Germany Railcard

[Masbroughlad]

In December we will be in Germany for 10 days or so.

We want to travel between Leipzig, Bremen, Frankfurt and Hamburg. From those we want daytrips to Bremerhaven, Rudesheim and Heidelburg. Each end of the hols needs travel from/to airport.

We had a Bahncard many years ago. Do these still exist? Are there deals which we could use? There are 2 of us.

Thanks in advance

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Last time I looked, Bahncards were only available on continuing subscription, for which you needed a German bank account to set up.
There are some good value day/weekend tickets, especially for people in a group, but you need to know your German Länder to get the best out of them.
These are not valid on ICE/IC-type trains.
https://www.bahn.com/en/view/offers...4_S02_D002_KIN0060_ST-REGIONALE-ANGEBOTE_LZ01

 

[moliones]

You can get a Bahncard Probe (https://www.bahn.de/p/view/bahncard/ueberblick/probebahncard.shtml, I was unable to find this information in English sorry), which you can buy online with a British debit/credit card, and is valid for 3 months. It will turn into an annual subscription unless you contact them to cancel it, but if you remember to do that, you get a 3-month Bahncard. I'm not sure if it must be delivered to a German address, or if they'll send it to the UK (I had mine sent to a German address).

 

[duesselmartin]

An unter rail pass might be a better option

 

[Masbroughlad]

An unter rail pass might be a better option

What is that?

 

[duesselmartin]

Sorry. Inter rail

 

[Dirk Schmücker]

BahnCards do exist in a variety of formats, giving you 25%, 50% or 100% discount, for first class or second class. They are usually valid for a year (except the Probe-Bahncard mentioned above). The 3 months "Probe BahnCard 50", 2nd class sells for EUR 79.90, so if you travel between the cities you mention, it will certainly pay. You can order online and print at home, no German address required. DB accepts credit cards. On the English DB website you will not find the "Probe BahnCard", so you will need to do with the German version. You can, however, also buy BahnCards at any ticket desk in Germany.

 

[AlexNL]

However, it might be more cost effective to just buy a couple of Sparpreis tickets (Advance tickets) or use Ländertickets. You're only there for a few days, you won't be using the BahnCard after that.

Sparpreis tickets might not yet be available for December, so you won't see those prices when you look for trips in December.

 

[30907]

I'd go for Sparpreis - not sure if a BC would pay for itself. Bremen and Hamburg are both in Niedersachsen so if you can visit them consecutively you could use a Laenderticket.
Bremerhaven ditto unless there's something even cheaper. Heidelberg is Sparpreis or Querdurchsland. Rüdesheim might be Hessenticket but not sure of boundaries and only my phone will connect ATM.

 

[Merseysider]

Bahncards can be delivered to UK addresses.

It’s a no-brainer to buy a Probe Bahncard 25 (€19.90) for use with Sparpreis tickets.

It will pay for itself and then some based on the journeys you’ve described.

You will not be subscribed to the renewal, providing you cancel in writing (letter, email, etc). This cannot be done within the last 6 weeks of validity.

 

[moliones]

I'd go for Sparpreis - not sure if a BC would pay for itself. Bremen and Hamburg are both in Niedersachsen so if you can visit them consecutively you could use a Laenderticket.
Bremerhaven ditto unless there's something even cheaper. Heidelberg is Sparpreis or Querdurchsland. Rüdesheim might be Hessenticket but not sure of boundaries and only my phone will connect ATM.

While a Niedersachsen Länderticket is valid in Hamburg, Bremen, and Bremerhaven (https://www.bahn.com/en/view/mdb/ba...7120_niedersa_ticket_geltungsbereich_2017.pdf), none of them are in Niedersachsen.

 

[30907]

I had forgotten the niceties of German political geography, sorry.

 

[Dirk Schmücker]

Comparing tickets, here are some basic rules: "Ländertickets" cannot be used in long distance trains. "Sparpreis" always involves the choice of a specific train when booking. You are not allowed to change trains after booking (you can cancel the ticket before the first day of travel for a fee of EUR 19 and book a new ticket). "Sparpreis" tickets are not always available. BahnCard gives you discounts on Sparpreis tickets and regular tickets ("Flexpreis"). I assume that you will easily reach a total of EUR 160 for the trips you are planning, even using "Sparpreis" tickets. From that point on it is cheaper to have a BahnCard anyway. But then, finding out how to save the last cent in German rail travel can be an entertaining adventure. Enjoy!