Email: info@railpassdeals.com
How The Eurail Train Pass Companies Fared...
After comparing both sites over the past few years, it was now time to put both through more vigorous testing. Both have maintained their excellent online reputations through first-class service which has historically been their key strengths. Together with the fact their pricing structures adhere to the standard set out by the European Transport Commission, they ran a very close two horse race.
Both sites have recently been redesigned which gives a user-friendly interface. RailEurope had a particularly sublime layout which put information at our fingertips within seconds of a product search. It's clean navigation menus and everything-in-one-place set up cuts through the confusion quite rapidly. STA's site was very well put together having a travel planner like RailEurope - it did however lose points in the selection area as they didn't offer the same fare selection RailEurope did; with the latter specializing in European train travel fares.
They also added an Overview and FAQ section to each ticket for a more informative experience. In a nutshell, RailEurope was the most comprehensive site we tested.
Their bonuses and special offers were original and very handy for travelers. For example, they offered one special where you received an international calling card. Their pricing charts are now all in one convenient location and you simply click the tabs to skip from one layout to another for the same fare. EG: If you want to price out Flexi and Consecutive type passes, you simply click the tabs for that fare.
STA's on the other hand, displayed very tedious price per day tables which got a little confusing at times when one is trying to cost out their trip. The total price was only visible when you wished to place your order but by then, you lose the other features of the site.
RailEurope however, wasn't without it's flaws either. Their tickets for Britain were hard to find and we only managed to find them when we did a search. They weren't listed on their menus. This may not be of any consequence if you're not traveling there, however we felt a popular destination like that should ideally be more prominent.
They were also slightly slow in responding to our requests at times (we sent them many to test consistency). As the largest online vendor, we understand they are inundated with queries so under the circumstances, they performed satisfactorily. Just don't expect a reply within an hour.
What STA did have over RailEurope is being a very comprehensive and turnkey type of site, they offered complete travel packages - air fares, rail, hotel and car rental - they had it all there so you can book everything in one place.
With fare prices identical between the two, it's going to get down to how much of your trip you have already planned. RailEurope will give you the absolutely most detailed info re your trip and STA will make arranging your trip much easier.
In the end, you are looking at the internet's top two online European train ticket merchants. Although they are not perfect, they are heads and shoulders above anyone else we reviewed.
Overall, our Editor had to make a selection. Although STA performed very admirably across most key areas, the sheer detail and abundance of info on RailEurope's site with regards to specific European train tickets got it over the line. Given such a tight race, our Editor marginally awarded top pick to Rail Europe for 2010.
|
||||
|
||||