Buy Travel Tickets
All Tourist Travel Passes are pre-loaded onto the Tarjeta Multi, a contactless, transferable smartcard that is valid for 10 years and which is free when you purchase the 1,2, 3, 5 or 7-day Tourist Travel Pass. Once the Tourist Travel Pass expires, you can top up the smartcard with pay-per-ride tickets.
buy travel tickets
* Prices are for 12-year-olds or over. Children under 11 years of age enjoy a 50% discount. Under-4s travel for free on the metro and the bus and under 6s on the Cercanías commuter train.
With Greyhound you can always travel stress-free. Track My Bus gives you real-time bus stop information and up to date bus timetables. Just add your line number or confirmation number and you can stay up to date on your journey.
Unlike rail passes, it's generally easy to buy point-to-point train tickets right at the station (whereas most rail passes aren't widely available in Europe). But it can be smart to buy in advance for certain trains and destinations, especially if your dates are set and you don't want to risk a specific train journey selling out, or if you're hoping to land an advance-purchase discount.
You have three main options for buying point-to-point tickets: through a US-based retailer before leaving home (we even sell them right here), through the website of one of Europe's national railways, and in person at Europe's train stations (and at some European travel agencies). For big discounts, buy tickets up to three months ahead (just note that these tickets are nonrefundable and nonchangeable).
The easiest way to get train tickets online is to buy them through ricksteves.com (after all, you're already here!). Virtually all US-based websites and travel agents sell European train tickets for the exact same prices you'll find here.
Many European national rail companies allow customers to buy tickets online at the going European price (usually for faster classes of trains for which reservations are required, or at least recommended).
Your "ticket" may be a barcode on your phone, an emailed confirmation code redeemable at the station (in the same country that operates the website you bought it on), or a print-at-home document. Online tickets are valid for a specific date and time and have strict refund restrictions, so read the fine print carefully.
Once in Europe, you can simply get tickets at the station, usually without much fuss, either on your day of travel or in advance (see my tips for buying tickets in European train stations). This is the best option if you'd prefer to keep your itinerary more spontaneous. You can even get tickets for trains in another country: For example, if your trip starts in Paris, you can buy your Berlin-to-Prague ticket at any Parisian train station. Tickets bought at train-station windows tend to be easier to change (or have refunded) than tickets bought online.
In some cities you can avoid trekking to the train station by visiting a neighborhood travel agency or branch office of the national railroad. This convenience may come with a fee, but if the agency is easier for you to get to than the train station, buying tickets there can save lots of time and hassle (and travel agents may have more time and English-language skills than the people behind the train-station counter).
If you're buying point-to-point tickets, be aware of the ways you can qualify for a discount (whether buying through a national-railway website or in person). For details, check this site's country-specific rail pages for any countries you're planning to visit.
Advance purchase (a week to several months in advance) can save you significant money in many countries (most notably Austria, Britain, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Sweden), especially for faster or longer rides. On-sale dates vary by country, route, and time of year, with most starting two to four months in advance of travel, and six months ahead for Germany and the Eurostar Chunnel train. In some areas (such as Switzerland and most eastern countries), advance-purchase deals either don't exist or aren't worth the hassle. In most places, tickets for slower regional or medium-speed trains cost the same whether they're bought two months or two minutes before the train leaves.
Round-trip tickets can be cheaper than two one-way tickets in some countries (Britain, Ireland, and Spain; sometimes in combination with advance purchase). In Britain, a "day return" (round-trip in a single day) can be only a little bit more expensive than a single one-way ticket.
Tickets for passengers are for roundtrip travel, except for our Port Townsend/Coupeville route and international sailings to and from Sidney, British Columbia. There is an additional fee for adult passengers coming aboard with a bicycle.
Children and youth under the age of 19 travel free. At terminals where a ticket is needed for walk-on travel, the youth must be present at the ticket booth to receive a free youth ticket, which is valid for two hours and needed to pass the turnstile. A youth ORCA card may be tapped at the turnstile for passage. Teenagers behind the wheel of a motor vehicle must pay the adult vehicle and driver fare (see next section).
Check your owner's manual for your vehicle length. You cannot redeem your ticket if it is for the wrong length vehicle. Vehicles over 7 feet 6 inches in height are considered over height. Vehicles more than 8 feet 6 inches wide are considered too wide to travel without special arrangements.
You cannot buy your tickets online. You will pay your fare at the tollbooth or with an attendant when you arrive at the terminal. Visit our commercial and oversized vehicles page for information on how to arrange travel for these vehicles.
The child offer is now extended to children ages 4 to 14 years when traveling on high-speed Frecciarossa, Frecciabianca, Frecciargento, InterCity, InterCityNotte, EuroCity, and Thello trains. Your child will be assigned his/her own seat and children must be accompanied by an Adult when traveling on this offer.
Looking for the best time to buy tickets to Europe or other international locations? Book a summer trip. Expedia data shows that August is the cheapest warm-weather month to fly, with average ticket prices nearly 10% lower compared with July. Tickets are also cheaper in August than during the December rush.
Early is the way to go, travel experts agree. Early-morning flights are typically less crowded, and they give you more opportunities to get on another flight during the day if your flight is delayed or canceled.
Avoid taking the last flight of the day whenever possible, especially during the winter travel months, to reduce the chances of missed connections or getting stuck for the night in the airport due to bad weather.
Seasonally, demand typically slows around mid- to late June, as most travelers have already booked their vacations for peak May, June and July travel. Lower demand for late summer and early fall travel means you may be able to get lower airfare by traveling in September or October. In fact, according to Berg, you can save an average of $118 off domestic airfare if you wait and travel in late August or early September.
We focused on the travel industry but could have easily written an article about other verticals. The point is that fraudsters are everywhere, and they are multiplying. Freedom and low cost of information mean those who want to launch their cybercriminal careers have plenty of resources at their disposal.
You can use a Travelcard in the zones it's valid for. Make sure it covers all the zones you travel through. If not, you need to add pay as you go credit to your Oyster card or buy an extension ticket.
A Travelcard, in the zones it's valid for, gives you unlimited travel at any time on bus, Tube, Tram, DLR, London Overground, Elizabeth line and National Rail services in London. You can use it on all buses, and if valid in zones 3, 4, 5 or 6, on all trams. Travelcards can start on any day.
Earning rates: Earn 5 points per dollar on flights booked directly with airlines and through American Express Travel (on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year). Plus, you'll earn 5 points per dollar on prepaid hotel bookings through amextravel.com and Fine Hotels + Resorts; earn 1 point on everything else.
Analysis: In addition to the ability to earn 5 points per dollar on flights booked directly with airlines and through Amex Travel, cardmembers can also unlock significant discounts on airfare through the International Airline Program and will get a suite of travel protections when booking round-trip flights.
Cardholders get access to lounges including Centurion, Priority Pass and Delta Sky Club (when flying same-day Delta Air Lines flights) at the airport. Other benefits include an up-to-$200 annual airline fee credit, a credit for a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application (up to $100), and automatic Gold status in both the Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy loyalty programs. Non-travel benefits include up to $400 in annual statement credits toward U.S. Dell purchases. (Enrollment required for select benefits.)
Analysis: According to TPG valuations, Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth 2 cents each. Points are earned in the Ultimate Rewards program, giving you access to 10 airline and three hotel 1:1 transfer partners. When redeemed for travel and activities through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal, these points are worth 1.5 cents a piece.
Other benefits include an annual $300 travel statement credit, a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit, and a Priority Pass Select membership that includes guests and free meals at select airport restaurants. If anything goes wrong with your flight, this is the card you want to carry since it comes with industry-leading trip cancellation/interruption insurance, auto rental collision damage waiver, lost luggage reimbursement, trip delay reimbursement, and emergency evacuation and transportation. 041b061a72