Rail Terms and Conditions

Rail Terms & Conditions

	Refunds
	Seating
	Payment
	Lost Tickets and Passes

	Advance Booking
	Responsibility and Liability
	General Terms and Conditions for Rail Passes, Flexipasses and Combination Passes
	Rail Protection Plan

Rail Europe Group (REG) reserves the right to change prices without notice whether such changes are related or not to alterations in rates of exchange.

Refunds:

Applications for refunds must be submitted by the client to the office where the pass, ticket or reservation was purchased. Expired tickets/passes are non refundable. No refund can be made unless the pass or ticket can be produced. No refund will be made in Europe for tickets/passes issued by REG. No refund can be given on tickets/pass purchased in Europe. Passes, tickets or reservations must not be removed from their ticket cover and must bear no evidence of having been tampered with in any way. Refund amounts are posted to the original form of payment.

Eurail Global passes, Eurail Select Passes, Eurail Regional and National Passes are refundable only if totally unused and unvalidated and received within one year from the issue date. Six months for the following passes: Austria, Scan and BritRail pass. Please note that the Czech Flexipass and Prague Excursion pass are refundable up to seven months from the date of issue. All refunds are subject to minimum 15% cancellation fee.Rail 'N Drive passes are not refundable if either the rail or car portion has been used. Saverpasses, Twin passes and Party Passes are not refundable if partially used. Validated and partially used passes are non refundable.

Premier trains tickets are refundable based on the "after sales" rules of the type of ticket purchased (click on "details" of the products at the time of booking, also printed on the ticket). Refunds, when applicable, are possible only if the ticket is received in our office within the time frame allowed for a refund. Cancellation fee varies from 0 to 100%

BritRail Point-to-Point Tickets are refundable only if totally unused and unvalidated and must be received by the issuing office within 6 months from the date of issue. 15% cancellation fee applies. Roundtrip tickets used one way are not refundable.

Totally unused point-to-point tickets received by the issuing office prior to the first date of validity are refundable. Tickets received after the first day of validity are refundable if canceled and stamped "not-used" by a railway official, at the station of departure. These tickets are refundable up to six months from the last day of validity. All refunds are subject to a 15% cancellation fee. Tickets submitted after the first day of validity, which have not been cancelled, are not refundable.

Sleepers and Couchettes: For cancellations in North America, the unused ticket must be received by Rail Europe at least 24 hours before the train departure date. If clients are in Europe, ticket must be stamped cancelled by a railway official at the station of departure at least 24 hours before the train departure date. 15% cancellation fee applies. If space not cancelled and ticket received after the travel date, no refund is allowed.

Non-refundable Products: Paris Visite, Paris Museums, Great British Heritage Pass, London Travel Card, Fly-Rail Baggage, Original London Sightseeing Tour, Rail Protection Plan, Seat Reservations.

Where no other time frame for refund is specified in this website, refund requests for tickets, passes, tours & packages must be received by rail Europe within six months of the issue date. Once tour/package is confirmed a refund is not allowed. Special refund conditions apply to Swiss packages - please check at the time of booking.

Trip cancellation insurance is highly recommended.

Seating:

Most trains offer only nonsmoking accommodations, but some trains offer smoking and non-smoking.

Payment:

American Express, Diners Club, Discover, Visa or MasterCard are accepted.

Lost Tickets and Passes:

REG is not responsible for passes, tickets or vouchers which are lost, stolen, mutilated or destroyed. Refunds cannot be authorized in such cases. To protect yourself against such losses please refer to our Rail Protection Plan.

Advance Booking:

Please apply for your passes and other tickets at least 7 business days prior to your departure from North America. REG will always try to help if less notice is given, but REG is not responsible for delays in delivery service or otherwise. If a product is ordered at short notice, REG will charge an additional fee for overnight delivery service. When ordering, please include your date of departure from North America.

Responsibility/ Liability:

REG acts only as a booking agent. REG has no control over, and is not responsible for, any of the tours, passes, attractions, hotels and other travel accommodations listed in this site. All bookings are accepted and all tickets, passes, and vouchers are issued on the express condition that, REG is not responsible or liable for any loss (consequential or otherwise); damage (including but not limited to loss of, or damage to passengers' clothes, baggage, or other property whatsoever); death, injury, delay, inconvenience or irregularity caused by, or arising out of, or in connection with, any defect in any vehicle or other, air, land or sea conveyance used, rented or traveled in; or through the negligence, willful misconduct, strikes or other acts, defaults of omissions of any carrier, car rental company, hotel, restaurant or any other provider of goods or services.

Every booking is accepted subject to the conditions, tariffs and regulations imposed by the air, rail, shipping, bus, car rental, car insurance, hotel or other companies, firms or persons concerned.

REG reserves the right to alter, cancel or substitute any component of a package.

All items of a personal nature not specifically mentioned such as phone calls, tips, taxis, etc. are the responsibility of each passenger.

General Terms and Conditions

NOTE: The following terms and conditions apply to all Rail passes, Combination passes that include rail and car. Carefully reading these terms and conditions is recommended for all Combination passes.

1. Travelers are responsible for ensuring that they have all necessary visas and appropriate travel documents prior to their departure from North America.

2. Certain trains may transit through a country not covered by the pass. In that case an additional ticket must be purchased.

To Purchase:

Passes cannot be issued to residents of the countries the pass is valid in. Residents of the Russian Federation, Turkey, Morocco, Algeria or Tunisia are not eligible to purchase Eurail Global passes, Eurail National and Regional passes and the Czech pass. Residents of United Kingdom are not eligible to purchase BritRail Passes or Eurail Passes.

How to Validate and Use Your Pass:

Passes are issued open dated and must be validated within six months from the date of issue and prior to the first day of use. To validate the rail pass, present the rail pass along with your passport to the Railways official at the station of departure. At this time, the first and the last day of validity of the pass as well as the passport number is entered and the passenger must sign the pass. Under no circumstances is the pass holder allowed to validate his or her own pass. In the case of a Flexipass, the passenger must enter the date of travel each day before he/she boards the first train of the day. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in the payment of a fine and the cost of a full fare ticket. Also, if there is any indication that a railpass has been tampered with, forged and or/used by anyone other than the passholder, or used beyond its validity, the railway Official are authorized to confiscate the pass and require the payment of the full fare plus a fine.It is compulsory to present passports to railway officials on request.

In most cases validity runs from midnight to midnight for the period shown on the pass. All services, rail, rental car, air travel and travel bonuses must he be used within the validity of the accompanying rail pass. One-month period is based from a date in one calendar month to the corresponding date in the following month (minus one day). Depending on the calendar month the pass is validated, the validity period may therefore consist of 28, 30 or 31 days.

Passes are not valid on hotel trains, private or specialty trains unless otherwise stated.

Passes are available in first and second class unless stated otherwise. Passengers holding first class passes are also permitted to travel in standard/ second class however a refund of the fare difference is not applicable. Passengers holding standard/second class passes are permitted to travel in first class only if they pay the difference between the two fares as applicable locally. For BritRail passes: Some trains in Great Britain do not have 1st class accommodations. The price of the 1st class Passes have been adjusted to reflect this.

Refunds are limited to completely unused undated, unvalidated passes, ticket and inclusive packages, hotel and car vouchers and will be granted only where permitted under the terms and conditions set forth below or elsewhere in this site. Passes, tickets and vouchers must be returned for refunds. Companion and Saverpasses, BritRail discounted and Eurail and Eurail Select Pass, Rail 'n Drive passes together are considered one document and must be submitted together. No refunds will be granted on partially used passes or tickets, or on unused parts of inclusive packages; documents must bear no evidence of having been tampered with in any way.

7pm Rule:

When traveling on a direct overnight train (no change of train) departing after 7pm, the next day's date must be entered. In such cases, travel from 7pm and midnight of the following day is included and considered as one day of travel. If the overnight trip requires a train change before midnight, traveler will use 2 travel days.

Reservations for Seats, Sleepers and Couchettes:

Reservations are mandatory on certain day trains and on all night trains. Reservations are based on availability at the time of confirmation. Reservation fees are not included in the pass price and must be purchased separately. On certain high speed trains passengers are required to purchase a pass holder ticket, which includes the cost of the reservation.

Additional Charges:

Seats, sleepers and couchettes, pass holder tickets for travel on trains such as Eurostar, Italian Day trains, AVE, Talgo, Elipsos, Thalys, Cisalpino, etc. luggage checking, and port taxes, are all subject to additional charges which are not covered by the passes. These, including meals and refreshments, are all to be paid separately. Luggage checking, port taxes, meals and refreshments as well as seat reservations, sleepers and couchettes reserved locally must be paid abroad in local currency.

Governing Rules:

All transportation covered by those passes where use is intended for more than one country is subject to the Uniform Rules concerning the Contract for International Carriage of Passengers and Luggage by Rail (CIV). National and/or single-country passes are subject to rules and regulations of their specific countries. Neither the British nor European railroads nor REG assume any responsibility for damages resulting from a strike.

Rail Protection Plan:

If your pass is lost or stolen while traveling in Europe, the rail networks will not cover you-but we will. Our plan will compensate you for the unused portion of your lost/stolen rail pass/ticket or the value of the replacement rail pass/tickets, whichever is lower. The plan ranges from $10 to $17 depending on the pass. The exact amount is shown in each specific pass price list. The plan must be purchased at the same time you purchase your rail pass/tickets. To add the Protection Plan to your pass/ticket, you may do so when adding a pass/ticket to your Shopping Cart.

Rail Europe's Rail Protection Plan is available with all rail passes/tickets issued through Rail Europe including: Eurail Global Passes, Eurail Select Pass, National, Regional, Rail 'n Drive and BritRail Passes. Tourpasses are not covered under the Rail Protection Plan.

Under the Rail Protection Plan, if your pass is lost or stolen while traveling in Europe, upon your return to North America you will be reimbursed for the unused portion of their original Rail Pass/ticket or the value of the replacement rail pass/ticket(s), whichever is lower. Please read the actual description of coverage below for this program as well as the instructions for filing a claim.

The Rail Protection Plan fee is not refundable.

Description of Coverage:

Agreements: The provider of this program will by payment, reimburse the pass/ticket holder(s) named on the Rail Pass/ticket issued by Rail Europe for theft or accidental loss of Rail Pass/ticket, subject to Exclusions, Conditions and Limitations contained below.

Loss: Loss means the theft or accidental loss of the Rail Pass while traveling in Europe.

Effective period: Effective Period means the period from 12:01 am on the date of issue of the Pass by Rail Europe to 11:59 PM on the last day the Rail Pass is valid.

Program Agreements apply only to loss sustained during the effective period of this form.

Exclusions: This program does not apply to any loss caused by:

(a)	Delay or detention or confiscation by Customs Officers or Officials or Police or other Security Officers.
(b)	Rail Pass not in your actual possession at the time of loss.
(c)	War, invasion, act of foreign enemy, hostilities (whether war be declared or not), civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection or military or usurped power.
(d)	Any dishonest, fraudulent or criminal act by the Passholder.
(e)	Damage due to wear and tear, gradual deterioration, vermin or inherent vice.

Limits of liability: The limit of the Program Providers Liability shall be the value of the unused portion of the pass/ticket (s) purchased through REG or the value of the replacement pass/ticket (s), whichever is lower.

The loss date shall be the date on which the pass holder first became aware of the loss of the Rail Pass /ticket or the date 24 hours prior to the reporting of the loss to the police, whichever is later.

Conditions:

(a)

Rail Protection program is strictly limited to the loss or theft occurring in Europe.

(b)

The pass holder must file a police report within 24 hours of the loss.

(c)

The pass holder must purchase either a replacement railpass or train tickets. In the case of loss/theft of premier train/train tickets, the ticket holder must purchase ticket/s for the same city pairs. (Air and bus tickets do not apply.)

(d)

Notice of any claim must be given to Rail Europe within 30 days of your return from Europe. Submit a written report indicating how the documents were lost/stolen, including information pertaining to the pass/ticket holder's name, the date of validation, a copy of the police report and your airline tickets (US/CAN-Europe). Most importantly the claim must include the original replacement pass/ train ticket(s) to validate the claim.

(e)

If any claims made under this program are covered by any other valid and collectable insurance or indemnity, Rail Europe will only pay the difference between the amount paid under the other policy and the total amount which would otherwise be payable under this program.

(f)

No change to this program will be valid unless in writing and signed by Rail Europe.

(g)

No legal action may be brought to recover on this program within 60 days after a claim has been submitted as required herein, and no such legal action may be brought after one year from the time that a claim is required to be filed.

(h)

Any provision of this program that is in conflict with applicable law is hereby amended to conform to minimum requirements of such law.

To file a claim: Submit a written account of events and supporting documentation to Rail Europe Group, Customer Relations Department, Westchester One, 44 South Broadway, White Plains, NY 10601. All claims must be accompanied by the appropriate documentation listed in the conditions above. For information call (800) 848-7245 select option 4 followed by 2.

This program is administered by Rail Europe Group and can be cancelled at anytime. Passes issued prior to cancellation date will still be covered by the program.

Note: All prices in this guide are correct at time of printing. Rail Europe Group (REG) reserves the right to change prices without notice whether such changes are related or not to alterations in rates of exchange.