Belgium Rail Passes and Train Tips

By Rick Steves

Are rail passes a good value for Belgium?

Most visits to Belgium don't cover enough miles to justify buying a rail pass, even if you're visiting the Netherlands as well. But if your Belgian travels are part of a much wider-ranging trip, a Global Pass might well pan out (just keep in mind that extra seat-reservation fees are required on the region's high-speed Thalys trains). If you decide against a pass, see our general tips for buying point-to-point tickets in Europe.

How do I see whether a rail pass makes sense for my trip in particular?

Map shows approximate costs, in $US, for one-way, second-class tickets. For first-class fares, add 50 percent.

Use this map to add up approximate pay-as-you-go fares for your itinerary, and compare that cost to the price of a rail pass for the number of days you expect to spend on the train.

Also, follow the links below for:

• More tips for figuring out whether a pass makes sense for your trip
• The basics on choosing among rail passes
• More tips on how to save money by fine-tuning your rail pass
• Advice on deciding between first and second class
• Fare-estimate maps outside Benelux
• Answers to frequently asked rail-pass questions

What are my options for rail passes that cover Belgium?

Tiny Belgium doesn't have a single-country pass all to itself, but shares a regional "Benelux" pass that also covers the Netherlands and Luxembourg.

Benelux Eurail Pass (3 countries)

Eurail Global Pass (33 countries) → read more about this pass

►Rail Europe shopping cart: Have an order underway? Review and complete it here.

Do I need to make seat reservations on Belgian trains?

For the most part, you can hop on nearly any Belgian train with just your rail pass in hand. But the fast Thalys trains that run between Brussels and Amsterdam, Cologne/Dortmund, and Paris do require paid reservations, which cost $25–35 if traveling with a Global Pass. (Point-to-point tickets also cost more on Thalys trains than other trains on these routes.) On Brussels–Amsterdam and Brussels–Cologne/Dortmund trains, you can avoid this extra cost simply by choosing a regular non-Thalys train, which doesn't require seat reservations. The Brussels–Paris direct route, however, is served only by Thalys trains — reserve as far ahead as possible for that stretch.

Pricey seat reservations are also required on the Eurostar trains that connect Brussels with London (see below).

What do rail passes cover in Belgium?

Rail passes cover all travel on trains run by the SNCB, Belgium's national railway. Passes also cover the privately run Thalys trains (see above), but only the Eurail Global Pass covers Eurostar trains across the English Channel between London and Brussels (passholder reservations cost about $35 in Standard class or $45 in Standard Premier, in addition to starting use of a rail pass travel day).

No passes cover the privately run train between Brussels Airport and the city center, nor the European Sleeper overnight train between Brussels/Antwerp and Berlin.

Any tips for buying point-to-point train tickets in Belgium?

If a rail pass doesn't pencil out for your trip, you may be able to shave off the cost of your train tickets with some local deals. For example, seniors (65 and older) can hop any train for just €6 round-trip, provided it's not a high-speed express (or Thalys) train, and provided it's not a weekday before 9 a.m. Youths (25 and younger) can take advantage of a similar deal on etickets.

The SNCB app makes it easy to buy tickets on the go — your digital ticket appears in the app immediately after purchase.

All orders for passes and tickets are fulfilled by Rail Europe (not by Rick Steves' Europe). For customer-service questions, contact them online (or call 800 622 8600, but expect long waits and periods of unavailability at the call desk) — and keep in mind that refund options are fairly limited.