Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings usually open: up to 6 months ahead of the travel date - but this period of time is shorter when looking up journeys in August to October.
However, if you book more than 4 months ahead, you may only see more expensive tickets, than are typically offered on this route.
A choice of tickets
Three types of tickets are available:
Two types of discounted tickets, which will be cheaper the further ahead you book - Sparpreis Europa and Super Sparpreis Europa
One type of non-discounted ticket - Flexpreis Europa.
A key difference between these types of tickets is refunds:
- Super Sparpreis tickets are cheapest, but they can't be refunded at all.
- Sparpreis tickets can be refunded for a fee, but the refund will be in the form of travel vouchers to be used for alternative / future journeys.
- Flexpreis Europa tickets can be refunded at no additional charge.
The other key difference is that both types of Sparpreis tickets are only valid on the specific departures selected when booking, but both types of Flexpreis tickets live up to their name, as they can be used on any departure on your travel date.
Note that none of the tickets can be exchanged to a different departure.
There's no need for this to be available for Flexpreis Europa tickets, as they aren't train departure specific.
If you book a Sparpreis Europa ticket and want to travel by a different departure you can refund it and then use the travel voucher towards the cost of the new booking.
Super Sparpreis Europa tickets can't be exchanged or refunded.
The Sparpreis, Flexpreis and Flexpreis Plus tickets also include 'City tickets', which can be used on public transport between locations in Munchen city centre and Munchen Hbf.
Booking on the DB website
You can find these direct trains more easily by making a proactive selection of 'Direct Trains Only'.
Or to see all the combinations of trains and journey options, some of which may be cheaper, take off the 'fastest connections' default.
Trains departing at different times can be cheaper than others leaving on the same day, so if you can be flexible with your departure time use the 'best prices' tool - at the top right on the list of journey options.
Travelling from Munchen Ost station:
When making a booking online on DB it uses ‘Munich (München)’ as a default for looking up journeys from the city in the ‘From’ box.
But it is possible to select München Ost as the ‘From’ station (you need to use the German spelling with the character (the umlaut) over the ‘u’).
You won’t save any money by booking from München Ost, but the departure time of your train from Munchen Ost will be on your ticket.
Booking agents, when looking up Munchen to Bologna journeys, will see that the fastest journey from Munchen is from Munchen Ost, so can assume that this is where you want to join the train.
So if you're using an agent confirm whether your ticket has been booked from Munchen Hbf or Munchen Ost; particularly if you do want to join the train at Munchen Hbf.
Rail Pass Users:
When taking this journey [when using 'global' Eurail or Interrail passes]https://www.interrail.eu/en/plan-your-trip/reservations/trains-with-additional-supplements) a supplement is required of €15 in 1st class and €10 in 2nd class.
However, the supplement is not a seat reservation
You can purchase the supplements on the Eurail reservation service or the Interrail reservation service and a seat reservation will also be included - though you will be charged a €2 booking fee per reservation, per person.
If you book the supplement for journeys to Italy by these trains, at the Reisezentrum desk at Munchen Hbf (or at any hauptbahnhof in Germany), you won't be charged a booking fee, but will also have to pay seat reservation charges of €4.90 in 2nd class and €5.90 in 1st class
If you pay for the seat reservation online on the DB (German Railways) website, it won't include the supplement that's charged for journeys to Italy.
When you have occupied your reserved seat you can buy the supplement from the train conductor, but when doing so there is an additional charge of €5.
Or you can avoid paying this comparatively expensive rail reservation fee by taking this alternative journey option.
