Questions about train travel in Romania (Regio Calatori)

[AdamWW]

I have some questions about train travel in Romania, and the information I can find on here seems a little out of date.

If anyone knowledgable can help I'd be most grateful.

I'm expecting to be doing some trips on the Bucharest-Sinaia-Brasov route this summer where there's a multiplicity of operators.

The main "open access" competitor to CFR seems to be Regio Calatori. So far as I can see they have their own ticket offices but not all that many, so if I'm starting at a station with a CFR ticket office and no Regio Calatori office does that mean I can just board a Regio Calatori train and pay on board without penalty? But what if it's a reservation compulsory train? (Playing around with travel planners, the only one I've seen on that route fully booked is one of theirs, though most of them don't seem to have compulsory reservations).

I realise I can probably buy a ticket on-line, but I can't rely on getting a signal, it taking my card etc... so I'd like to know the alternatives.

If I buy a ticket for non reservable Regio Calatori local trains (e.g. the branches from Brasov) are they just limited to a single train? If buying on line I certainly have to select a particular service.

If I'm making a connection from a Regio Calatori local train to a CFR train, given that for the CFR train I'll have to buy a ticket for a particular departure, is there any protection (official or otherwise) if I miss my connection due to a delay even though they are two separate companies?

(And, while I'm here, if anyone wants to suggest anything interesting rail-related that might be worth making the effort to see or do, I'm all ears...)

 

[stadler]

I have some questions about train travel in Romania, and the information I can find on here seems a little out of date.

If anyone knowledgable can help I'd be most grateful.

I'm expecting to be doing some trips on the Bucharest-Sinaia-Brasov route this summer where there's a multiplicity of operators.

The main "open access" competitor to CFR seems to be Regio Calatori. So far as I can see they have their own ticket offices but not all that many, so if I'm starting at a station with a CFR ticket office and no Regio Calatori office does that mean I can just board a Regio Calatori train and pay on board without penalty? But what if it's a reservation compulsory train? (Playing around with travel planners, the only one I've seen on that route fully booked is one of theirs, though most of them don't seem to have compulsory reservations).

I realise I can probably buy a ticket on-line, but I can't rely on getting a signal, it taking my card etc... so I'd like to know the alternatives.

If I buy a ticket for non reservable Regio Calatori local trains (e.g. the branches from Brasov) are they just limited to a single train? If buying on line I certainly have to select a particular service.

If I'm making a connection from a Regio Calatori local train to a CFR train, given that for the CFR train I'll have to buy a ticket for a particular departure, is there any protection (official or otherwise) if I miss my connection due to a delay even though they are two separate companies?

(And, while I'm here, if anyone wants to suggest anything interesting rail-related that might be worth making the effort to see or do, I'm all ears...)

You can buy your ticket from the guard onboard any Regio Calatori train. Even the ones that show fully booked online. This is permitted (and even stated on their website) and you will have no issues doing this. I have done this myself before. A very small onboard surcharge (equivalent to between £1.00 to £3.00 depending on the distance) applies if you board at a station with an open Regio Calatori ticket office. If the station you board has no Regio Calatori ticket office or if the Regio Calatori ticket office is closed then you do not pay any surcharge. So i would recommend just boarding and buying from the guard onboard.

 

[parkender102]

I fretted last year in Sofia, Bulgaria as I was unable to purchase a Ticket from Sofia to Bucharest - tried numerous times at Sofia Station including the International Window and just got the runaround and sent to different windows before I gave up and purchased a ticket to Ruse on the Bulgarian side of the border. Most of the travellers on the train were in the same predicament. We were all unsure how and if we would be able to buy a ticket at Ruse for the rest of the trip to Bucharest. However after the Romanian Loco was attached to our carriages the Romanian Staff got on with Ticket Machines and Card Readers so we were all able to buy tickets on board. Dirt Cheap - something like £6. I assumed other trains in Romania you can just purchase onboard.

 

[stadler]

I fretted last year in Sofia, Bulgaria as I was unable to purchase a Ticket from Sofia to Bucharest - tried numerous times at Sofia Station including the International Window and just got the runaround and sent to different windows before I gave up and purchased a ticket to Ruse on the Bulgarian side of the border. Most of the travellers on the train were in the same predicament. We were all unsure how and if we would be able to buy a ticket at Ruse for the rest of the trip to Bucharest. However after the Romanian Loco was attached to our carriages the Romanian Staff got on with Ticket Machines and Card Readers so we were all able to buy tickets on board. Dirt Cheap - something like £6. I assumed other trains in Romania you can just purchase onboard.

Yes indeed all trains in Romania allow you to buy onboard. CFR, Astra Trans Carpatic, Interregional Calatori, Regio Calatori, Servtrans, Softrans, Transferoviar Calatori, all allow it. I always find just boarding and purchasing onboard is by far the easiest and simplest way to purchase tickets.

 

[AdamWW]

Yes indeed all trains in Romania allow you to buy onboard. CFR, Astra Trans Carpatic, Interregional Calatori, Regio Calatori, Servtrans, Softrans, Transferoviar Calatori, all allow it. I always find just boarding and purchasing onboard is by far the easiest and simplest way to purchase tickets.

Ah that's useful to know.

Having had another look, it does seem that while the fares are a bit higher if you could have used a ticket office (or even if you couldn't have, but didn't seek out the guard), it doesn't seem to be an offence to have failed to do so. A bit different from the UK!

How this plays with the compulsory reservation system for most trains I don't know.

It also seem that, at least with CFR, you don't get surcharged for buying on board if you can show you arrived on another train with a short connection.