Hi! I’m a first time traveler to Germany and leaving for another country via DB I hope someone here could help with my query.

Do I have to buy another ticket if I can’t use mine on the day indicated? I’m supposed to be traveling to Paris on a train from Munich on the 19th but some flight cancellations happened and now I have to change the day of my trip.

Google translate says my ticket is valid until the 21st; can I still use my ticket until the 21st or would I have to buy another one? What does the validity date mean in DB terms? I’m uploading my ticket details for clarity.

Any help would be super appreciated!

by oooabby

3 comments

  1. Note that it is only valid till 21st 3:00. The validity period is 2 days and 3 hours. For you that doesn’t matter though. A normal ticket is valid for this whole period. However you bought a discount (Super Sparpreis) ticket which reduces the validity of the ticket to the train mentioned at the Zugbindung section. If you want to take a later train you have to buy a new ticket.

  2. As a German I have to admit I don’t understand the validity range because you got a “Super Sparpreis ticket” with “Zugbindung” which means you got a discount for buying a ticket in advance but you have to take the exact train (date and time) for which you booked the ticket. Also “Super Sparpreis” is not refundable. Basically you pay extra to make it refundable.

    So, I’m really confused about the validity range at the top of your ticket.

    I guess Zugbindung only applies to the TGV (you have to take that TGV at the specified date and time, and not any other TGV) but for all other connecting trains (if there are any) the ticket is valid for three days … which seems of little value in this case.

  3. You bought a so called „Super Sparpreis“ ticket which is much cheaper than a regular ticket but it is only valid for the train indicated on the ticket: TGV 9576, 6:49am, July 19th

    So yes, unfortunately you need to buy a new ticket. The old one is also not refundable which again is also part of the reduced price for this type of ticket.

    You might get lucky if this particular train is significantly delayed or cancelled: In that case the ticket reverts to a regular ticket which can be used for any trains on that connection but that is unlikely.

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