A rail pass is a

pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland * Pass, Poland, a village in Poland *Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see List of straits *Mountain pass, a lower place in a mountai ...

that covers the cost of

train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...

travel in a certain designated area or areas within a certain period of time. It is contrasted to a point-to-point ticket in that it allows the holder unlimited travel, within the pre-designated area and period, while a point-to-point ticket only permits the holder to travel from a point to another once. It is different from a

season ticket A season ticket, or season pass, is a ticket that grants privileges over a defined period of time. History The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' has illustrative quotations which show the term ''season ticket'' used in the United States in 1820 ...

in the sense that, while both of them grant unlimited travel to the holder, season tickets normally target commuting travellers, whereas rail passes usually target tourists. Based on this difference, terms of use are thus normally set differently. The first rail pass was issued as the

Eurail pass The Eurail Pass, introduced in 1959 and formerly known as Europass or Eurorail Pass, is a rail pass which permits travel through 33 European countries on nearly all railroads and several shipping lines. The Eurail Group, based in Utrecht, is re ...

in March 1959. Owing to its success, many other passes have been issued by various

railway companies This is an incomplete list of the world's railway operating companies listed alphabetically by continent and country. This list includes companies operating both now and in the past. In some countries, the railway operating bodies are not compani ...

all around the world since then.

Type of rail pass

Rail passes are issued according to different terms of use.

Continuous pass and Flexipass

There are two ways of counting the valid period of a rail pass. A continuous pass counts the days or months continuously. For example, a 15-day pass is valid for 15 continuous calendar days starting from the day of validation and a one-month pass is valid for a calendar month (so if it is used in February, it is valid only for 28/29 days, contrasted to the 30-day valid period when using a 30-day pass). As continuous pass might not be useful to all travellers, as many of them do not travel every day, there exists also the flexipass, which allows the holder to only pay for the days they travel. For instance, when a traveller buy a ten-day-in-one-month flexipass, the pass is valid for one month, and he can pick whichever ten days within the valid period to travel with the pass. This gives extra flexibility to the holders. Usually the holder would need to fill in the date he travels on the pass before boarding on the train.

Area

Some countries offer a country pass to travellers such that they could take most of the trains in the country (e.g. BritRail Pass,

Japan Rail Pass The , also called the JR Pass, is a rail pass for overseas visitors sold by the Japan Railways Group, and is valid for travel on all major forms of transportation provided by the JR Group in Japan, with a few exceptions. The Rail Pass is designed ...

Indrail Pass An Indrail Pass was a special railway pass available to foreign nationals created along the lines of the Eurail Pass for unlimited travel without reservation of a ticket on the Indian Railways network. This ticket was available for a special time p ...

Korea Rail Pass The Korea Rail Pass ( ko, 한국 철도패스; ''Hangug Cheoldo Paeseu'', or ko, 코리아 레일 패스; ''Koria Reil Paeseu''), also commonly called the KR Pass ( ko, KR패스; ''KR Paeseu''), is a rail pass offered by Korail (Korea Railroad Co ...

, etc.). But some countries offer cross-countries rail pass such that pass holders can travel on trains within the designated countries, even crossing the border (e.g.

and

Interrail The Interrail Pass is a rail pass available to European residents. Residents of countries outside Europe may purchase the Eurail Pass instead. Types of Interrail Pass include the Interrail Global Pass and the Interrail One Country Pass. The pas ...

). Some countries offer passes which are valid only within certain areas of the country (e.g. JR West Rail Pass, JR Kyushu Rail Pass, etc.). Sometimes, if the train passes through areas where the pass is not valid, travellers would need to pay for that section of the route. For example, if one gets a pass that is valid in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, and would like to take a train from Spain to Italy passing through France, he may need to pay for the French section.

Concession and group pass

Some countries offer concession pass to youth (e.g. age below 26) or elderly. And some other offer group passes, allowing two or more persons to travel together with a lower price (though some may require that all named persons must be travelling together). Concession pass might get more restrictions. For example, one can travel on the

Tze-Chiang Limited Express The Tze-Chiang Express, also spelled "Tzu-chiang" or "Ziqiang" () is a type of express train service operated by the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) in Taiwan. Of the five service classes operated by the TRA, the Tze-Chiang trains is the faste ...

, the fastest train operated by the

Taiwan Railways Administration Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) is a railway operator in Taiwan. It is an agency of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, responsible for managing, maintaining, and running conventional passenger and freight railway services ...

, with the normal

TR Pass The TR Pass () is a rail pass offered by Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA), granting holders of the pass unlimited rides on trains operated by TRA within the day count. The pass can be used by both local and foreign travelers, and different dura ...

but not with the Student Pass.

Class

Some passes allow the traveller to travel with both first and second class, but some are restricted to travel in the second-class only, although some might be offered with the option to travel in first-class by paying a supplement.

Type of trains

There could be limitation on the types of trains that one can ride with the rail pass. For example,

high-speed trains High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...

are excluded in some countries (e.g.

), and in some other, one can travel on them by paying supplement (e.g. France Rail Pass). Passengers with a Japan Rail Pass can ride on the

Shinkansen The , colloquially known in English as the bullet train, is a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan. Initially, it was built to connect distant Japanese regions with Tokyo, the capital, to aid economic growth and development. Beyond l ...

, the high-speed railway in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. However, they cannot take Nozomi and

Mizuho Mizuho () literally means "abundant rice" in Japanese and "harvest" in the figurative sense. It was also an ancient name of Japan. It might refer to: Places * Mizuho, Gifu, a city in Gifu * Mizuho, Tokyo, a town in Tokyo * Mizuho Plateau in A ...

trains, the fastest train services on the Tōkaidō, San'yō and

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...

Shinkansen lines.

Sleeping / Couchette car

In some countries, rail pass holders can travel on sleeper or couchette compartment freely, while some may need to pay some extra fee or are totally restricted from taking sleeper or couchette trains.

Seat reservation

Some pass allow the holders to make seat reservation on trains freely, while some require the holders to pay a supplement.

Bonus

As tourists are the typical target group of rail passes, there may be bonus discounts in certain sightseeing spots, by showing a rail pass within the valid period. In order to enjoy the discount, some flexipasses require the holder to spend a travel day - fill-in that date on the pass - while others do not; some of the passes also cover the cost of travelling by certain buses, ferries or cable cars.

Difference from season ticket

A rail pass is different from a

: the former is generally marketed to tourists while the latter is usually marketed to commuters. The terms of use and purchase are set accordingly. Very often, rail passes cannot be used by the local citizens and might not even be available for purchase within their area of use. Another difference is the term of the pass: while it is difficult to find rail pass valid for more than three months, it is common to find season ticket valid for a whole year. Designed for commuting, some season tickets are valid for only one route, while a rail pass is usually valid for an entire area.

Rail passes

Rail passes on offer include: *

(Europe) *

Interrail pass The Interrail Pass is a rail pass available to European residents. Residents of countries outside Europe may purchase the Eurail Pass instead. Types of Interrail Pass include the Interrail Global Pass and the Interrail One Country Pass. The pas ...

(Europe) *

(Japan) * BritRail Pass (UK) *

(India) *

(South Korea) *

(Taiwan)

References

{{Reflist

Pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland * Pass, Poland, a village in Poland *Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see List of straits *Mountain pass, a lower place in a mountai ...

Rail passes