Travel safety advice and booking info 

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to France and the UK.

Travel instructions

Please consult the official guidelines of each government before planning your trips.

Travel on TGV Europe

You can only travel between Italy and France on TGV in cases of emergency, health reasons, or to return to your home and you will need the relevant self-certification forms for Italy and France.

Passengers arriving in Italy must isolate for 14 days.

Travelling on TERs

Check the TER SNCF website the day before departure to confirm your train is running.

Coupon d’accès are no longer in use since 8th June. They have also been removed for the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region since 12th June. 

Exchanges and refunds are available for TER journeys, but exceptional refund rules and dates vary according to the region. Please complete our exceptional refund form. 

• For connecting TER tickets, the rules are the same as for TGV INOUI and INTERCITÉS below.

TGVINOUI, INTERCITÉS
For journeys from 5th January – 9th May 2021
:

• Free refund/exchange until three days before departure, but with any additional charge payable by the customer in case of an exchange

• From two days before departure, normal exchange/refund conditions related to the fare conditions apply 

TGVINOUI, INTERCITÉS and TER

There is a full fee waiver for customers whose train has been cancelled. This applies to tickets bought between 15th February–28th February 2021 for travels between 29th March to 28th June 2021:

• The fees waiver only works prior to departure of the customer's train

• Refund at no fee automatic, except in the case of partial cancellation

• Exchange at no cost and with no additional charge (iso fare and iso price exchange) with new travel date as selected by the customer, whatever the initial fare

• All fares (including non-exchangeable/non-refundable, IC 100% Éco, etc.)

• Applicable on the return part if a return ticket is mandatory

• The new ticket issued remains exchangeable and refundable on all channels until the end of the fee waiver

OUIGO
For journeys from 5th January – 9th May 2021:

• Free refund/exchange until three days before departure, but with any additional charge payable by the customer in case of an exchange

• From two days before departure, normal exchange/refund conditions related to the fare conditions apply

Please complete our exceptional refund form before your train departs.

Cancellation and exchange of tickets can be made up to the departure of the train directly in the system. After departure, within 60 days of the date of travel indicated on the ticket by request for tax refund.

TGVmax subscription

TGVmax subscription for April and May is free (the next charge, expected between 20th April 2020 and 19th May 2020 will show as € 0).

TGV International (except TGV LYRIA)

For journeys from 5th January – 9th May 2021:

• Free refund/exchange until three days before departure, but with any additional charge payable by the customer in case of an exchange

• From two days before departure, normal exchange/refund conditions related to the fare conditions apply

TGV LYRIA
For domestic travel until 31st March 2021 and for international travel until 1st April 2021:

• Exchange fees: 0€
• Refund fees: 30€
• Valid for semi-flex tickets
• Valid only for International journeys, requested before departure
• Exchange only on the same route on Lyria​

Cancelled trains between DB-SNCF

• Full fee waiver implemented from 17th February 28th March for DB-SNCF trains that are cancelled between 13th and 28th March 2021.

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Germany.

Essential travel info

• Since 25th January, it is mandatory to wear a medical mask (surgical or FFP2 mask) on trains, buses and at stations. You will not be allowed to travel without one.
• You are also currently obliged to provide your contact and travel details if you are entering Germany directly from a risk area on a Deutsche Bahn train. The contact form can be found on the Deutsche Bahn website. 

Information about flexible travel

You can use your long-distance-ticket to travel on the date of your choice up to and including 31st October 2020, provided you bought your ticket on or before 13th March 2020. This doesn't apply to local transport. Please note the following information:

Information on exchanging your ticket for a voucher

The submission deadline for the conversion into a voucher expired on 30th June 2020. For tickets (national and international) for submission from 1st July onwards, the standard terms and conditions apply. A goodwill gesture based on COVID-19 can no longer be granted.

Use any train

We have waived the usual restrictions regarding train-specific travel for saver and super saver fares (Sparpreis/Super Sparpreis). This means you can travel at a different time to your original booking, and you can also take a different train provided it travels the same route (i.e. you can take an ICE train even though you originally booked an IC ticket). No exchange of the ticket needed.

City-Ticket not included

The City-Ticket is not covered by our goodwill guidelines. This means that you will need to buy a City-Ticket to get to and from your departure and destination stations on the new date of travel.

Flexible international travel

You can flexibly reschedule a cross-border trip for any date up to and including 31st October. This does not apply to tickets to destinations in France. Please remember that you need to buy a new seat reservation if you want to travel on a train where seat reservations are mandatory. This is the case for journeys to Denmark, Poland, and for all journeys on IC Bus services.

Group travel

If you booked a trip for a group of people, you need to make new seat reservations before starting the journey. These reservations are free of charge.

These goodwill arrangements mean that you can also use your long-distance ticket to travel earlier than the date originally planned.

Please print out your online ticket or keep the booking confirmation with the PDF file of the online ticket. The ticket can no longer be printed following the first day of travel of the originally booked ticket.

Cancelled connections

For cancelled train connections, customers can ask for refund of their tickets.

Source

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling around Europe.

Refunds

Due to the unpredictable time, it may unfortunately happen that trips which are more than three weeks in the future will be cancelled.

If your ride is affected by cancellation due to Covid-19, you will be reimbursed and provided with a full refund of the ticket price in the form of a voucher as per the Terms & Conditions.

The network has changed but new travel routes will be added every week. Check on Flixbus’ website which connections are currently available.

Measures to ensure the hygiene standards are met:

• Customers are obliged to wear a mask during boarding and while onboard
• Boarding from the rear door only
• Instructions from bus drivers/station personnel to keep appropriate distance while boarding
• Hand sanitizer available for customers during boarding
• Digital inspection of tickets/documents for a contactless boarding experience
• Disinfection of vehicles after each trip according to disinfection guidelines based on WHO regulations
• Additional disinfection by FlixBus station personnel/staff at major bus stations (disinfection of frequently touched surfaces by customers such as armrests, rails, and tables)

Source

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Italy.

Essential travel info

You must wear a mask covering your nose and mouth to gain access onboard. If you must travel, please sanitise your hands frequently and avoid touching your face.

To guarantee your safety and that of the community, we remind you to:

• Please do not use trains if you have symptoms of acute respiratory infections (fever, cough, cold)
• Where possible, purchase tickets online
• Follow the signs and routes indicated inside the stations or at the stops, always keeping the distance of at least one meter from other people;
• Use the train access doors indicated for getting on and off, always respecting the safety distance of one meter
• Sit only in permitted places, keeping the distance from the other occupants
• During the trip, frequently sanitise your hands and avoid touching your face
• Limit travel on the train

Mandatory conditions and self-declaration

If you buy a ticket to travel on Italo trains, at the time of travel you must declare the following, for you and those in your family travelling with you:

• I am not suffering from COVID-19 or I have not been ordered to mandatory quarantine for a period of at least 14 days in the days immediately preceding my travel.
• I am not displaying symptoms related to COVID-19 (such as body temperature exceeding 37.5°C, persistent cough, cold) and have not had contact with a person with COVID-19 in the 14 days leading up to the moment of departure.
• I am willing to forego my travel and inform the health Authority in charge in the event in which any of the above mentioned symptoms or conditions were to emerge before my travel or within 8 days of my travel, specifying also which train route and service were used.

Find out more here

Refunds

Italo are offering refunds in the form of vouchers for Italian customers, which you can use to buy new tickets for travel within one year of issue. Italo are offering refunds through credit card for international customers.

Refund request to be done before departure through ITALO Call Centre: 892020

You can refund journeys with: 

• Date of travel: 07/01 – 15/01/21
• Date of purchase until 04/01/21

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to the Netherlands.

Essential travel info

• The wearing of a mask is compulsory on trains for all passengers over the age of 13 and NS asks all travellers to travel only when necessary.

Refunds

NS tickets valid for journeys up to and including 31st May are fully refundable. Please email us to request your refund and avoid requesting a refund online through My Bookings as cancellation charges will be applied online.

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Austria.

Essential travel info

• Since 25 January, it is mandatory to wear a medical mask (surgical or FFP2 mask) on trains, buses and at stations. You will not be allowed to travel without one.

Services

ÖBB is gradually returning to the normal timetable. There are still some restrictions in long-distance traffic and on cross-border connections. For further information, please check ÖBB's timetable or contact ÖBB Customer Service at +43 05 1717.

Night jet connections will be resumed by end of June.

Refunds

If you bought the below tickets before 15th March 2020 inclusive, you can refund them free of charge:

• National ÖBB tickets for journeys until 1st June 2020. You will be refunded in the form of a voucher. 

• The refund of tickets depends, among other things, on the currently valid entry regulations of the federal government for the individual countries. Please contact the ÖBB Customer Service.

  International ÖBB tickets: International ÖBB tickets with validity until 31st March 2021 to and from risk areas can be converted into ÖBB vouchers. Please contact ÖBB customer service by phone or email. These measures apply until further notice and will be updated as necessary.

  With immediate effect, you can again travel with the ÖBB Nightjet to many destinations overnight, stress-free and environmentally friendly. For precise information, please see the list on nightjet.com under "Details on the resumption of services".

  YOUR OWN COMPARTMENT FOR MORE PRIVACY

  Until further notice, single seats can be booked on ÖBB Nightjets in the seating carriage, couchette carriage with 4-person compartments, or in the sleeper carriage. For maximum privacy, the compartments in the three comfort categories can also be booked as a separate (private) compartment. This enables you to travel in a compartment with just your family or friends, without having to share it with other passengers who are not in your group.

  On the connections from/ to Rome and Livorno only entire compartments can be booked due to official requirements: Private compartments in the seat car and couchette, sleeping car/ sleeping car deluxe only for exclusive use in single/ double/ triple occupancy. Tickets for single seats that have already been purchased remain valid, but train staff can allocate other seats in the same travel category so that the minimum distance can be observed. Vehicle transport to/ from Livorno can still be booked unchanged.

  
  You can find full details about private compartments on the website or by calling ÖBB Customer Service.

  
  Vouchers will be valid for one year and redeemable at ÖBB ticket counters in stations.

  
  Please contact ÖBB Customer Service to request your refund.

Source

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Spain.

Essential travel info

• You must wear a mask on all public transport in Spain, including all Renfe services or you will not be allowed to travel.
• From June 22nd tickets will have the names of passengers printed on them. You must carry a valid identification document while travelling. In the case of group reservations, each passenger must have a valid identification document.
• From June 1st access to the train will be closed 5 minutes before departure, please board your train in plenty of time. It is recommended you arrive at the station at least 30 minutes in advance of your departure time.

Refunds and exchanges

Customers that cannot travel with a valid authorization or customers that do not want to travel can either request a full refund either a new ticket for another travel date at no cost.

RENFE is extending the free cancellation or exchange of tickets to 25th March 2021.

Travel restrictions

Travel restrictions do not affect any ticket with a changeover in a train station with restrictions if coming from and going to a train station that doesn’t have any restrictions.

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Spain and France.

Essential travel info

• You must wear a mask on all public transport in Spain, including all Renfe services or you will not be allowed to travel. 

Services

From June 30th, 2 trains will circulate:

• Paris-Barcelona (departure 10:14h)
• Barcelona-Marseille (start 16:36h)

As of July 1st, 2 daily journeys between Spain and France will be resumed:

• Barcelona-Paris 9702 (departure at 10:10h) and Paris-Barcelona 9713 (departure at 10:14h)
• Barcelona-Marseille 9724 (departure at 16:36h) and Marseille-Barcelona 9731 (departure at 8:02h)

The offer of frequencies and international trains between Spain and France will be extended according to the evolution of demand.

Refunds

You can request a refund for journeys that have been cancelled or blocked until 30 August. To do so you must cancel your journey and request a full refund of your tickets, whatever the fare, before the train’s scheduled departure.

Refunds can be requested after the travel date of your ticket, up to 3 months later.

Exchanges and cancellations

You can cancel your TGV INOUI, OUIGO, TER connection and INTERCITÉ S ticket free of charge before departure for trips until November 1. Offer valid regardless of the price conditions of your ticket. 

RENFE-SNCF tickets purchased through RENFE

You can modify and cancel your ticket free of charge until 7th March 2021.

• For trips up to 10/01/2021 modification and cancellation of ticket free of charge. Customer must show the original ticket (without cancelling same) + new reservation.
• For trips between 11/01/2021 and 07/03/2021 modification can only be done through a cancellation first (free of charge) up to 3 days before departure and buying a new ticket.​

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Switzerland.

Essential travel info

• Effective Monday 6th July, masks are compulsory on all trains, buses and public transport in Switzerland including cross-border services.
• SBB recommends observing a physical distance of two metres and, as far as possible, postponing travel outside peak hours.
• Please check your connection immediately before departure in the online timetable, which is updated regularly.

Services

Traffic has almost returned to normal since 8th June.

Refunds

• Tickets for travel within Switzerland:
  From 11 May 2020, refunds will once again be made according to the fare regulations, and a fee will apply.
• Tickets for cross-border travel:
  Single tickets purchased in Switzerland up to 14 March 2020 with a departure on 14 March 2020 up to and including 15 June 2020 will be refunded in full and free of charge, irrespective of the fare purchased (normal fare/savings tickets). For tickets purchased in Switzerland after 14 March 2020, refund conditions apply according to the tariff. Please use our online form to request a refund.

Interrail/Eurail passports purchased before 14 March 2020 can be refunded as a gesture of goodwill for travel dates up to 31 July 2020 (last initial validity date).

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to France, Germany and the Netherlands.

Essential travel info

• You must wear a mask onboard trains and in stations. You will not be allowed to travel without this.

Services

There will be no Thalys trains to the stations of Marne-la-Vallée, Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, Bordeaux and Marseille.

Exceptional commercial measures (COVID-19):

For any purchase until January 31 inclusive, for travels until May 21 2021, the after-sales conditions of the fares below will be modified. They will become exchangeable free of charge until the date of travel. This is the removal of the €15 exchange fee. Only the price difference between the old and the new ticket applies.

If your train has been cancelled between March 10 and August 29, 2020:

You can postpone your journey – without additional costs – to a later date within a year from the date of your original journey. To do so, you need to keep your original ticket and contact Thalys Contact Center as soon as the sales for your new journey dates are opened (about 4 months before departure). These measures apply to the entire Thalys network and to all reservations that have already been made (only the date can be exchanged, not the departure or arrival station).
You can also ask for a reimbursement of your tickets. Your request needs to be entered at the latest 1 month after your train’s originally scheduled departure date. Please use this form.

For trains that were not cancelled:

If you bought a ticket before June 23, 2020, for a journey in July and August, Thalys assures an exchange without any fees until 30 days before the departure date on your original tickets.
If you bought your ticket between June 23 and August 31 at a Comfort, Standard, Kid, Junior and Senior fare, the €15 exchange fee will not be applied. Mini fare tickets are non-exchangeable and non-refundable. Premium tickets are always exchangeable free of charge and fully refundable until the departure of the train and 50% refundable after departure, within 2 months. For an exchange, the possible price difference between the old and the new ticket applies.

From 9th March the following fares becoming exchangeable for a fee of 5€ and price difference applied:

• Youth Mini 
• Standard Mini
• Comfort Mini
• Premium Mini
• Group Mini
• Comfort deal
• Weekend Comfort

From 9th March to 31st August the entire Thalys fare range will be exchangeable.

For journeys purchased before 23rd June or if your train has been cancelled between March 10 and December 31, 2020:

• Full refund if the train is cancelled can be requested at the latest 1 month after the travel date.

For journeys purchased after June 23rd and train is running:

• Refund according to tariff conditions.
• Mini fare: tickets are non-refundable.
• Standard, Comfort, Kid, Young and Senior: the usual after-sales costs of €15 are temporarily waived. Refunds, therefore, become free of charge, until the departure of the train.
• Premium: tickets are fully refundable until the departure of the train and 50% refundable after departure, within 2 months.

Thalys Snow (SNCF & Benerail):

• Exchange of the trip for a train later in the season.
• Reimbursement if requested before departure for the trains that run. Up to 30 days after the cancelled trains.

THALYS SUN Brussels and Bordeaux (Amsterdam/Brussels and Marseille included in the restrictions):

• Refund possible if requested up to 1 month after the scheduled departure date. For tickets that are not 100% refundable, use overrule code 'Manual Entry' and mention CORONA.

Tickets purchased before 28 August for travel from 26 August until travel restrictions are lifted for journeys between Paris and Belgium:

• Refund if requested up to 30 days after departure.

Tickets purchased before 28 August for travel from 26 August until travel restrictions are lifted for journeys between Paris and Belgium:

• Postponement of the trip over the duration of the sales openings, from the date of the initial trip. (Same OD, same comfort class).

All tickets with circulation date from 21 August to 4 September for journeys between Germany and Brussels:

• Postponement of the trip over the duration of the sales openings from the date of the initial trip. (Same OD, same comfort class).

All tickets with circulation date from 24 August to 4 September for journeys between Germany and Paris:

• Postponement of the trip over the duration of the sales openings from the date of the initial trip. (Same OD, same comfort class).

Thalys sold via Benerail have updated their measures to say:

• If a train is cancelled between March 10 and December 31 2020, a full refund is possible.
• If tickets are booked until 30th of September 2020 and the train is running, a refund within Ts&Cs is possible.

If you would like to exchange a ticket, this can be done through Thalys website.

Source

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Italy.

Essential travel info

• You must wear a mask covering your nose and mouth during your whole trip, at stations and onboard.

Timetable changes

Euronight services between Paris and Venice, in both directions, are cancelled.

Trains between Nice and Milan are running, with two daily frequencies in both directions. 

Traffic between Marseille and Nice will resume later.

To travel in Italy and France, “restrictions may apply and formalities may be necessary”: Thello advises customers to check official websites directly. Find out more here.

Refunds

If you need a refund please complete this form.

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Italy.

Essential travel info

• You must wear a mask covering your nose and mouth, and gloves to gain access onboard. 

Trenitalia recently became the first railway operator in the world to obtain Rina's Biosafety Trust Certification, which recognises the extremely high standard of health and safety protocols in place to prevent the spread of Coronavirus on board their trains.

Services

High-speed, regional and cross-border services are almost back to normal and new destinations have been added. 

Refunds for international passengers 

It is only possible to request refunds for tickets up to 30th June 2020.

Refunds for tickets bought before 10th March 2020

You can request a refund for the following trains, regardless or the fare or route. You must do this before 30th June:

• Frecce
• Freccialink
• Eurocity
• Euronight
• InterCity

You’ll be refunded in the form of a voucher, which must be used within a year. 

Refunds for tickets bought after 10th March 2020 

You can request a refund, regardless of the fare or route, in the following circumstances: 

• Your train is cancelled
• You're quarantined or are self-isolating
• You've been diagnosed with COVID-19
• You're travelling to high-risk areas
• Your event has been cancelled due to COVID-19 (e.g. school trips, competitions, demonstrations, events or meetings)

You must request your refund for the following services before 30th June, regardless of the above refund reason:

• Frecce
• Freccialink
• Eurocity
• Euronight

You can must request your refund for InterCity services and Regional services before 30th June in the event of cancellation and within 30 days from the end of the period in the above second, fourth and fifth point. 

Refunds for regional trains will be in cash all other services will be refunded in the form of a voucher, which is valid for a year. 

To request a refund for a regional train please print and complete this form. Then, post it to the regional management office for your journey’s arrival city. 

If your journey is departing from or arriving at Lombardy (and your PDF ticket shows the Trenord logo), please follow these steps. 

• Register on Trenord website. 
• Log in to your account and fill the Covid form. ​

Please see our travel restrictions section for information about travelling to Belgium.

Services

SNCB are running very reduced services.

Traffic will resume from 4th May 2020 and from then all customers over the age of 12 must travel with their nose and mouth covered. It will be compulsory to wear a mask or scarf on trains, in stations and on platforms.

You're advised to travel during off-peak hours (after 09:00, before 16:00, or after 18:00.) wherever possible. 

Refunds

Refunds are only possible for bookings up until 31st August. Please contact us here.