

To Begin Travel On Your Pass
Have your pass validated on or before your first day of use. Your pass must be validated within 6 months from date of issue (3 months for Eurailpass and Europass). To validate your pass, present your passport and your pass to a railway official at the ticket window in the train station (not the conductor) who will enter the first and last date of your travel period. This must be done before boarding a train, bus, boat, plane or renting a car for the first time. Please do not write on or fill in any part of your pass before it has been validated. All services (rail, rental car, air travel and travel bonuses) must be used within the validity of the accompanying rail pass.

As You Travel On Your Pass
Before boarding the first train or ferry of each day, write the date in ink, in the appropriate box on your pass. At the time you rent a car, present your pass and 1 car voucher for each rental day.

Seat Reservations and Overnight Travel
A pass allows the boarding of a train, bus, plane, or boat, but does not guarantee a seat. Seat reservations are optional for most trains but are mandatory for all TGV, Thalys, Cisalpino, AVE, Pendolino, ETR 500 and X2000 trains and selected EuroCity and InterCity trains and for all sleepers and couchettes. Reservations are subject to availability so reserve in advance. Reservations for all seats, sleepers, couchettes and trains noted above are subject to an additional fee for pass and ticket holders. Seat reservations, sleepers and couchettes can normally be purchased from Rail Europe at the same time that you buy your pass. Use the special notes box on the Order Form to specify reservations when you book your pass. Travel on certain high-speed trains (such as the X2000 in Sweden, ETR in Italy, AVE in Spain, Thalys and Eurostar) require a supplement.

To Reserve Your Car
Reserve your first car rental at least 7 days prior to your departure for Europe by calling the appropriate car company (see below for which companies serve certain passes). Confirm drop-off conditions at time of reservation. Be sure to reserve your car in advance as they are subject to availability.

Avis rental cars are provided with the following passes: EurailDrive, Europass Drive, France Rail 'n Drive, France Fly Rail 'n Drive, Spain Rail 'n Drive and Scanrail 'n Drive. Phone numbers for Avis are: 1-800-331-1084 in the U.S., 1-800-879-2847 in Canada and 95-800-882-8471 in Mexico.

Hertz rental cars are provided with the following passes: EurailDrive and Europass Drive. Phone numbers for Hertz are: 1-800-654 3001 in the U.S., 1-800-263-0600 in Canada for English language, 1-800-263-0678 in Canada for French language, 416-620-9620 in Toronto and 91-800-700-16 in Mexico.