Questions about BIJ

[Brody]

Hey. I've read about BIJ tickets on this site and in my guidebook and it seems like a good option for me. I understand that you can only buy BIJ tickets in Europe at rail stations and select travel agencies and that you must stick to one route. But I have a few more questions about them:

Is a BIJ ticket just 1 ticket like a railpass, or is it a series of point-to-point tickets that you buy as you go along?

If it's the latter, how does the purchasing process differ from regular PTP tickets?

Do I just go to the ticket window and ask for BIJ and automatically get the discount?

How do I prove I'm sticking to one route?

Can someone explain how it would work for my route, and whether it would be my best option?

London -> Paris (via Eurostar)
Paris -> Nice -> Cinque Terre -> Venice -> Florence -> Rome

Thanks so much!

[BigRay]

I am not exactly sure if we are talking about the same thing here, but I always buy international train tickets from BIJ/Wasteels here in Prague. They are a company that sells train tickets and have offices in many of the major rail stations.

There is nothing special about a BIJ ticket. It is just a plain point-to-point ticket. The benefit of using them is that they provide great, friendly service and are generally fluent in English.

Ray

[Brody]

Ok, that's what I figured.

But what's up with the restriction that I've heard of which requires you to stick to a prescribed route?

[BigRay]

tickets are usually only good for certain kinds of trains. these trains sometimes take specific routes. your ticket will be from point-to-point via a certain route.

for example, Prague to Budapest generally goes through Bratislava. However, there is another train that goes instead through Vienna. This latter train is a different fare class than the first one, so a ticket for the first route will be insufficient. I believe you can still take the alternate route, but will have to pay a supplement.

Basically, a point-to-point ticket is from point A to point B. What they are trying to avoid is A to B via C, D and E. (Though you can stop at places along your prescribed route.)

Hope this helps,
Ray

[Brody]

Thanks so much Ray, that does help.

Last question: do you have any idea how I can get a general idea on how much a BIJ ticket from Paris to Nice would cost?

[BigRay]

There is a high-speed TGV train line connecting Paris and Nice. The under 26, one-way price is either 64 or 82 euros, depending on which train you take. I think it helps to book in advance and/or travel with someone else to get a cheaper price. At times, you may be able to find a cheap flight to cover this route.

For train information and prices, you can check:
www.wasteels.com

Cheers,
Ray