What you need to know about Interrail seat reservations
Interrail is a great thing. For a fairly fair fixed price, you can travel at your own pace on any train throughout Europe. You can decide on the itinerary spontaneously, wherever you feel like going. However, please note that many international trains have to be booked. You can usually book a seat spontaneously, but finding the right website is often a little difficult. In this guide, you will find everything you need to know about seat reservations on your Interrail journey.
Do you still need an Interrail Pass? You can easily book one with us or directly on the Interrail website.
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How to book your Interrail seat reservation online
Belgium
National trains
Reservation: not required
Price: –
Domestic trains do not need to be reserved. You can simply look for the next available seat.
ICE Brussels–Cologne–Frankfurt
Reservation: optional, recommended
Price: CHF 5 per person
Can be booked directly on the website of Deutsche Bahn, the German railway. You can send the reservation request from the departure station to the destination station in one step.
Thalys/Eurostar Paris–Brussels–Cologne/Amsterdam–Brussels–London
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 20 to 40 per person
Can be booked on the special reservation page of the Belgian railway. You can enter the number I91232323 as your Interrail pass number if you have not yet booked a pass.
TGV Brussels–France
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 20 to 30 per person
Can only be booked on the (rather complicated) Interrail reservation tool. Information on Antwerp–Brussels–Paris connections is listed in the France section.
Denmark
National trains
Reservation: optional, recommended in summer
Price: CHF 4 per train
Can be booked on the Danish railway website. Select 0 travellers and a seat reservation.
IC Germany–Denmark
Reservation: optional, recommended in summer
Price: CHF 4 per train
Can be booked on the corresponding reservation page of the Danish railway.
X2000 Denmark–Sweden
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 7 (2. class), CHF 25 (1. class)
Can be booked on the website of the Swedish railway. Add a Rail Pass and enter the number 1234 as the pass number.
Germany
Day trains
Reservation: optional, recommended
Price: CHF 5 per person
Can be booked directly on the German railway website. You can send the reservation request from the departure station to the destination station in one step.
Night trains
Reservation: required, book early in advance
Price: from CHF 40 in a couchette car, from CHF 80 in a sleeping car
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Choose between one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount. Book seats in the same way as day trains.
France
Regional trains (TER/TER200)
Reservation: not possible
Price: –
Cannot be reserved, just sit on a free seat.
National TGV/Intercité
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 12 to 22 per person
Can be booked on the special reservation page of the Belgian railway. You can enter the number I91232323 as your Interrail Pass number if you have not yet booked a pass. Important: Only enter the route you are travelling on the TGV. In other words, if you are travelling from Basel via Strasbourg to Paris, you only need to enter Strasbourg–Paris. No reservation is required from Basel to Strasbourg.
TGV Lyria (Switzerland–Paris)
Reservation: required, more expensive than via Strasbourg
Price: CHF 30 to 80 per person
Can only be booked using the (rather complicated) Interrail reservation tool. The reservation from Basel costs significantly more than if you board the TGV in Mulhouse or Strasbourg. You can book reservations on the corresponding reservation page of the Belgian railway. You can enter the number I91232323 as your Interrail Pass number.
Thalys/Eurostar Paris–Brussels–Cologne/Amsterdam–Paris–London
Reservation: required, book early!
Price: CHF 20 to 40 per person
Can be booked on the corresponding reservation page of the Belgian railway. You can enter the number I91232323 as your Interrail pass number if you have not yet booked a pass.
TGV/AVE France–Spain
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 15 to 40
Cannot be booked online. However, we can book these trains for you and send you the ticket by post. Please send us a booking enquiry.
Great Britain
Eurostar Amsterdam–Brussels–London/Paris–London
Reservation: required, book early!
Price: CHF 30 to 40
Can be booked on the corresponding reservation page of the Belgian railway. You can enter the number I91232323 as your Interrail Pass number if you have not yet booked a pass. Information on connections to Paris is listed in the Interrail website in the France section.
National trains
Reservation: optional
Price: free of charge
Domestic trains do not need to be booked, with one exception: London–Edinburgh can be booked here, you can enter 1234 as the booking reference. Reservations for all other trains can be booked free of charge with Great Western Railways. To do this, create an account, switch from “Accounts” to “Booking” in your profile and then select “Make a seat/bike reservation”. Admittedly, it’s a bit complicated, but it’s not impossible. You can open an account via this page.
Caledonian Sleeper (night train London–Scotland)
Reservation: required, except seat carriages
Price: CHF 100 to 220
Can be booked directly on the website. Select “Room Supplement Only”.
Italy
Eurocity Switzerland–Italy
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 11
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Search for one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount. This does not always work on the Bern–Milano route. However, we can book these trains for you and send you the ticket by post. Just send us a booking enquiry.
National trains
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 11
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Search for one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount.
Night trains
Reservation: cheaper without Interrail
Price: –
Cannot be booked online. However, the reservation is usually more expensive than a normal ticket.
Croatia
Day trains
Reservation: optional
Price: CHF 4 per person
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Use the option “Seat reservation only (no ticket)”.
Night trains
Reservation: required
Price: from CHF 10 in a seating carriage, from CHF 40 in a couchette carriage, from CHF 80 in a sleeping carriage
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Search for one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount.
Norway
All trains
Reservation: possible with us
Price: CHF 5 for day trains, CHF 80 for night trains
Train reservations cannot be booked online. However, we can book these trains for you and send you the ticket by post. Please send us a booking enquiry.
The Netherlands
ICE Amsterdam–Frankfurt–Basel/Amsterdam–Berlin
Reservation: optional, recommended
Price: CHF 5 per person
Can be booked directly on the German railway website. You can send the reservation request from the departure station to the destination station in one step.
Night trains
Reservation: required, book early in advance
Price: CHF 40 to 100
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Add the Interrail discount. Book seats in the same way as day trains.
Thalys/Eurostar Amsterdam–Brussels–London/Paris
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 20 to 40 per person
Can be booked on the corresponding reservation page of the Belgian railway. You can enter the number I91232323 as your Interrail Pass number if you have not yet booked a pass.
Austria
Day trains
Reservation: optional, recommended for three or more people
Price: CHF 4 per person
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Use the option “Seat reservation only (no ticket)”.
Night trains
Reservation: required
Price: from CHF 10 in a seating carriage, from CHF 40 in a couchette carriage, from CHF 80 in a sleeping carriage
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Search for one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount.
Portugal
All trains
Reservation: partly possible with us
Price: CHF 5 to 10 (national)
Not all trains can be booked online. However, we sometimes have the option of booking these trains for you and sending you the ticket by post. Please send us a booking enquiry.
Poland
Day trains
Reservation: optional
Price: CHF 4 per person
Can be booked on the ÖBB website in most cases. Use the option “Seat reservation only (no ticket)”. If this is not possible, we can book these trains for you and send you the ticket by post. Just send us a booking enquiry.
Night trains
Reservation: requried
Price: from CHF 10 in a seating carriage, from CHF 40 in a couchette carriage, from CHF 80 in a sleeping carriage
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Search for one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount.
Switzerland
International trains
Reservation: required to France and Italy, optional to Germany and Austria (except night trains)
Price: CHF 10 to 40
Information on reservations can be found on this page in the section for the relevant destination country.
National trains
Reservation: recommended on public holidays on the Zurich–Ticino and Bern–Wallis routes
Price: –
Reservations can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Use the option “Seat reservation only (no ticket)”.
Sweden
All trains
Reservation: required
Price: CHF 5 to 20 (day trains), CHF 30 to 70 (night trains)
Can be booked on the Swedish railway website. Add a Rail Pass and enter the number 1234 as the pass number.
Slovenia
Day trains
Reservation: optional
Price: CHF 4 per person
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Use the option “Seat reservation only (no ticket)”.
Night trains
Reservation: required
Price: from CHF 10 in a seating carriage, from CHF 40 in a couchette carriage, from CHF 80 in a sleeping carriage
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Search for one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount.
Spain
All trains
Reservation: possible with us
Price: CHF 10 (national), CHF 15 to 40 (trains to France)
Not all trains can be booked online. However, we can book these trains for you and send you the ticket by post. Please send us a booking enquiry.
Czech Republic
Day trains
Reservation: optional
Price: CHF 4 per person
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Use the option “Seat reservation only (no ticket)”.
Night trains
Reservation: required
Price: from CHF 25
Can be booked on the Czech railway website. Enter the Interrail Pass as the discount card.
Hungary
Day trains
Reservation: optional
Price: CHF 4 per person
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Use the option “Seat reservation only (no ticket)”.
Night trains
Reservation: required
Price: from CHF 10 in a seating carriage, from CHF 40 in a couchette carriage, from CHF 80 in a sleeping carriage
Can be booked directly on the ÖBB website. Search for one-way and day tickets and add the Interrail discount.
Where do I have to book?
As you can see, each country has a different reservation system, so it’s best to find out about the reservation information well in advance of your journey. You can enter your route on the Interrail website and find out which connections you need to reserve a seat on.
Don’t want to have to navigate the reservation jungle on your own? On our booking platform, we offer you the complete Interrail journey including the necessary reservations for all trains throughout Europe. You can also just make seat reservations with us.
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Do you know enough about Interrail to organise your trip yourself? Maybe you’ve found exactly the information you were looking for on this page. In this case, it’s best to book directly via Interrail.