Traveling in Europe is amazing, and trains are often a great way to move around the old continent. Train passes — either for within a country or for multiple countries — could be worthwhile if you want to take many trains. It’s rather expensive, but you can get a 20% discount with this deal.
Here are all the details — including an introduction to European train passes.
What is the Rail Europe sale (July 2024)?
Here are the details about the current sale:
- 20% discount
- Europe global pass (33 countries)
- Select country passes
- Select multi-country passes
- Sale ends July 18, 2024
- Travel starting September 1
- Anytime in the next 11 months
- Many passes are refundable (double check)
- If unused and unactivated
- Bookable on the Rail Europe website
- Recommended by Flytrippers
It’s obviously a good deal if you’ve already decided you want to buy a train pass. And it can be a good deal for some travelers, although it’s certainly not always the case. Like always, do the math: it might be cheaper to buy individual tickets if you’re only going to take a few trains.
For example, here are a few prices for popular passes:
- France 🇫🇷
- $265 for 3 days of travel within 1 month
- Italy 🇮🇹
- $265 for 3 days of travel within 1 month
- Spain 🇪🇸
- $308 for 3 days of travel within 1 month
- Croatia 🇭🇷
- $114 for 3 days of travel within 1 month
- Germany 🇩🇪
- $319 for 3 days of continuous travel
- Switzerland 🇨🇭
- $197 for 1 month of 50%-off discounts
- Europe 🌍
- $1082 for 1 month of travel in 33 countries
Indeed, the iconic Eurail Europe pass is a popular train pass option for Canadians since it gives you access to 40,000 destinations in 33 countries. But it’s also obviously the most expensive, though.
Below, I cover the many important details to understand about European train passes.
Is it worth buying a European train pass?
Like almost everything in the world of travel, unfortunately, there isn’t a simple black-or-white answer: it depends on your specific travel plans and preferences.
First, it depends on whether trains are even the best option for your trip.
I’ve flown for as little as $10 and for just $25 very often in Europe, so that can be more interesting — especially if you’re like all the savvy Canadian travelers who get paid to get free access to VIP airport lounges and if you’re like me and love flying. But that requires booking ahead.
If you like the freedom of visiting smaller towns and/or are traveling as a larger group, getting a rental car can be more interesting — especially if you pay with your credit card to get free damage insurance and decline the overpriced insurance offered by the agency. But that’s often pricey if you rent one-way.
If you’re really on a budget, buses are way less glamorous but are often cheaper than trains. But the savings are often minimal.
Now, if you do decide to use trains, you really need to do the math compared with individual ticket prices since the passes are quite pricey. This is especially true when you consider that many trains require a ticket even with a pass, albeit a discounted one.
If you’re going to visit 3 cities or more in a country, it usually becomes cheaper to get a train pass, but it varies by country. If you’re going to visit many many countries, the Europe pass can be worth it, but it’s the priciest.
In short, as we’ve been repeating here at Flytrippers for 7+ years, the best way to save money on a trip is to plan it well. The more planning and preparation you do, the cheaper it will be. It’s 1 of the 7 most important tips to travel for less in our free ebook.
To be clear, that doesn’t mean booking everything in advance and having no flexibility. It means at least putting in the time to do the research and knowing your options. That way, you know the cheapest way to do what you want to do, even if you let yourself the freedom to decide that once you’re on the trip itself. Because you certainly won’t do the research while on your trip.
What is Rail Europe?
Here’s what you need to know about Rail Europe:
- Leading provide of European train tickets
- In business since 1930
- 77,000+ reviews
- 200+ rail companies listed
- 5 million+ tickets sold per year
Rail Europe was initially launched to make it easier for non-Europeans to buy European train tickets. Flytrippers definitely recommends using this trusted platform if you want to buy European train passes.
What is a European train pass?
To board a train in Europe, you can either buy:
- Individual ticket: for a single ride
- Train pass: for multiple rides
Individual tickets are obviously simple; you can always buy them on specialized sites like Rail Europe or Omio (or 12Go for Asia).
Train passes aren’t as well-known. They are designed for those who plan to travel a lot, to make it more enjoyable (simpler with just 1 pass) or more affordable (cheaper than buying many tickets).
Here are a few basics of train passes:
- Give you unlimited travel
- Sometimes free
- Sometimes a small fee per ride
- Include free tickets for children
- On most passes
- Included bonuses like urban transport discounts
- On some passes
Apart from the high price, the biggest caveat with train passes is that you sometimes have to pay a small discounted fee (called a “seat reservation”) on some more popular routes. Many people don’t realize that it’s not necessarily completely free once you buy the train pass.
What’s the difference between Eurail and Interrail train passes?
First, it’s important to understand that regardless of where the pass is valid, there are 2 European train pass “brands” with similar names that many travelers often confuse.
Here’s the important distinction between Eurail and Interrail:
- Eurail is for non-EU residents like Canadians
- Interrail is for EU residents ONLY
So as a Canadian, you always need to look at Eurail only — Rail Europe offers both.
How do European train passes work?
Here are the basic options for train passes that are relatively simple:
- For a specific region
- 1 country
- A few neighboring countries
- Most of Europe (“Europe” pass)
- For a specific seat class
- 1st class
- 2nd class
You must first choose the region, which is pretty straightforward, and you choose whether you want premium or regular seating.
Here are the other options for train passes that are a bit more confusing:
- For a set start date
- You must select it when buying
- The pass is either continuous or flexible
- Continuous: valid for a set number of days consecutively
- Flexible: valid for a set number of days within a period
- Not all passes offer both options
Let’s use a concrete example with the Eurail Europe pass in 2nd class for 15 days of travel, if you want to explore a lot.
You can choose to get 15 days of travel with both options:
- Continuous
- Pass is valid for 15 consecutive days
- Costs $734
- Flexible
- Pass is valid for 15 days within 2 months
- Cost $853
Again, every traveler is different, so the best option for you depends on your travel plans and preferences. Do the math with the prices you see on Rail Europe.
What is the best card to use to buy a European train pass?
If you want to travel for less, you need to get into the wonderful world of travel rewards. And if you want to maximize your travel rewards, you always need to choose the right credit card.
That means choosing the right cards to get and the right cards to use.
For the Rail Europe train pass sale or any other purchase, the best card to use is always:
- If you’re a pro: the card on which you’re unlocking a huge welcome bonus (11%)
- If you’re not unlocking one: the card with the best earn rate (3.33%)
The exceptions are the same as always:
- If you want to redeem rewards for the purchase
- If you want insurance coverage for the purchase
- If you want to avoid FX fees on the purchase
Here are the best cards to use for a Rail Europe European train pass.
The card on which you’re unlocking a huge welcome bonus ($825)
As with any expense, no matter what it is, you’ll always get the best return by unlocking a new huge welcome bonus, so you should use that card.
Get one of these right away to stop getting just a terrible rate of 1% or 2%!
| Best credit card offers (April 2025) |
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 Valuation (BONUS)(≈ 6.5% back on $10k)
Rewards: ≈ $1451
Card fee: $799
Spend required:$10k in 3 mos.
Best for: ≈ 6.5% back on $10,000 & unlimited lounges
 LUCRATIVE
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extended Valuation (BONUS)( 20.5% back on $5k)
Rewards: $1025
Annual fee: $0 $139
Spend required:$5k in 6 mos.
Best for: 20.5% back on $5,000 & simple points
 SIMPLE
60k/100k
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Valuation (BONUS) ( 8.7% back on $7.5k)
Rewards: $775
Card fee: $120
Spend required:$7.5k in 12 mos. (or $2k)
Best for: ≈ 8.7% back on $7,500 & simple points
 SIMPLE
12k
ends July 1st
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| Terms and conditions apply. Flytrippers editorial opinion only. Financial institutions are not responsible for maintaining the content on this site. Please click "See More" to see most up-to-date information. |
| Best credit card offers (April 2025) |
WELCOME BONUS ( VALUATION) |
Effective return rate |
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $10k in 3 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $1451
Card fee: $799
|
≈ 6.5% back
on $10,000
& unlimited lounges
|
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extended 
|
Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $5k in 6 months
|
Rewards: $1025
Annual fee: $0 $139
|
20.5% back
on $5,000
& simple points
|
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $7.5k in 12 mos. (or $2k for lower bonus)
|
Rewards: $775
Card fee: $120
|
≈ 8.7% back
on $7,500
& simple points
|
ends July 1st
|
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $12k in 12 mos. (incl. $7.5k in 180 days)†
|
Rewards: ≈ $641
Annual fee: $0 $139
|
≈ 5.3% back
on $12,000
& lucrative pts
|
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $1k/mo for 12 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $1180
Card fee: $250
|
≈ 7.8% back
on $12,000
& 8 lounge passes
|
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NEW 
|
Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $10k in 14 mos. (or $3k for lower bonus)
|
Rewards: $1000
Card fee: $399
|
6.0% back
on $10.000
& 10 lounge passes
|
ends October 31st
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $3k in 3 mos. + $1k
|
Rewards: ≈ $540
Card fee: $120
|
≈ 10.5% back
on $4,000
& lucrative pts
|
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NEW 
|
Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $5k in 6 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $900
Card fee: $120
|
≈ 15.6% back
on $5,000
& lucrative pts
|
ends June 11th
apply now |
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Card: no business required
Min. spend (bonus): $7.5k in 3 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $713
Card fee: $199
|
≈ 6.9% back
on $7,500
& lucrative pts
|
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| Terms and conditions apply. Flytrippers editorial opinion only. Financial institutions are not responsible for maintaining the content on this site. Please click "See More" to see most up-to-date information. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The card with the best earn rate (3.33%)
If you’re not unlocking a welcome bonus, then you should obviously use the card with the best earn rate in that purchase category.
Rail Europe purchases should be coded in the travel category, so these are the cards with the best earn rates for travel.
| Best credit cards for earn rates on travel category |
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Valuation (BONUS) ( 7.3% back on $4.5k)
Rewards: $330
Card fee: $0 $150
Spend required:$4.5k in 3 mos.
Best for: 3.33% and 4 annual airport lounge passes
SIMPLE
80k/150k
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Valuation (BONUS) ( 4.2% back on $6k)
Rewards: $853
Card fee: $599
Spend required:$6k in 3 mos.
Best for: 3.33% and 6 annual airport lounge passes
SIMPLE
150k/200k
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Valuation (BONUS) (≈ 7.8% back on $12k)
Rewards: ≈ $1180
Card fee: $250
Spend required:$12k in 12 mos.
Best for: ≈ 3% and 4 annual airport lounge passes
LUCRATIVE
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| Terms and conditions apply. Flytrippers editorial opinion only. Financial institutions are not responsible for maintaining the content on this site. Please click "See More" to see most up-to-date information. |
| Best credit cards for earn rates on travel category |
WELCOME BONUS ( VALUATION) |
Earn rate on travel |
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $4.5k in 3 mos.
|
Rewards: $330
Card fee: $0 $150
|
3.33%
and 4 annual
airport lounge passes
|
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|
Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $6k in 3 mos.
|
Rewards: $853
Card fee: $599
|
3.33%
and 6 annual
airport lounge passes
|
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|
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $1k/mo for 12 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $1180
Card fee: $250
|
≈ 3%
and 4 annual
airport lounge passes
|
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|
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $10k in 3 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $1451
Card fee: $799
|
≈ 3%
and unlimited
airport lounge access
|
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NEW
|
Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $5k in 6 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $900
Card fee: $120
|
≈ 1.875%
and very
valuable points
|
ends June 11th
apply now |
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Min. income (card):
Min. spend (bonus): $750/mo for 12 mos.
|
Rewards: ≈ $900
Card fee: $156
|
≈ 1.5%
and best card
overall in Canada
|
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| Terms and conditions apply. Flytrippers editorial opinion only. Financial institutions are not responsible for maintaining the content on this site. Please click "See More" to see most up-to-date information. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The exceptions
If any exceptions apply, then you should change the card you use accordingly.
If you want to redeem rewards for the purchase: To use points for these train passes, use your card on which you have bank points that can be used for travel booked on any website (like Scene+ points or BMO points).
If you want insurance coverage for the purchase: To be covered by any insurance other than medical travel insurance, use your card with insurance that you will still have when the trip takes place. That’s not so relevant for a train pass, at least if it’s refundable.
If you want to avoid FX fees on the purchase: This doesn’t apply, as Rail Europe charges in Canadian dollars.
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Summary
Rail Europe has a sale on European train passes that can be interesting.
What would you like to know about the Europe train deal? Tell us in the comments below.
See the flight deals we spot: Cheap flights
Discover free travel with rewards: Travel rewards
Explore awesome destinations: Travel inspiration
Learn pro tricks: Travel tips
Featured image: Poschiavo, Switzerland (photo credit: Alessandro Prato)
