Lufthansa Rail & Fly: The Best Airport Transfer in Germany
One of the lesser known ways to save both cash and peace of mind is to use Lufthansa’s Rail and Fly (Lufthansa Rail & Fly). If you are flying into any German destination from an international location, their program can help you reach your final destination with ease and flexibility. And the best part? You don’t have to be a member of their loyalty program in order to cash in. In fact, it’s one of the programs we frequently use for airport transfer in Germany with our family. Read more about Lufthansa’s Rail and Fly program and why you should be using it below.
What is Lufthansa Rail & Fly?
Working in cooperation with Germany’s Deutsche Bahn (German Railway System), you can book reduced fair flexible train tickets to help connect you to the airport or complete your journey to your final destination. In total, their program connects you with convenient travel from more than 5,6000 Deutsche Bahn railway stations to all the German airports served by Lufthansa. We think it’s the best airport transfer in Germany.
Overview of Benefits
FLEXIBILITY - Lufthansa Rail and Fly tickets are valid on the day of your flight as well as one day prior to departure and one day after your arrival in Germany.
CHOICE - You can take the train that works best for you. With the Lufthansa Rail & Fly program you have free choice of trains - including IC/EC (InterCity, EuroCity) and ICE (InterCity Express) trains. Read more about the differences between these trains here.
Brief Overview of Conditions
Here brief overview of the important conditions when using Lufthansa Rail & Fly:
A Lufthansa Rail & Fly ticket is only valid when in combination with an international flight. In other words, you cannot purchase a Lufthansa Rail and Fly ticket if your flight is only between Munich and Dusseldorf).
Children under 2 years old travel free of charge with a guardian who holds a Lufthansa Rail & Fly ticket.
Children between the ages of 2 and 12 will receive a 50% reduction in the fare price.
Lufthansa Rail & Fly tickets are non refundable.
Black Forest Family Tip
Regardless of whether you use a Lufthansa Rail and Fly ticket or choose another mode of transportation to get you to the airport, you should always make sure that your connection enables you to arrive at your departure airport at least two hours before your flight, even if there is a delay. Importantly, Lufthansa accepts no responsibility for missed flights due to the delayed arrival of a bus or train - and their trains can be notoriously late.
How do I purchase a Lufthansa Rail And Fly Ticket?
You have two options available to purchase a Lufthansa Rail & Fly ticket in order to complete your airport transfer in Germany.
Much like selecting your seat or adding on additional luggage to your ticket reservation, Lufthansa Rail & Fly tickets may be easily added to your flight reservation during booking. Just let them know if you would like these tickets for your inbound or outbound flight, or both!
However, if you aren’t certain on your connection plans just yet, you don’t need to purchase your Lufthansa Rail & Fly ticket right away. You can always call their customer service center or add a Rail & Fly ticket online to your existing reservation within 72 hours of departure.
What Airlines Partner With Rail & Fly?
Currently there is a long list of airlines which partner with Deutsche Bahn Rail & Fly to get you to your destination. Go here to see an up to date list from Deutsche Bahn.
If the Rail & Fly partner airline does not have an option to purchase directly when booking your flight, call their customer service to book your train ticket.
How Lufthansa Rail & Fly Saves You Money and Peace of Mind
If you ask us, one of the best things about using Lufthansa Rail and Fly is that it takes the guesswork out of which train ticket to purchase following an international flight.
Every year Jonathan and I log roughly 10-15 international flights between the two of us. Even with the best of luck, we’ve run into our fair share of weather or mechanical flight delays. Whether this delay is a couple of hours or an entire day, it is par for the course when you frequently fly.
In order to avoid missing the train to connect you to your final destination, you can certainly purchase a Deutsche Bahn flexible ticket. In some scenarios, such as booking months in advance, certain tickets may be more affordable than Lufthansa Rail & Fly’s offerings for your airport transfer in Germany.
Let’s compare the prices and options.
Deutsche Bahn: Flexpreis (Flex Fare) Ticket
What it is: A flexible train ticket that allows you to pick a train that best suits your schedule on the date of reservation. Also allows for exchange or cancellation free of charge before the first date of validity. Allows for stopovers within 24 hours as long as the start and stop stations are adhered to. Includes the use of city transportation (s-bahn/street car or busses on dates of validity).
Deutsche Bahn: Sparangebote (Saver Fare) Ticket
What it is: Use on a specific train at a specific time on a specific date. Cancellation for a fee. No stopover. Includes the use of city transportation (s-bahn/street car or busses on dates of validity).
Example:
We looked ahead approximately 2 months for a second-class train ticket for an adult (non-discount) between our home of Freiburg im Breisgau and Frankfurt Airport. Like many travelers, we wanted to find a ticket that was for an ICE train (high-speed) with no changes in order to get us to the airport the fastest.
As you can see, the flexible ticket costs you 61,70 EUR for a one-way ticket to the airport.
As you can see, selecting a “saver fare” versus a flexible ticket will save you 37.80 EUR. However, the saver fare does not allow for any flexibility on train choice and changes do incur a fee (10 euros).
Alternatively, you can also book a Lufthansa Rail and Fly ticket.
Here, you can see that a Lufthansa Rail & Fly second class, adult ticket costs 30 euros (per direction, outbound or inbound).
This is less than half the price of the Deutsche Bahn Flex Ticket!
Granted, you could still select a saver fare and save a little bit of cash. However, the saver fare does not allow for flexibility in case your travel plans change or if there are any delays.
We think it’s an incredible deal given the added benefit of peace of mind. Should we decide that we want to take the train to Frankfurt earlier (or even the night before!) to catch our flight, we would be able to do so with a Lufthansa Rail & Fly ticket.
Using Lufthansa Rail & Fly After Booking
When Booking Online at Lufthansa.com
Following your online booking of your Lufthansa Rail & Fly ticket, you will receive a confirmation email with a link that takes you to your train ticket. Make sure to print out this ticket and take it with you on the train, along with the means of identification you entered during the booking.
Important: for joint bookings for several passengers, only one Lufthansa Rail & Fly online ticket is generated. All the passengers must travel on the same train.
When Booking via Travel Agency or Lufthansa Customer Service Center
If you booked with a travel agent or added the Rail & Fly ticket to your reservation later by calling the Lufthansa Customer Service Center, there is a bit more leg work needed before your trip.
While you may have received a confirmation email confirming your Rail & Fly ticket purchase - this is not an acceptable ticket for Deutsche Bahn conductors checking your tickets on the train.
Within 72 hours of your flight, simply go to the website www.accesrail.com/checkin and enter your name and either your ticket number or your booking code. You will then print out your train ticket with scannable bar code.
Finally, to find the best train connection for your airport transfer in Germany, visit Deutsche Bahn’s website.
