Why do I need to validate my Eurail train pass?
Eurail train passes are purchased for specific time periods, like one month. That means that if you buy a one month Eurail train pass, the Eurail train pass is "good," or valid, for one month from the date you first use it. Note that that does not mean the Eurail train pass is good for one month from the date you buy it.You have to validate your Eurail train pass so that you're not riding around on European trains for free, or in excess of the time period for which you have bought a Eurail train pass.
How do I validate my Eurail train pass?
After you buy your Eurail train pass from an outfit like Rail Europe, it will be delivered to you via UPS or other trackable delivery. Treat it like cash from then on, and don't write anything at all on your Eurail train pass. If you're on some kind of complimentray Eurail train pass or one that came with some other package, your Eurail train pass may already be marked with beginning and end dates of travel -- check. If not, do this to validate your Eurail train pass:The first time that you use your Eurail pass in Europe, take it to a ticket window in the train station. The attendant will mark it with the first and last days of travel.
The first day of travel on your Eurail pass is the day on which you have the attendant mark the pass at the station. The last day of travel marked will correspond to the length of the pass's term. If you have bought a one month pass, the pass will be marked as expiring one month from the day you have first traveled with the pass.
If the dates entered on your Eurail pass by the window attendant at the train station are incorrect, deal with it at once. Don't use the pass. Go to a Eurail office to have it exchanged for another pass and go through the process again. A large train station will have a Eurail office onsite, and it is often open fairly late.
What will happen if I don't have my Eurail pass validated?
When you get on the train and usually after it has started moving, the conductor will come around and check your Eurail pass. If it is not validated, he will do it and he has the option to charge you for validating it, which is like fining you, or to make you get off the train at the next stop. He can and might do these things because not validating your pass could indicate a willingness to steal extra train travel time -- if your Eurail pass is not validated, you are, essentially, traveling for free.Along the same line of thinking, you must write the date of each train trip on your pass in ink -- spaces exist on your pass for this purpose. If you have bought a Eurail pass giving you three days of train travel (what's a day of train travel?) within one month, you can only travel for three days -- any day on which you are riding the train without marking the date on your pass could be seen as trying to grab as an extra day. All that said, the conductor is likely to think you have just forgotten to mark your pass if you have, indeed, forgotten to mark your pass. Try not to forget again and all will be fine.
When you write dates on your pass, use the European format of day followed by month -- 06/07 means July 6th.
