Major Changes to Eurail Pass in 2013

Eurail Group, the organization dedicated to the marketing and management of the Eurail Pass, has confirmed that the following changes to the Eurail Pass product will take effect 1 January 2013:

- Turkey will join the Eurail Global and Eurail Select Pass when TCDD, the Turkish railway company, becomes a Eurail Pass member on 1 January 2013. Turkey is currently ranked as the 6th most popular tourist destination in the world, visited by more than 31.5 million foreign tourist in 2011. Although Turkey is accessible by train from Bulgaria, travelers should be aware that construction work will affect some routes until the fall of 2013.

- Westbahn will be the first private railway company to join the Eurail Group railway community in January, offering Eurail Pass holders the opportunity to enjoy its high-speed services between Salzburg and Vienna. Westbahn, a December 2011 start-up enterprise, is offering hourly passenger train services between these two cities.

- SNCF, the French national railway company, has decided to withdraw its participation in the Eurail Select Pass as of January 2013. Nevertheless, the French network will still be accessible to customers who purchase the Eurail Global Pass (valid in 24 participating countries from January 2013) or the Eurail Regional Pass (valid for travel in two bordering European countries).

Eurail Select Passes, including France, can still be purchased until 31 December 2012 from authorized sales agents, although some agents may stop selling this pass around 27 December 2012. Select Pass holders, who purchase their passes before the end of the year, can rest assured that their passes will be valid on SNCF's trains for their entire validity period in 2013; however, passes must be validated within six months of purchase.

"Even though SNCF will no longer participate in the Eurail Select Pass product, pass holders will still be able to reach Spain and Portugal by ferry via Italy, receiving a 20% discount from Grimaldi Lines," said Ana Dias e Seixas, Eurail Group's Marketing Director. "Furthermore, travelers will still be able to travel in France using a Eurail Regional Pass (2 country combination including France), which can be used in conjunction with a Eurail Select Pass to cover any other country combinations."

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