Where to buy, and what to watch for

Deutsche Bahn (int.bahn.de)

German Rail Pass, all point-to-point tickets, seat reservations, BahnCard

The operator itself, in English, with the official fares. The safest default for everything except city transport.

Interrail / Eurail

Germany one-country passes

Interrail for European residents, Eurail for everyone else. Buy Interrail here if you live in Europe and therefore cannot buy the German Rail Pass.

Local transport apps

Deutschlandticket, city day tickets

Sold by DB and by every regional transport association (BVG in Berlin, MVG in Munich, HVV in Hamburg and so on). Any of them issues the same nationwide ticket.

Omio, Trainline and similar

Point-to-point tickets

Convenient search across operators, sometimes with a booking fee. Fine for comparison; changes and refunds are handled by the reseller, which can slow things down.

Before you pay

• Check eligibility: only for travellers whose permanent residence is outside germany. A pass bought by someone who lives in Germany is not valid.
• Names on the pass must match the passport you will be carrying.
• The pass is dated from your first travel day — you do not need to fix all your dates in advance.
• Seat reservations are bought separately, journey by journey.
• Passes can be bought up to 11 months ahead; there is no early-bird discount, so there is no rush.

Things that go wrong

• Second-hand or "spare" tickets: German rail tickets are personal and checked with ID. Do not buy them from strangers.
• Sites that quote in your home currency at a poor rate — the official price is in euro.
• Assuming the pass covers the U-Bahn. It does not; see coverage.
• Buying a Deutschlandticket late in the month: it always expires at month end.
• Forgetting a BahnCard renews automatically after twelve months.