It seems simple enough.  You have a Global Eurail pass, as part of the Reutlingen Germany program, which means you can take any train in the European Union for free.  Figure out where you want to go, what time, and hop on a train!

Well, not really.  In most European countries, you must also buy a mandatory seat reservation for each leg of your trip.  One reservation can cost between 3 and 15 Euros, which can add up if you have to change trains several times.

Among many other reasons, Germany is an awesome country because you don’t need seat reservations for most trains.  Even if a train is full, you can still stand or sit at the end of the car, even if it is less comfortable.  And making reservations is a breeze; you simply walk into a train station, ask for any number of reservations for any train in Europe, pay, and you are on your way. No hassle at all.

Too bad the rest of Europe isn’t as user-friendly.  I am currently on the 17 day fall break that comes with the Reutlingen program (another reason to study abroad in Germany!).  My travel group decided to be smart and book all of our reservations ahead of time.  We had planned on going to Nice, France after Italy, but at the last minute we changed our minds because of the massive transportation strike, and simply head back to Reutlingen for a couple of nights.  So naturally, we did not make our train reservations from Rome to Reutlingen.

That was a major mistake.  I found that Trenitalia is almost impossible to work with.  About 4 days before our day train ride home, a time frame that almost always has seats available, I waited in line at the train station in Milan to book 3 different trains for 4 people.  I had all the train times and numbers written down so it would be easier for the lady in the booth.

When I asked for the reservations, she replied to me almost in a whisper, which I couldn’t hear.  I repeated what I said several times, but she would not talk any louder, even when I motioned that I couldn’t hear her.  Then she simply stared at me, frowning, and wouldn’t say anything.  I was so surprised! Then she yelled through the glass, “WHY?” At least I could hear her! But why? What kind of question is that? So I replied, “Because I want to go home.”

Then she started yelling at me in Italian, which of course is absolutely no help.  I heard the word “ticket”, so I tried giving her my Eurail pass.  Then she started yelling at me again, saying I needed everyone’s passes, which was impossible since Matt and Amber were in Greece.  Why did we need them here, but not in Germany? Who knows.  She was impossible to deal with, so we left.

When the four of us were all together in Rome, the day before our departure, we tried to make the reservations again.  After waiting in line for half an hour, the man at the ticket booth said that all of the trains for the entire day were booked.  He was very helpful, for once, but there was no possible way to leave.  And we needed to be on those trains, or else we wouldn’t make any of our reservations for the rest of the trip.

Thankfully, those with a will and a way persevere.  While Amber and I waited in line, Matt somehow found small regional trains that did not need reservations to get to Milan.  From there, Milan to Zurich to Reutlingen is our only way home, but we managed to make it.  We needed one reservation, and we got 4 of the last 6 seats available. Whew!  We were on trains from 6 am to 11 pm, but we made it home.

Lesson learned: Have a plan, be flexible, and make train reservations.