# whats a good price for rail travel from Salzburg to Vienna ?



## nerodog (May 30, 2008)

Hi ,  what is a reasonable price for November travel, one way for  rail travel from  Salzburg to Vienna  ??? I have one price that  is $205 per adult... is that high ??  Called a few other sites but they said they only had prices 60 days before travel..  any help appreciated.... thanks !!( tried AUto europe, no price available, RAIL EUROPE, no price yet, and   Rail pass.... looked at BAHN also but couldn t get  price on that site !!


----------



## Carolinian (May 30, 2008)

I have had Rail Europe quote me skyhigh fares that were far more than the tickets cost in Europe.  I would avoid them.  I had a fare in the Baltics where they quoted me over $200, which struck me as extremely high for that area.  I bought the same ticket at the station for less than $10.

I have taken the Vienna to Salzburg train in the past, but it was some time ago.  There isn't much difference between first and second class in coach on that route, so I would go second class.

You should not have any problem buying a ticket in Europe at the station on this route.  That is how I buy all of my train tickets on this side of the pond, except for the UK.


----------



## Carolinian (Jun 2, 2008)

You might want to check the link to the Austrian railroads site on the Links Directory (under website navigation) at www.timeshareforums.com

My most recent train ride in that part of the world was a few months ago in Switzerland, and from what I paid there, the price you quite does sound quite high.


----------



## Rmelnyk (Jun 15, 2008)

I railed from Munich to Prague, ($118.) then Prague to Budapest ($118.) and then Budapest back to Munich ($148.) plus taxes=..total $438.00 including my travel agents $35.  I tried all travel sites and even "Passenger in seat 61." and the cheapest I was able to find was $658.00.  I phoned a friend's travel agent and she had me these fares in 20 minutes.  These are date restricted, and to be used during the month or time frame I was traveling.  She had the dates overlap if I thought there would be any problem.
What a piece of mind, and a savings of over $200.00
and 2nd class was great, do not pay extra for seat assignments unless you are traveling in high season.


----------



## Carolinian (Jun 16, 2008)

Whether paying extra for first class is worth it depends on the country.  Generally, in western Europe, I have never felt I got the value for the extra cost when I bought a first class ticket, so it is always second class now for me.  Eastern Europe can be a very different kettle of fish.  In many counties, the first class compartments have 6 seats while those in second have 8 seats in the same space (western Europe in 6 seats in either), and the 2nd class cars are often packed while 1st class is nearly deserted.  Many times, I have had a first class compartment all to myself for only 20% more than what it would have cost to ride shoulder-to-shoulder with 7 other people in a jammed 2nd class compartment on the same train.  First class is a no brainer in that situation.  That said, most of these countries are now buying new equipment with open plan seating cars where 2nd class is perfectly acceptable.  Still, unless I know for certain what the equipment will be, I don't take the risk on 2nd class.

I do not EVER buy tickets from a US-based broker, as all seem to either jack up the ticket price or add extra  fees, or both. I have found that to be true even when the railroad itself has a US-based office like the Italian railroad (although the Italian railroad's own US office WAS cheaper than Raileurope).  I mostly buy my tickets at the station when I get there.  One exception is when I have a tight connection from a plane to a desired train, and am dealing with a country like Switzerland which has a website from which you can buy tickets and print them off your computer at the same price as if you bought them at the station. That way, I have my rail ticket in hand when I get off the plane. The UK, which has cheaper fares for tickets bought in advance, and also offers them over the internet for the same price, is the one place where buying tickets in advance is always the best bet.


----------

